Samurai Sushi On Fraser

Do Not Eat Here.
I enjoy quick-​fix, cheap and good sushi at the Cambie location and thought this place would be similar; but I was wrong.
The spicy tuna roll was disgusting. I literally spat it out. It tasted warm, old and spoiled.
The tempura in the dynamite roll pretty much all batter and soggy with the least amount of shrimp.
Sigh…the staff was also very rude and belittling the other customers.
Next time, I’m taking the extra mile to the Cambie location.

Well, I have played with fire and finally learned my lesson. Many moons ago, I would advocate wholeheartedly to anyone who would listen about how Samurai was the perfect venue to satisfy that sushi quick-​fix in a pinch. I now take every nice thing I have ever said about Samurai back. I take it ALL back and not only that, but I wish I could stand outside with a sandwich board ringing a bell warning people to AVOID AVOID AVOID.
I came here earlier this week on a whim with a friend of mine – a friend who used to share my love for Samurai. I ordered the Manhattan roll (spicy tuna and California) and a yam tempura roll with cream cheese. BIG MISTAKE. The spicy tuna in the Manhattan roll was completely rancid. It was spit-​it-​out-​as-​soon-​as-​it-​touched-​your-​tongue kind of rancid. Not only that, but it was a very unsettling dark brown. It was absolutely disgusting. The yam tempura roll was slightly more palatable but not by much. The tempura itself was so old that the breading was not only ice cold, but hard as a rock. Seeing as they don’t actually SELL tempura as an appetizer, and it’s only found in a roll, I am assuming that they probably just make up a batch in the morning and use it all day. Honestly, everything was so truly and genuinely terrible that I feel angry that they could even serve such low quality food.
I will absolutely never return to Samurai, and not only that, I will tell every single person I know to steer clear from here. They should be ashamed to sell such low-​quality food.

Their servings are over generous, you actually wonder how to get that one piece to your plate or to your mouth in just one attempt using the chopsticks! But what we ordered had all really tasty pieces, except for the one with the fresh fish. Of course, it’s got the fish smell, and since I’m not used to eating uncooked fish, and I don’t think that was freshly caught, that sushi wasn’t appealing to me, hence the 4 stars, instead of 5.

Very large portions.
The California rolls are the size of a donut.
The ingredients used are fresh and the taste is fine. I wouldn’t say I was particularly amazed with the rolls, but it does meet expectations. If you are ordering sashimi, it is well worth the money as they give out large chunks of salmon sashimi.
Small place if you plan to eat in… but most people don’t and usually order the large Party trays for take out.
The problem with the big fist sized rolls is that it also contains half a pound of rice to go along with it.
I personally would prefer less rice so the ingredients to rice ratio is more equal and I’m pretty sure it will taste better too.
Aside from that, it’s still a good place to try out if you are around the neighborhood. They have another location on cambie as well.

Ordered a large platter of California rolls for a lazy holiday party. Fast service and decent prices.

Samurai is my destination when I need a sushi fix, and I’m super hungry.
For $ 10, I can be assured of getting filled up on sushi. Their portions are generous to a fault. For example, the Maki Combo B has 6 Cali rolls, 5 spicy tuna rolls and 5 – 6 BC rolls. The individual rolls are gigantic, far bigger than typical Japanese restaurants. My wife and I can share this combo and still have leftovers.
The only downside to Samurai is that unless you call in the order, you need to be prepared to wait during peak hours. And, on occasion, the rolls have been sloppily made. Don’t expect first class presentation and the freshest ingredients. But, for the price, there is no better BANG for the buck.
TIP: call in order 2 hours ahead of time to save 5%. Call in the day before to save 10%.

Sushi is not the freshest, but it’s also not bad (in Vancouver standards). The portions are MASSIVE and it’s the best bang for your buck in this city, especially for the massive chunks you get for sashimi/​sushi cravings. One roll is pretty much a full meal.
Service is quick, and if you order in advance you get a discount.

I really didnt like my experience. i was back from a trip and i really missed good sushi at they served me some kind of not fresh fish. the smell of it just make me sick.

If you’re a sushi snob this is not the place for you. Friendly service, affordable, large portions and consistent. Great for grab and go meal or getting a party tray for an event.

If you want to stuff your face and satisfy your sashimi or sushi craving without breaking your wallet, then Samurai may be for you! Samurai is a sushi joint in the neighborhood; always good for parties as they offer party trays starting at 20 $. They are known to have good prices, large quantity and relatively good quality. You get 5−10% off If you order ahead of time, Good for take– out or eat– in. Service is normal as this place is considered to be a «fast food/​take-​out sushi place». Street parking available.

I always order food from this place because it’s walking distance from where I work and it’s cheap. So i always order the same thing a roll and a toro sashimi. Today I was really disappointed because it was a bad sashimi. It didnt smell bad but it has a sour taste already. So I didn’t eat it anymore and I went back after my work and told them about it. The chef told me without even looking at it that it’s suppose to be good and he knows it because he is the chef there. So I told him to try it. What made me mad he told me that «okay if I try it and its good so you just want someting in return» in a very rude tone. I told them I don’t need any exchange or refund and all Im saying is to not serve customers spoiled food. Im not expecting for anything in return but I hope they handled my concern! I WILL NEVER GO BACK!

Some of the largest portions of sushi I have EVER had for dirt cheap. Just an insane amount of food!
It is not the best sushi you ever had, mind you, but for the amount given, this place is a steal.

