Steve's Poke Bar

To be brutally honest, I've been actually turned off by the rush of poke spots opening all over the Lower Mainland.  There have been so many in seemingly random locations, I haven't and don't want to keep track.  Besides, most are not really poke at all.  In Hawaii, poke is a simple concoction of fish, sliced onion, soy, sesame oil and a few other ingredients here and there.  What we have in Vancouver and most of the mainland USA is a poke salad for lack of a better description.  I have no problem with that honestly because restaurants have to adapt to the local tastes in order to appeal to the most amount of customers.  Personally, I just don't have a keen interest in that, but I will eat it if the opportunity presents itself.  So with a Groupon in hand, I visited Steve's Poke Bar (which incidentally boasts authentic poke).

I ended up getting 3 customized bowls for the fam with regular sushi rice underneath.  The rice was rather warm, so transporting the cold fish on top with the lid covered did result in some temperature changes.  I recommend eating this on-site or at the very least as soon as possible.  Other than being authentic, one more thing sets Steve's apart from most of the other poke spots in town.  They provided all the sauces and condiments for one to customize for themselves.  For me, that is a real plus since you can really make it your own and if you wanted to add more flavour later, you can just walk on back up and add more (assuming you are eating in).

I found the fish quality at Steve's to be very good with a natural sweetness and essence that was fresh-tasting.  Textures were on point with buttery salmon with a bite and equally buttery tuna that was tender, yet not mushy.  I thought the spicy versions were balanced and provided enough spice for impact without overwhelming the delicate ingredients.  Mind you, one could make it spicier with the sauces provided.  With Steve's, one can technically have an authentic poke bowl (can also do that at other places as well) by just keeping it simple.  But if you must have a salad or more variety, they do have a variety of toppings as well.   As you can see, I did add a decent amount of toppings (as I've said, I don't mind this), however, you can do the authentic way too.  I rather enjoyed Steve's Poke Bar and will definitely go back.

The Good:
- Authentic, if you want
- Serve-yourself sauces and condiments
- On point fish

The Bad:
- Rice was a bit too warm
- This location is best for those who either go to SFU or live up there, parking is expensive