Vancouver is indisputably a Japanese food haven in Canada. How could I possibly end my izakaya journey after Kingyo? So, Rajio was the next destination, which is under the same management as Kingyo.

I already felt so confident that I would be blown away!

Rajio’s decor was not as impressive as Kingyo, but I felt I dining on the side street in Japan under a hot summer evening. The air conditionner was barely functional, so that helped the scenario.

To freshen up, we quickly ordered a pineapple pina colada! Yes, this was an entire pineapple! On every table, there was either the watermelon or pineapple cocktail. Watermelon seemed to be the most popular choice, too mainstream so I opted for a pineapple cocktail. And it tasted heavenly! I could imagine myself with this on a beach chair, sun tanning beside the pool. I became very difficult with cocktails lately, but this one just had the magic touch.

To continue the “freshen up” theme because the a/c was almost non-existent, we ordered this cute named dish “freshest sa-sea-mi salad”. It was a play of chirashi salad, mainly sashimi and nested underneath was romaine lettuce. It was so delicious. The table beside us saw how much we enjoyed it and immediately order one as well.

This kimchi udon was a delight! It was creamy, but not overboard and paired with kimchi, it became extraordinary. I found that sometimes, pan-fried udon could be a disappoint sometimes given the texture of udon could be lost during the cooking process. But, this udon texture was kept intact.

Equally as good was this grilled squid. Perfection! Although it could not taste any better, we took it for granted due to a local Japanese restaurant in Montreal could easily do that as well.

This picture probably isn’t the best picture out there to show these amazing sushi. I simply couldn’t bother to capture a few more as I had to jump right in! They were exceptional! Just let the menu description speak:

Aburi shimi-saba sushi (at the front)
“Nourishing mackerel cured with Hokkaido kelp and vinegar is lightly seared and drizzled with sesame mustard soy”

Aburi toro avocado battera (at the back)
“Lightly seared, pressed Canadian Albacore tuna-toro sushi with a thin layer of avocado, shiso herb for an accent and original seaweed sauce”

It was like an orchestra playing in my tastebuds Just beautiful…

As if the meal was not going well enough, we had this awesome fluffy mousse tiramisu cake. I actually don’t exactly recall what dessert it was exactly, but that is fine because these desserts changed very often. All I remember is that I was in awe and in the contemplation if a second one should be ordered.

In the end, eating in the heat was not even an issue anymore. Please welcome me to the Rajio’s club!