Ichiban

A birthday was upon us so we decided to go get a big platter of sushi and sashimi from Sushi Ichiban in south Scarborough.  This place has been existence for the past 20 years with its fresh sushi and sashimi and friendly service. 

When one walks into the place, there are only three small tables available to sit.  The staff no matter how busy they are will always say hello when you walk through the door and one of the policies at the restaurant is that if you are made to wait for more than fifteen minutes for your meal, you were treated with a free hand roll. 

We placed a take out order earlier in the day and told the lady that we would pick it up at five p.m.  When I got there at five there were four other people inside the place.  I thought they were going to be late however at 5:05 pm, my extra large platter was ready to go. 

We brought the platter back and opened it up.  There were about 100 pieces of sushi and sashimi on the tray.  Included were tuna fish, salmon and butterfish and various types of sushi and maki rolls.  As you can see in the picture, the entire large plate was packed from one end the other end.  There was really no room to spare.  

As many of my readers know, there are two things I look for, taste and freshness.  In the past, there has never been a moment where there has been bad sashimi or sushi from this place.  This time did not disappoint either.  The fish was neither frozen nor mushy.  The fish was nice and tender and the salmon was sweet tasting.  The rice used for the maki and sushi were nicely cooked unlike the last place I was at.  The rice was not soggy or wet and it held the contents well. 

There was also a different type of butterfish on the plate that I had never had before.  The next time I am at Sushi Ichiban I will be sure to ask them what it was.  Although there was the usual white butterfish, there was also a reddish yellow butterfish that was mouth watering and very tasty. 

Overall a great experience once again.  There is a reason why this place has been in business for over 20 years.  There may be a couple of times where they had to make the extra hand roll as they were late making the meals, but it was definitely all worth it.  The only thing that has always plagued this place is the lack of parking that sometimes occur at the front.  Otherwise it is a decent place and for an extra large platter that contained over a hundred pieces, it only cost me 90 dollars, tax included.  With fresh fish and great tasting sushi and sashimi you couldn’t have asked for more.  Strongly recommended I give this place a 4 out of 5. 

Sushi Ichiban

80 Ellesmere Road, Scarborough, ON M1R4C2
Phone: (416) 447-3250