Sushi Kawa

Went here for a friends birthday dinner and it was an especially special evening. The staff went above and beyond to ensure service was prompt and informative. They even treated us to extra goodies that no one even ordered free of charge. Will definitely be back.

Kind of horrible sushi. Would not recommend getting any sashimi because if the fish isn’t covered in mounds of sauce and avocado, it ain’t all that great. Definitely old and definitely low quality fish. May explain why it was so dead here on a Saturday night.
Service was really friendly though.
Also just a side note but dined on the outdoor patio with normally calm dog in tow and dog was freaking out. Place is possibly haunted. I don’t know, but dogs do.

The ladies and I always go to Hana sushi for lunch, but this time it was suggested to try somewhere new!
I wasn’t thrilled over this place. The service was super slow, the rolls were very heavy on the rice and just mediocre.
It defiantly was not a bad experience and the food was standard but I wouldn’t come back, there is better out there.

This is my favourite place. I have been coming here for over 12 years and have seen the owners change. The apprentice that was following him for nearly 10 years took over and has made it even better. I love them!!!

Haven’t been here for quite awhile… the quality of the food have gone down quite a bit… disappointed~~~

Great spot, good sushi and decent service. Could be better — not a big stand out place but not terrible.

Overall pretty good. The service was friend ly and fast. We went on a Friday which is usually best to go for sushi not near an ocean and the fish was very fresh.
Had some sashimi and rolls. The sashimi was very good. Also had an assorted sushi combo.
One thing to watch for is the sushi that is seared. Be careful not to automatically order that on the sheet by accident.
My favourite was their negitoro roll. Also loved the Toro sushi.
Plum wine was nice. My friend had not tried it yet and she liked it as an apéritif. I went with the large Asahi Beer. Very good!
The warm edamame beans were nice too. You get some cold ones to start for free but we liked the warm ones. My friend who goes here a lot says it’s very consistent here.

the food was great but the service was ridiculously slow! Other patrons that came after us got their food first, and they brought our meals and rolls at different times, like 15 minutes apart. So kinda weird…

While Sushi Kawa wasn’t terrible, there was nothing memorable or essential about the experience.
Their gyoza didn’t have that one golden crispy side, and was just an average dumpling!
The tuna sashimi was a generous chunk and quality was much better than the
I also ordered, which was too thin and fibrous.
The deep fried spicy salmon roll was a little strange. There was too much rice to salmon and next to no mayo or spiciness. The salmon almost seemed to have come out of a can, which I know it didn’t but it wasn’t the texture you’re expecting.
Dragon roll missed the mark too. Avocado wasn’t ripe enough and the unagi was sparse and not nearly enough of the glaze I’m used to enjoying with it.
We ordered the special california roll as well as the calamari roll. The Special California roll was fine, lots of crab. The calamari roll’s squid was overcooked so it was chewy.
The wasabi and ginger was very generous, and a good thing since you’ll probably need it.
I did enjoy their rice, which was pleasantly sweet and held together well.
If you just need a sushi fix and you’re in the area, all this was only $ 60, which isn’t too bad, but there is better sushi out there!

Being a big sushi fan, I decided to try this place instead of my usual sushi restaurants (sigh).
We went there on a Tuesday evening and there were only two other tables who were already dining. After looking at the menu, I realized this place is as expensive as fancy sushi restaurants !!!
It took them a good 15 minutes to notice us and take our order. We ordered an array of rolls, nigiri and appetizers in addition to sashimi. The miso soup arrived fast and it was tasty. However, that was the highlight of our dining experience … everything afterward went downward very fast. After waiting for 25 minutes we had to wave at the staff so somebody can finally notice us. then another 10 minutes, half of the order arrived, which made it very awkward for some of us that had nothing to eat !!!
Another 20 minutes to finally have the rest of the food !!! The rolls had too much rice and the fish was not the freshest. For 4 $/​piece of Toro, I was expecting at least super fresh fish which was totally not the case here. Also we spent at least 45 minutes waiting for our food, I cannot imagine what is this place going to be like on a busy night.
Right after the dinner, I was feeling funny and when I got back home I spent a lot of time in the washroom :(!!!
Overall, highly not recommended, you can find much better restaurants in the neighborhood. The sushi quality is poor and the service is the worst you can imagine.

