| It is with a certain sense of remorse that I review Wa’s. Why you may ask? I guess it is because I have always thought of it as a secret Calgary restaurant gem. Selfishly, I don’t want it to become too well-known. With a friendly staff and the freshest fish, Wa’s is the best in town.
One of my favourite things about Wa’s is its eclectic style. Upon ordering hot sake, your server will bring you a basket of sake cups to choose from. It’s kind of like going to the dentist when you are five and getting to pick out a toy after being good in the chair.
Another interesting libation Wa’s offers is Japanese vodka and soda with fruit. Vodka and soda is accompanied with a glass citrus juicer. Choose from fresh grapefruit, lime, lemon or orange to freshly squeeze into your drink ($4.95).
Tucked into an obscure corner of town located just off 16th Avenue N.W. on Centre Street, the restaurant is decorated in an authentically Japanese style and accommodates approximately 40 people. If you are looking for a modern, upscale dining room, Wa’s isn’t the place. The focus is definitely on the premium food. Reservations are recommended on weekends, as it is always busy.
Diving right in, my lady friend and I started with the agedashi deep-fried tofu with seaweed ($3.75) and the sunomono salad ($4.50). The tofu garnished with white and green onions, fish flakes and seaweed placed in a tempura-style broth was mouth watering. I am definitely not the biggest fan of tofu, but this dish was a wonderful surprise. The sunomono ebi (prawn), tai (red snapper) and tako (octopus) combined with fresh cucumber, rice noodles and seaweed in a home-made vinegar sauce was superb, beautifully presented and the vinegar did not overpower the other ingredients, which is definitely key to a good sunomono. For our last appetizer, we tried the yasai kakiage ($7), a shredded vegetable tempura. This was the only disappointment of our meal, as it was overdone, taking away from the usual airiness of tempura. The presentation of the dish is interesting, however, with three large chunks of combined vegetables shredded tempura-style and served with tempura sauce.
For our entrees, we opted to order an array of sushi and sashimi. Wa’s offers a full Japanese menu from ramen noodle soups to don bowls and a "western style" page of the menu which really isn’t western at all – it contains interesting and obscure dishes like Maguro and Avocado Pirikarae ($8), a fresh tuna dish served with avocado in a spicy sauce.
Kicking off our tour-de-force sushi-a-thon we tasted a house-specialty roll called The Volcano ($7.75), a mini cake-like bed of rice garnished with smoked salmon, green onions, flying fish roe and drizzled with a spicy cream sauce. It was deliciously spicy, unorthodox and creatively presented. Make sure you ask for a spoon to share this dish, as it won’t fit your chopsticks.
We also chose a small selection of sashimi. With pieces ranging from $1.30 to $4, you will not be disappointed with any of the selections. The raw scallop (hotategai) was melt-in-your-mouth bliss, the steamed octopus (tako) was supple and fresh, the yellowtail (hamachi) had a light smoky flavour with a soft rich texture and the red tuna (AKA maguro) was sweet and smooth.
Nearly ready to burst, we had to have one more roll, The Flames Roll. Comprised of prawn tempura, cucumber, chili sauce and topped with smoked salmon and thinly sliced lemon ($8), it’s a zinger of a roll. The spicy chili sauce and hints of lemon together make for a delectable dish.
I love Wa’s and want the world to know it.
Wa’s is located at 2-1721 Centre Street, N.W.; phone, 277-2077. |
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