Met a friend here for lunch today. There was a small lineup when the place opened at noon. I ordered the Saba (grilled mackerel) lunch set and was pleasantly surprised by the quality and quantity of food. The mackerel was deboned, lightly charred, and flavourful. The accompanying tempura was delightfully crunchy. A small side salad came drenched in a tasty dressing, and the miso soup was very light, too light for my taste actually. My friend ordered a sashimi donburi plus a small order of nigiri sushi. and proclaimed everything "very fresh." Service was prompt and affable, and we appreciated the freely flowing (and free) hot tea offered throughout our meal. read more

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Great food and service. Chairs are very comfortable. Acoustics in here make it difficult for intimate conversation especially if seated next to a table for 4. Rather sit at a table for 2 that's not against a wall. read more

Food quality 3 Value 4 Service 4 Atmosphere 3.5 Causal Japanese. The Cozen lunch set is good value. The salmon Oshi sushi is okay. The sauce on top is very salty and lack of charcoal flavour. The sockeye salmon dinner plate is quite greasy. read more

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Amazing sushi. All the dishes were great actually, and the lunch specials were a lot of food for the price point!

Cozy space with some unique dishes. Came here for a mid week dinner and it was quite busy. Even with so many people, service was good and food didn't take very long. Scallop shooter- not exactly what I was expecting but a nice way to start the meal. The scallop was chopped quite finely and the ponzu sauce was quite acidic. Miso sable fish- tender fish and flavourful! We got this since they didn't have anymore hamachi kama, so I'll be coming back to try that! Uni ikura donburi- I liked that they served it with some pieces of Nori to make a few hand rolls. There was plenty of ikura and uni. It was fresh. Nigiri- I got the hamachi and chopped scallop nigiri. I wasn't a fan of the chopped scallop because it was chopped into quite small pieces. But the hamachi was very fresh. It was a good ratio of fish to rice. Overall, it was a great meal and I'd come back to try more items! read more

Cozen - Uni ikura don - Japanese Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Had a wonderful lunch here today! Service was very good and the chefs were amazing too! Enjoyed different types of sushi and had beef udon and hot saki! read more

Cozen - Miso - Japanese Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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I was looking for a Japanese / sushi joint in Commercial Drive and decided to give Cozen a bite. I was pleasantly surprised everything I ordered was deliciously authentic Japanese! I order hamachi and toro sashimi, agedashi tofu, a chopped scallop and toro and uni hand roll, and none disappointed. As a Japanese food lover, I will certainly return and bring friends! read more

Cozen - Chopped scallop hand roll and toro and uni hand roll - Japanese Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Cute place, quiet and nice atmosphere to visit. Service is attentive by gracious waitress'. We both had the miso soup, larger portions than most places. Hot and basic with a wide band of nori and tiny cubes of tofu. I had the Saba lunch served on a segmented tray. The fish was a small full side of mackerel; it was perfectly cooked. Both juicy and so tender. Rice was good. Salad had some old brown bits Tempura fried in dank old oil, too much panko and too thin of pieces (ie sweet potato) was greasy. They may have had a new hire or had a bad night. I'd definitely go for the fish. read more

Finally tried out Cozen Japanese Cuisine. It's sandwiched between Tandoori Palace and The Charlatan. Service is friendly with water constantly refilled. You have to ask for tea if you want it. Menu consists of two large sheets. Lunch specials (12:00pm-3:30pm) are teishoku style. Trip #1 - Negi toro maki ($6.00) - average. The rolls were stiff, didn't break apart. - Chopped scallop roll ($7.50) - okay but the scallop didn't have much flavour. - Miso black cod ($19.00) - cod was delicate but on the small side. - Cozen nigiri combo ($36.00 for 9) - good quality; fresh fish, not too much rice. Favourites were the shima aji, unagi and saba. Surprised we were given a chu toro but it wasn't melt in your mouth. - Spicy agedashi tofu ($8.50) - Spicy chopped scallop roll ($8.00) - Scoville heat roll ($15.00) - deep fried onions were tasty. The sauce (a salsa verde, Japanese style) was delicious with a good kick. Trip #2 - Salmon sashimi ($15.00 for 6) - Futomaki ($12.00) - nothing particularly stood out. - California roll ($5.00) - Sockeye salmon oshi ($16.00) - nicely seared, miso mayo sauce was enjoyable. - Beef teriyaki ($17.00) - beef was a touch dry. Rice is not good. - Chicken yakisoba ($14.00) - bland and boring. Wouldn't order again. - Grilled mackerel ($15.00) - mackerel was excellent. Simple, but well executed. Average Japanese fare at CJC. 3.5 stars. read more