What to say … Not my favourite… I will always be wary when I am the only table in a restaurant… I feel like a good restaurant should always have patrons. All other restaurants on the block had people in them… This however was a ghost town. A ghost town of confusion. There was as posted before a language barrier with the servers. The menu was also slightly confusing and looked like it could use an update… The whole restaurant in fact. The sushi came out and I was not wowed by it.
It wasn’t the best I’ve had it also wasn’t the worst I’ve had… But I won’t be rushing back anytime soon

Coming from Vancouver I have to say that its very difficult to find decent sushi in this town. And by that I mean FRESH. I have visited a few places in search of Yam Rolls and any other veggie rolls — being vegan it’s tough here as well.
What did I find? Decent yam tempura rolls. Good beer selection, great veggie options and the ability to modify mayo etc…
I’ve been a few times now ~ it’s not my fave, but it’s a safe bet for the area.

A place of comfort for me. I love the big pot of tea and the lunch bento box special! I always feel welcome and at ease, it is a regular hang-​out. I hope they stay the same. :-).

The first experience I had with Sushi Kawa’s was GREAT! The food is delicious and the plate presentation is immaculate. However the floor staff is what destroys the balance.
After a few visits I began to notice a switch in energy amongst the staff and towards it’s customers. The core of the problem was intercommunication or lack of any… I ordered 3 things off the menu during a dinner Last Summer and when they brought it to my table I noticed they served the wrong Sushi Roll. I explained this to the waitress after she placed it on the table she smiled and said; «Don’t worry– you can have its complimentary– food go to waste if not eaten.»
When people say complimentary the first thought that jumps into your mind is free, gift or no charge.
So after eating my meal and the waitress correcting my order with the right Sushi, I received my bill only to find an added charge of the WRONG Sushi! «what, perhaps a mistake?!- what is going on?»
When I pointed out the error they said I had to pay because I ate the food. SO BECAUSE YOU MESSED UP MY ORDER I HAVE TO PAY EXTRA!!!
I was mad and red in the face arguing the matter with the manager who reacted with no empathy and seemed like a cheap, insincere man. I vowed never to return and buckled by paying the bill –NO TIP.
Somehow a while later I was dubbed into returning for a business lunch. The food was great, the waitress was no longer with Wa’s and it seemed to go flawlessly until my Boss ordered Vegetable Tempura and got Shrimp Tempura. I told him about the stick situation that put me in similar predicament proceeded with caution and laid down an iron fist.
Determined to NOT EAT the shrimp he returned the order back to the kitchen and waited an extra 20 minutes for the Veg Tempura. After lunch was completed our boss requested the check… only to find a charge for a shrimp Tempura NO ONE ordered. Again the same manager appeared from his coffin to suck more money out of us… even though we did not eat the shrimp his theory was: «the food was placed on your table and went to waste, who’s going to pay for it?» Definitely not the restaurant!
Payback is sweet– because their was 5 lawyers in our group the manager ended up breaking under pressure and taking the shrimp off the receipt and giving us 5% discount for a group and apology… it felt good to see the manager who I refer to as a Vampire (because he hides in the dark and never comes out unless summoned) Come to think of it their is no garlic on the menu — just saying!

Yikes! This review is long overdue. ;(The boys and I were here on a very busy evening in May 2012 when there were about ten hungry customers lined up at the door. The staff were extremely efficient and seated us after 10 minutes (impressive, considering the fact that we didn’t make any reservations).
We took a little longer than expected to decide what to order (we found the menu too busy-​looking and confusing), but here’s what we had:
Apps: Sake Braised Garlic Asari (clams):Yum! Succulent clams with just the right amount of garlic.
Oyster Motoyaki: a very fresh baked oyster with way too much mayo in it. I used the rest of the (oyster flavored) mayo for my salad.