Got my sushi to-​go. The food was pre-​ordered so we were able to pick up our food right away. I got a simple order — spicy salmon sashimi & a kappa roll. The kappa roll was alright, the roll was semi-​tight as a couple of them fell apart. Their in-​house made spicy sauce was alright for the sashimi. I’m not sure if I’ll get that one again.

One simply cannot go wrong with the portion size!!!
The staff are awesome and funny.
If you’re lucky … You might get some entertainment with your meal … The sushi chefs can really sing!!!

Ordered the salmon maki ($ 2.50) and yam tempura roll ($ 2.95) for to go.
The inside décor had pictures with pricing of menu items taped to the wall, two chairs at the entrance of the store for those who may be ordering take-​out/​waiting to be seated, about 5 tables for those who decide to eat in, a side bar seating area sort of thing closer to the chef area, and an open kitchen with a counter cashier to the front of it. There was a self-​serve tea dispenser beside the cashier station as well.
Upon entering it was mildly noisy due to a baby wailing madly at random moments and semi-​busy.
The cashier was quick and efficient. Food came out in a timely manner as well (or maybe I just had patience). +1.5 stars
Now for the food its self… That was a different story. The salmon maki was edible — mediocre and the yam tempura roll was extremely large. Sure, that may be good for some, but I prefer my sushi to be in many bite size pieces vs. 5 humongous, I-​cant-​fit-​it-​in-​my-​mouth pieces. Okay, fine I can settle with these pieces, but now on to the quality of it… Well let’s just say, if you even dare try to pick it using chopsticks you are surely going to be disappointed as it will crumble to bits right before your very eyes. The yam tempura tasted old and the quality of the roll was just not good, but edible.
Some thing to keep in mind is that samurai sushi rolls are a very messy business to the point it must be picked up by hand.
+1 star for pricing.
I hope someday a sushi joint will open near by with similar pricing but better quality than here… But I suppose for now, this will do when I’m in the area and craving. Hmmm.

This place is ok for a ‘to go’ place. The sushi are big but it’s ok. They still use styrofoam cups and plates which I dont like. For the few people who eat in (only have 4 small tables), they can at least have regular cups and plates rather than having all that wasted garbage.
It is convenient for me to go when I feel like walking around. Although there are a lot of other food/​restaurants around.
The service is good. I’ve never had any problems but I’m not expecting superb service for a takeout place. They say ‘hi’, quuck and ask what I would like.
If you want big portions and don’t mind cheap sushi, you can go here.

Not very fresh fish YUK! I asked if the crab in their sonomono salad was real and they said yes. NOT TRUE! It was fake (how can you not tell).They refused to take it back even though I never touched it and was sitting right in front of them. I left, never will I go there or recommend it. I mean a chef who doesn’t know real crab from fake? Really!
Avoid.

A functional «To Go «sushi spot. The staff is friendly and helpful.
They are big on the farmed salmon which I’m not fond of, with no Wild available for substitution.
They serve the fish and sushi on platters but your side dish and tea cup is polystyrene. Which I’m not fond of at all.
Major bad karma. The Tempura Yam roll is delicious.
Kids like it and they are fast, and cheap.

[Stay-​Away Sushi]
Samurai has a reputation for doling out gargantuan pieces of sushi and sashimi at a fair price but they’re missing out on one key ingredient — Quality. An elder family member really wanted to come here so I bit the bullet and headed over. The restaurant (if you even call it that) is small and dingy. The place has 5 small tables which look more like furniture they got for free off Craigslist. The ground is dirty and I didn’t even want to find out what the washrooms looked like. Printouts of random sushi combos and menu items were randomly taped on the walls. The Chinese lady taking orders seemed a little grumpy and kept turning around and barking orders to the poor workers behind her.
We ordered a dish of salmon and tuna sashimi, an Alaska roll, and house roll. We were given Styrofoam plates and plastic soy containers. I know this is more of a takeout place but it felt like we were dining at a homeless shelter. The sashimi and sushi pieces were twice as large as any other Japanese restaurant and unfortunately, that’s the only good thing I can say. The sashimi was stale and overly slimy — it tasted like week-​old fish from Superstore’s clearance section. I was seriously contemplating running to Shoppers for some Imodium. The burrito-​sized house roll was jammed with random ingredients and fell apart when you tried to pick it up. The end pieces were more like small pizzas than a piece of sushi.
Our meal cost $ 25 which isn’t bad for the sheer volume of food but I can think of better ways to spend my money. If the owners were Japanese, they’d have to fall on their samurai sword to maintain their dignity.

So this location has been here for a few years now. For the record, the Samurai/​Banzai chain is owned by 2 now-​estranged brothers. The owner of this location also owns the Davie location, while the brother owns the Cambie and Richmond (Banzai) locations.
Parking is available along Fraser.
As Cambie is my benchmark location, here are the main differences:
The interior is quite beaten up, and the floor was surprisingly dirty. Special mention, in a bad way. Maybe they forgot to sweep the floor when we were here.
They take credit card here. Yay!
Most of the rolls are similar, and the pieces are similarly sized, but they simply didn’t taste as good. I’ve eaten here twice now, and reached the same conclusion both times. Just can’t put my finger on what it is — maybe it’s the freshness?
The ikura must be marinated using a different recipe (possibly less soy sauce?), because the eggs here are red instead of brown.
They have uni here, but something was off about them. They tasted a bit fishy, and I felt my stomach turn a bit. Scratch this one off the list.
The sushi here is decent, but I must say (biased here) I prefer the Cambie location. Nothing wrong with this place though, if you want cheap decent sushi.