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Good spot for sushi on Commercial but they use too much sauce for their rolls. It's a small restaurant that can fit maybe 30 people. Parking is mostly metered, though you can find free street parking nearby if you're willing to walk a couple of blocks. It wasn't busy at all when I came for Tuesday dinner with a friend around 5:30 pm, though gradually most of the tables filled up by the time we left around 7. They have a huge selection for sushi rolls, but there's also a huge appetizer section on the menu as well as some options for noodles and donburi, for folks who don't want sushi. I ordered two rolls since I was starving: the White Pearl roll ($16) and the Crispy Oshi roll ($22). I was excited for both, but was disappointed when I saw there was a lot of sauce on both rolls. It was my bad for the White Pearl, since the menu description does call out that there's chalaca on it, but I wasn't expecting it for the oshi roll. I spent a lot of the meal scraping off most of the sauce off each bite, which got kinda messy... Both rolls were good and the fish was fresh, but again all the sauce took away from my experience. I also wasn't expecting the Crispy Oshi roll to be so crispy. It made it a little hard to eat, especially with chopsticks, and by the end I was just picking each piece up with my hand. All in all it's a great sushi spot, but next time I will make sure I ask about any unlisted sauces on the menu. read more

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We went specifically to check out their teishoku lunch sets. The menu has expanded since the last time we were there. I had the Chicken set and my buddy had the Oshi set. Both sets were good & for that price point it was definitely worth it. The restaurant is small but very cosy. Service was quick and we managed to get the last table before the lineup outside. read more

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I only got one dish so my rating is based off that -- the shrimp and yam tempura. It was really good! Came out piping hot. It was super crispy on the outside and deliciously tender on the inside for my soft mouth. It felt a little heavier than other tempura I've had but it didn't detract from the overall flavour. Service was great, I was just picking up takeout. Inside is quiet and clean. read more

Cozen - Shrimp and yam tempura - Japanese Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Loved trying out this neighborhood gem! Came by on a weekday for lunch and it was relatively quiet and empty. Their lunch specials are amazing! We got the Oshi set and tempura udon set. I'll say the tempura udon set is definitely a great valid compared to the oshi. While there are better aburi out there in the city, I thought the sushi was still so delicious. Server and chef were both friendly. Would come back again! read more

Cozen - Japanese Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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New to Commercial Drive by a few months, this cute Japanese little resto (operated by Japanese people) offers lunch bento box combos, which my friend & I partook in. While the price was higher than a lunch time special ($17) the quality of the food completely justifies it. I didn't realize that the nigiri sushi would be lightly flame top cooked on top (don't know the actual term) as they do in some of the fancier sushi spots. Great taste & worth a visit on the Drive for a higher quality Japanese meal & a convenient stop (Find me on Instagram - @aida.loves ) read more

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My first review after receiving my 2023 Elite Badge! After seeing the reviews for Cozen by multiple Elites, I had bookmarked it as a spot I had to try out. I am so happy I did. The food, presentation, and service were all fantastic! Located on The Drive, Cozen is small Japanese eatery with a big menu packed with all sorts of high quality offerings. While the prices are a bit on the premium side, the portions and selection of fish available does make up for it. Seeing toro, salmon toro, and both blue fin chu toro AND o toro on the menu always excites me. They also happen to serve shima aji (striped jack) and madai (Japanese seabream). These are some serious cuts of fish that you don't get from your typical hole-in-the-wall sushi joint. We tried several dishes on this visit which included: Creamy Seafood Udon - This was rich and creamy with shrimps, scallops, and black truffle paste. The flavours were fantastic and something I would order again. Grilled Mackerel - Grilled nicely and accompanied with rice and miso soup. Blue Fin O Toro and Uni Temaki - The fattiest cut of Blue Fin tuna belly combined with the custard-like sea urchin. Quite the combo. Ikura Nigiri - A solid portion of salmon roe bursting with salty, oily goodness. Negi Toro Maki - Toro and green onions chopped together. What's not to like? Sashimi for Two - This platter included two of the following: salmon, tuna, hamachi, amaebi, and 2 chef's choice sashimi (which happened to be just the Blue Fin O Toro) Overall, I was extremely impressed with the quality of fish, the presentation, and the service. Everything was so good that I didn't even notice we were only given one of the two chef's choices with our sashimi for two. I'm not even upset about it, since the slices of sashimi were generous and fresh. I will be back. Multiple times. read more