Mains: Assorted Sashimi: very fresh! I even liked the hamachi, which I usually give to my hubby. They give you generous mounds of wasabi and gari.
Sashimi and Tempura Dinner: Miso soup, salad and ice cream was also included. The tempura was excellent; we’ve been to other restaurants where the tempura was still swimming in grease when arrived on the table.
Teriyaki Beef Noodle: my little guy is such a big fan of noodle soups – and hot (temperature-​wise) soups, too! Even after 12 minutes, his soup was still warm! By the 15 minute mark, his bowl was empty…
Overall, everything was very reasonably priced and we had a very pleasant evening!

Update after a yearlong absence:
— Prices increased significantly;
— Portions shrunk dramatically;
— A couple of beloved menu positions are missing;
— Service quality dropped down noticeably.
So, four star before, two stars now — that’s three stars in total. Must be just about right.
Sorry, Sushi Kawa — you were our good memory about Calgary, we shouldn’t have return and retry…

Likes:
–trendy location
–attentive service
–cheap as hell
–mom & pop, independent business feel
Dislikes:
— sushi was mediocre, sashimi slices were small
— server had trouble answering questions due to lack of English
— their menus are awfully ugly & confusing to the first-​timers
— only have one debit machine & had to wait a while to pay
I’d go back if I was invited since the sushi was alright and it’s so cheap, but it’s not a place I’d think of to go back to. I wouldn’t choose this restaurant for sushi beginners. The language barrier and menu shenanigans would make for a really frustrating experience.

I’ ve been going to Sushi Kawa as long as it’s been open. It’s not the most pleasing décor wise, but as far as the sushi goes you can’t go wrong.
The rolls are good, as is the sushi itself. If I could say one thing about Kawa it is that the quality is consistent. And the service is consistent as well.
The only thing that bugged me a bit (I’m over it now) is a couple of years ago they made some of their rolls much bigger — as in more rice. We actually asked why and they said that they had gotten complaints that the rolls were too small so they changed them. I can only guess it was some people who had been at Tawa down the street (big awful rolls) and for some reason liked that. Who knows. But they (Kawa) have gone back to small rolls for most of their dishes again.
Consistent, clean, good service, nice people. Kawa isn’t the best decorated as I noted, but for a local spot with consistent sushi, it does just fine.

Sushi Kawa is an alright place to eat japanese food. Being of Japanese heritage myself, I was happy to find a japanese restaurant tha was actually staffed with japanese people. No offense to others, but when I typically go to a japanese restaurant I get served by a chinese person, a korean, or filipino. I want authentic flavors when I go out for japanese food. Also Sushi Kawa is one of the only restaurants in town that serves okonomiyaki. (japanese pizza). It is a dish that consists of flour, egg, cabbage, meat, etc then cooked on a grill then sprinkled with fish flakes and is eaten with Tonkatsu sauce and a japanese mayanaise. www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeUHy0A1­GF0
The one thing that turned me off about this restaurant, is that they aren’t really friendly. It’s not that they are rude, it just seems that they are indifferent. Which seems out of character for a japanese restaurant. They do not give you any extra tonkatsu sauce for your okonomiyaki, which costs $ 18.00 by the way. When I asked the waitress for more sauce, she said they would have to charge me extra for it. I was put off by this, that’s like charging extra for ketchup for fries that you order at Earl‘s. They should never charge EXTRA for sauce for a meal you are eating. That to me, is an insult. I may have to start eating at Hana Sushi down the street. It‘s another Japanese run sushi bar the Fujimoto‘s

I like it.
I visit often, cheap sushi, decent service, not the best sushi by any means but good enough, ideal location.
I’m not too hard to please when it comes to sushi. probably because I don’t get too crazy (usually spicy salmon rolls). i love the typhoon roll. though last time it wasn’t up to par. O well, I’ll go again.
I’m slightly let down by the lack of desserts tho! Not a big deal since the purple perk is near by.