Kazumi Sushi Lounge is situated in the east of Montreal. We actually took an extra mile to travel all the way there hoping for great sushi. Why? My mom saw some amazing pictures and thought it would an unforgettable experience.

It started nicely and it changed its course half way through.

We had the omakase, which consists of 6 services upon chef’s choices. The waitress told us it would be the most popular dishes. Ummm… I totally forget to tell her my preference in sushi…Since “popular dishes” usually mean what their clientele ordered the most, I don’t think I belong to their targeted clientele.

The miso soup was a great surprise. It had generous portions of seafoods such as scallop, salmon and shrimps. Not the usual tradional miso soup, but I really liked it. It was just perfect for the cold weather. It could even be one of the top miso soups I had.

This octopus salad was splendid as well! The dressing was nice at first, but near the end of the dish, the sourness was a bit too overwhelming.

This semi raw salmon was delicious as well. Swimming in a sweet and sour liquid very similar to the salad dressing, the salmon were slightly blazed on the top; this technique of cooking did not add much to the taste.

These tartar served on a deep fried Japanese mint leaf were spectacular for presentation, but it was rather difficult to eat it without having the tartar falling all over the place. I think I would have liked this more if the tartar was served alone without the deep fried leaf. The fried leaf did not taste freshly fried. It seemed like it was fried for a while and it soaked so much oil that once eaten, the oil was still caught on the tongue and the throat.

Deceived a bit, we were served something that seemed to be light. Wrong. The shrimp tempura was taking over the whole maki flavor. The grease was so strong that the rice that was wrapping around it couldn’t even compensate it.

To end it all, we had another fried dish. My mom did not even bother to touch it. I took a bite…and afterwards, I had to take out all the fried part and ate what was suppose to be the filling… But even then, I couldn’t handle it anymore. There were bits of fried tempura bits in the filling as well.

Maybe their clientele loves fried sushi. I am very difficult with fried food, especially with sushi. So far, I have only tried one fried sushi that I actually liked which was from Kanda (go figure…it was so good I ate the whole roll).

For me to accept fried food, the grease should not clog my throat. And Kazumi’s sushi did exactly that. It could be my fault that I did not warn the waitress that I do not specifically enjoy fried sushi, but I should expect that whatever they decide to serve should be nicely good.

I don’t think I will be returning to Kazumi, especially it’s not around my area. With what I have paid for this omakase, I rather paid 10$ more and go to Park restaurant.

Zuuchini

To welcome back my friend to his homeland, we decided to go to Olive & Gourmando for brunch. Plus, I have always wanted to return since I had such a good experience with their Cubain sandwich.

First thing first. Coffee was a must for my attendees to feel awake.

Sadly, my opinion differs from my mom, who thinks the coffee was extraordinary. I must have been spoiled by my work’s coffee machine… Although, I do agree it was pretty to look at!

#24 Salad

Paying 16$ for this salad was well worth it. Totally refreshing! It may look little, but it was quite filling since there were soba noodles. The sauce was the winning point of the salad. Being sweet and sour, it simply made the salad so appetizing.

Poached egg on your face panini

This panini was pure goodness. I simply wished it was actually my order. It came hot. The cheese was goey. The tomatoes were juicy. Any stomach would be happy to receive this panini to start the day!

My illogical brain told me that I should get the Cajun chicken sandwich to compensate the cold weather. Yes. Cold against cold. The results were obvious. I did not enjoy it much. I desperately wished that it came hot. Then, I think it would become a wonderful sandwich. Although some would say that it shouldn’t be good if it’s served hot as it has avocado. Well, simply toast the bread and then add the fillings!

And of course, with the charming pastries greeting you at the entrance, it was almost impossible not to order any…

Pumpkin cupcake. It was fine, but I wouldn’t have any additional ones. Tasted it, move on.

Same here. Apple muffin. I can walk away…

I have yet tried a tasty pastry at Olive & Gourmando. Better luck next time!

I really think Olive & Gourmando make amazing hot paninis and salad. And I still think summertime it’s a a better time to go with their opened windows.

Zuuchini

Taste MTL is all about quality menu for affordable cost.

Early on, many restaurants were already fully booked. I can understand why as many up scale restaurants were offering a generous menu for only 40$!  It’s the perfect time to try out expensive restaurants where I usually wouldn’t go unless it’s for a special occasion.

Sadly, my top choices were fully booked. So Smoking Vallee was chosen. 19$ for 3 services and it’s a BYOB! Deal!

Smoking Vallee is situated on Notre-Dame, not too far away from Atwater market. It seems like this part of the street is slowly developing into something trendy.  Once I entered to the restaurant, I felt the ambiance of  a mixture of Old Port and Mont-Royal.

The menu was easy. 2 choices to choose from for every service. My table decided to try everything!

Potage du moment which was a pumpkin soup. It was good, but unremarkable. The play on the flavors was weak. But I really enjoyed the light yet creaminess of the soup. It could be served a bit warmer.

On the other hand, this appetizer was much more appreciated. The different layers of ingredients made the taste much more interesting. It has smoked saumon layered with a thinly sliced pear, that added crunchiness and sweetness. At the bottom, there was a slice of beet which was on top of the goat cheese, that added more saltiness.