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Located right across from my dentist, this new restaurant had caught my eye and we finally found an occasion to visit and tried a nice sampling of their menu. We were more than pleased with our visit and although the prices are higher, the quality of their fish and courteous service made it a wonderful meal! We ordered: Negitoro roll, alaska roll, chopped scallop roll - all found on their regular rolls menu, they were a bit higher priced but the sashimi in each of these is what stood out. I also liked how the alaska roll came with some salad and the rolls were not too tightly packed either. Futomaki Roll - Similar to a house roll filled with tamago, salmon, tuna, ebi and crab meat, it was our favourite of the night with a fresh flavour (not having any sauce) and it allowed each of the ingredients to stand out. White Pearl Roll - dynamite roll with fried scallops - we found this roll a bit TOO saucy but it was presented beautifully! Burning Sun Roll - dynamite and crab meat roll, topped with spicy tuna and torched. Also came with some salad in a very creamy sauce and was topped with spicy sauce as well but again, too much sauce and made it a very heady bite. Nabeyaki Udon - my must order and the one from cozen came with the largest variety of tempura i've encountered! Very crispy and definitely fresh, the tempura was what stood out but the bowl of noodles came out very hot and had a few slices of chicken breast with half an egg. Beef Tataki - good portion of beef slices that were slightly overdone but the ponzu sauce was not too acidic and complimented the dish very well. Sashimi for Two - 2 slices each of tuna, prawn, salmon, hamachi and bluefin. It was my first time trying bluefin and WOW it was so buttery and melted in my mouth. All of the sashimi though was of amazing quality, perfectly texture and thick slices without being clunky. Expensive but worth the price! Chicken Nanban - we really enjoyed their fried chicken as the pieces were very large and juicy! This came with a salad of coleslaw and tartar which added a nice punch when needed. Overall, great service and delicious food. Prices are on the higher end but their presentation and quality are what you're paying for! read more

Food was delicious and so elegantly plated. We got a couple of rolls and edamame and loved all of it. The service was great and our server was so friendly and welcoming. Loved it and would come again! read more

Cozen - Black dragon roll - Japanese Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Really good deal for lunch specials. Food was fresh and delicious. My bf got the yaki udon and we can both agree it was one of the best yaki udon we've ever had. One star off cause one of the younger servers seemed in a hurry to take my plate away while I was still eating even though they weren't that busy. The older servers were nice and attentive. read more

Cozen - Japanese Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Their lunch special offers great selections of set meal with sushi, udon, oshi, and tempura at great price. Food has been consistently delicious and fresh. I would definitely recommend. read more

Cozen - Udon lunch set - Japanese Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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We were in the town for the weekend and looking for a new place to try. The foods was good and customer service was great. read more

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Tried to have dinner at the regular well known places but was unable to to secure a last minute reservation so we decided to try a new joint. As always when you dont expect much you get pleasantly surprised. Service at Cozen was great and food equally good. We left thinking that we got lucky. The only flaw was the toro and salmon pieces were a bit soft to my liking but to be fair that can easily be corrected to be a perfect meal at a perfect price point. read more

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Cozen has become our go-to place for Japanese cuisine over this past year. The freshness and consistency of this food is exceptional. The variety of Cozen's offerings is vast and everything is prepared with care and attention to detail. Let's hope that they continue to thrive and become the Drive's most popular sushi spot. Keep up the great work. Best, Peter and Mary read more

The food is good and so is the service. The ambiance is calm with low lighting. The fish was really fresh and had no fishy taste. The shrimp tempura was crispy and juicy. The spicy roll was not too spicy, but it was still yummy. The presentation was nice as well and arranged very beautifully. We were helped with tea refills and abundant wasabi. I liked how the mackerel bowl had a built in sauce compartment. The food is expensive though, but it is good fish! There wasn't a wait and it wasn't crowded in the restaurant. Nice, humble restaurant with a clean bathroom and sweet servers! read more

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Great food! However if you need to order a few different rolls to make sure you get full. Staff was very quick and friendly.

Looking forward to my next meal at Cozen. My son picked the restaurant and it was an excellent choice. I had the cream seafood truffle udon and it was DELICIOUS! All of the food choices at our table was so good. Will definitely go back. read more

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Honestly speaking the BEST sushi for price you pay if you get the lunch special. You get so much high quality fish and a huge meal, it's absolutely delicious! Usually, lunch specials will have an item or two with fish and lots of rice and other items to fill the plate up, but here, you can get a plate full of sashimi, nigiri, and sushi, karaage, and more!! The servers are all really nice, the place has a great atmosphere. Can't wait to come again! read more

Great selection, amazing friendly service, fresh fish, good quality. Coming back for sure. We ordered 5 rolls, each one was phenomenal!

Stopped in here for a quick lunch (I guess I was headed for the tired old place a couple of doors down)--sheer wow. Excellent roll, sashimi, and service, in a bright clean mod place. No need to eat any other sushi on the Drive, in my opinion! read more

Cool, comfortable, great menu! The chef is very skilled and happy to do extra to make your meal the best it can be. The service was very friendly and fast. We ate at one of the smaller tables but when we ordered so much food they moved another table over to accomodate our dishes. We both loved our choices. For me the highlight was Saba Oshi, fantastic little package of smoky mackerel happiness, and my green salad with crispy quinoa had a flavourful house dressing. My husband ordered the Nabeyaki Udon, and I got a sample of the shitake mushrooms in that - how did they make them so sweet and nutty? Fresh, light tempura went with that. Above and beyond tasty, will definitely return. read more