Kamei on Broadway

Oh wow, this is a blast from the past...  Kamei on Broadway is back!  Ignore the signage in the picture because the Ebisu name is being phased out.  In fact, the location on Robson is not even affiliated with Kamei at all.  I remember dining at Kamei on Broadway when I was a kid and then came back when I was in University with my friends.  I was recently invited to see the new menu which is more creative and modern.  Loved walking up the steps from 8th Ave as it brought back so many memories.  Pro tip: park on 8th Ave for the fastest and most direct access to the restaurant.

To start, we were served the Salmon Carpaccio drizzled with ponzu, truffle mayo, purple onion, cucumber and fried garlic chips.  The thin slices of Atlantic salmon were fresh and buttery exhibiting a nice sheen.  There was just enough ponzu to flavour the fish while the drizzle of truffle mayo was restrained (a good thing).  I'm not sure if the purple onion was necessary as it was rather sharp-tasting.  Otherwise, this was a solid dish.  

Next, we tried the Hamachi Bombs that were minimum 2 per order.  They consisted of yellowtail sashimi, serrano pepper, avocado, ginger, micro greens, pepper threads and truffled ponzu sauce.  The trick with this dish is to mix everything together, add a squeeze of lime and hopefully stuff everything into your mouth for one bite.  I was able to do that and it was bright, tangy and lightly sweet with a touch of spice.

We also had the Seafood Chawanmushi with prawn, mushroom and ginkgo nuts topped with salmon roe.  This might've been a small serving, but it was packed with ingredients.  Nestled inside were 2 fairly large shrimp which were delicate with a meaty snap.  Plenty of mushrooms and ginkgo nuts as well.  They were hidden within a delicate steamed egg custard which was lightly seasoned and sweet.

Onto something that was a real mind-bender because it looked suspiciously like an okonomiyaki.  Well, it had the ingredients of said dish, but underneath, it wasn't a pancake.  Rather, it was mountain yam.  Now this could be confusing for some who have never had mountain yam because the texture is akin to sticky mashed daikon.  I have had it before and I don't mind it, especially when the Yamaimo Teppan is topped with mayo, takoyaki sauce, ginger and bonito flakes.

If there was a dish that begged to be eaten, it was the Wagyu Wonder Bowl.  Look at it, don't you want to eat it???  It sported rice in a hot stone bowl topped with fatty wagyu, a slice of foie gras, egg and kabayaki sauce.  Oh man...  I loved this as even though this sat for awhile, the bowl was hot enough to create a socarrat.  The fatty beef and the foie just made this so luxurious.  So much umaminess from the fat which was nicely accented by the sweet sauce.

Of all the dishes, I really wanted to try the Kani Miso Udon because it had a fried soft-shell crab on top.  Loved the visuals!   The udon was bathed in a creamy red snow crab miso sauce with salmon roe, shiso and nori.  This was much more subtle than I was expecting, but it was still delicious.  I could get the natural sweetness of the ingredients while the miso was not overpowering.  

We decided to add a few dishes on our own dime because they looked so good on the menu!  The Alaskan Sablefish was quite the value at $26.00 because of the portion size.  But the preparation was also on point.  It was perfectly prepared being buttery and flaky. It was inherently flavourful from the miso saikyo sauce.  It was served atop mushroom dashi rice and crispy veggies on the side.

Lastly, but definitely not least, the Kanagawa Wave was beautifully plated featuring lightly grilled ika, toro, hamachi, red tuna, sockeye salmon, oysters, ebi and hotate.  On the side, there was freshly grated real wasabi, purees (plum, miso & nori) and salts (smoky, matcha and house seasoning).  All of the sashimi was fresh and vibrant.  Loved the real wasabi (as it tastes good rather than just being sharp like the fake stuff).  Interesting flavour combos from the salts and purees.  Honestly, this was a treat to be back a the original Kamei on Broadway.  It is also nice to see new menu items and creative ways of presenting dishes.

*Partial comp on the food and drinks*

The Good:
- Hey, it's Kamei on Broadway! OG Japanese spot in Vancity.
- Reasonable pricing with all things considered
- Good execution on dishes

The Bad:
- Renos are needed to modernize
- Address should really be 8th Ave as people get confused when they show up on Broadway looking for the restaurant