For the main course, there was tuna tartar. The fried herbs made the tuna tartar very different from other tartars I had. Lightly battered and fried, the herbs added more texture to the tuna. And the little hint of caviars here and there simply made the dish very fun to eat.

The pork chop was definitely a surprise. Not only I rarely see it being served, it was perfectly cooked. I am too used to braised pork, where the meat is super tender without much structure. This pork chop was different. It was thick but juicy.

As desserts, there were parfait and creme brulee.

The parfait was ordinary. I felt I was eating greek yogurt with a few fruits.

The creme brulee was unique. Unlike traditional ones, it was orange flavored and very liquid except the burnt top.

Smoking Vallee was a fun experience. But to come back paying the full price, I will have to think again. But BYOB does help!

Zuuchini

I would have never came across Flyjin if it wasn’t their kind invitation. It is easy to miss Flyjin if I didn’t know the address. It doesn’t help that it has an obscure door leading to the underground.

To be honest, once I arrived, I felt that there was too much thought process on the atmosphere and the decor that the food would be compromised. I was told that it was a fusion of many asian cuisines, and also like an izakaya. Once I heard that its concept is Izakaya, I was weary. This new trend of Izayaka is showing up everywhere, and is never executed in its true form.

Luckily, my first impression was quickly dissipated once the dishes presented themselves…

Sacree Printemps

I wanted something sweet and sour. And I was served exactly that. Actually, the sourness of the yuzu was so smooth that it left nothing acidic on the tongue nor the throat. I can hardly taste the alcohol, but it was present (the effect did not take long to kick in). Definitely a drink I would order again.

Yellow Snake

This was sour and smooth as well. But not comparable to Sacree Printemps.

Flyjin Spicy Seafood Soup

I don’t know about the the spicy part, but I can agree with the seafood part. Both soups were different and can be identified by the seafood served on the top of the soup. The one that has a lobster is almost like a lobster bisque, very infused with lobster flavor. I was a bit disappointed with the claw as I find it a bit too cooked. The other soup is served with salmon, although I cannot take the salmon broth, I preferred it over to the lobster one.

Both were generously filled with scallops. Unlike the lobster claw, the scallops kept their fresh texture.

Flyjin Tropical Salad

This salad is inspired from south eastern asia, where the unripe papayas are cut into thin slices. These salads are difficult to taste to bad. However, I wasn’t impressed as it was missing…character. I think with a pinch of freshly diced chili pepper would really bring out the “characters” of the salad. While I was eating this, I was reminiscing how much I loved Satay Brothers papaya salad…

Lobster Gyoza

Like I had mentioned before, I am not fond of Japanese gyozas. Their skin is always made too thin. I prefer a thicker (not too thick) texture to achieve optimal crispness! However, compared to all the Japanese gyozas I had, I have to admit that the Gyozas at Flyjin were quite good. But, I couldn’t taste the lobster. Despite its shininess, I did not have a cluttered throat, which simply means the oiliness is rightfully handled.

A variety of Japanese oysters

This was my first time tasting Japanese oysters and they were delightfully sweet! One of them was a bit more herbal. Oysters cannot taste bad as long they are fresh. These took no time to finish!

Mignon tartare and salmon sashimi

This is a masterpiece. I was completed awed. Food is simply an artwork. I believe that this dish was combined with 2 dishes ( or even 3…). I have to confess that I was too attracted by its beauty to pay any attention of the description of the dish. I am bad…

The sashimi bowl was intricately and interestingly placed. When digged in further, there were further layers of miscellaneous fruits and vegetables. As for the sashimi, although freshness was not an issue, I wished they could be sliced in thicker. The cut was too thin for my full enjoyment.

There were also shrimps in the bowl. Those were rather dull…

The tartare tasted very different from anywhere I had; it must be due to the blueberry oil giving a floral taste to it. It was very delicious, comparable to Marche 27 quality.

I had such a fun time eating this dish. There were so many varieties. A real surf and turf! I could jump from one place to another. It was as if the chefs knew my palate!

There were 3 different sauces to be accompanied with my surf and turf. I didn’t use them much, but they were very tasty.

I added the following picture (taken by Flyjin itself) because I thought their picture was much better than mine to showcase how beautiful the dish was. I felt so lucky to have it!

from their Instagram

For the finale, of course, I had dessert…S. There is bound to be one that you like! My favorite was the most right one, the white looking one.  To say I knew exactly what I was eating was a lie. All I can remember that it was very moist, which is my preference for cakes.  For the others, they weren’t very particular.

What I really liked about the desserts is the little strawberry chocolate shaped like a mountain used as separator from the cakes. I love them! They can be bought in asian grocery stores!

To conclude the meal, we had Stairway to Buddha and Deep Clover Leaf. It wa sa bad idea to have them, I didn’t enjoy them a bit, I think it was because I just had dessert so I found the drinks to be very bitter and dry to swallow. But I heard Stairway to Buddha is a very popular drink. Another trend for drinks, burning cinnamon sticks.

My experience at Flyjin was a very pleasant one. The staff was helpful and not intimidating at all. The crowd is mostly young professional. Price is not cheap but well justified as it is situated in Old Port. The decor really enhances the overall experience. Flyjin is also suitable for dates, as they have prepared more private sitting areas for 2. I can definitely see myself coming back with a group of friends or even colleagues.

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Zuuchini