umi japanese eatery: decent japanese food court noms

after having a pre-lunch snack at let's roll, my mom and i stopped by richmond center after her hair appointment for a bigger meal. the new dining terrace has a lot of choices but umi looked pretty good! this is the same japanese stand at most food courts except this one has more hot food like udon and appetizers and also separate section for desserts. 

chicken udon (~$8) - this was unexpectedly good! the udon noodles were a good firm texture and they give a pretty big portion of chicken as well. it was quite salty though and the soup didnt have much taste other than salt...but it wasnt bad!

3.5/5

takoyaki ($~5) - this was very normal and a bit room temperature but at least it had lots of bonito flakes! 

3/5

overall: if i was coming back to richmond centre for lunch, i wouldnt mind coming back but i hear good things about bourbon st. grill so i would try that first! 

guu richmond: its guuu'd

ah guu, delicious authentic japanese food in richmond! guu is an izakaya type place with lunch specials that are different every day and lunch boxes that are available all the time. perfect for any japanese cravings while at aberdeen. 

i usually come here with my mom because she loves izakaya but does not like driving downtown so this location is perfect. we ordered 2 dishes to share and it was more than enough and very delicious! 

overall, i love guu and the variety that is has to offer plus the super fresh fish every time we go, just looking at the pictures makes me wanna go again! (even though i went last week :P) 

nabeyaki udon ($8.80) - udon with prawn tempura, egg, chicken, fish cake and green onion - this was a very good flavourful broth with al dente noodles and a decent amount of toppings. not bad for the price! 

4.25/5

one complaint though was the tempura, the batter was not crispy or flaky enough and we already had it on the side. 

sushi box ($12.95) : tuna, boiled shrimp and salmon sushi, salmon and sweet shrimp sashimi, california roll, egg, grilled mackerel, chicken karaage and rice - this is our go to at guu richmond. it has the perfect variety to please both the fish and deep fried cravings. my mom loves mackerel and this one is good albeit a bit salty. there is also this tiny portion of spicy fish right in the middle and this goes perfect with the rice. 

4.5/5