Nikkei Ramen-ya 565…read moreEngland Ave Courtenay, BC V9N 2N2 (250) 897-4700 Open 7 days a week from 11.30am - 8pm except for Friday & Saturday (closes at 9pm) Street parking available around the restaurant It began on a sunny October day in 2016. Inspired by the shops of Vancouver, LA, and Tokyo, and driven by their love of noodles, Greg and Erin Masuda served the first bowl of authentic, scratch-made ramen that Vancouver Island had ever seen. Six years and 40 flavours later, Nikkei Ramen-ya still bustles; if you can't make it to our shop in Downtown Courtenay, you can now find our ramen at your local Vancouver Island grocer. From silky Tonkotsu to vegan-friendly options and crisp karaage chicken, we've got something for every craving. Gluten-free options are available Our review- We met a friend for dinner, we went early at about 4.30pm, it wasn't crowded yet. Ordered our ramen on an electronic kiosk menu board... By the electronic menu board, there are table # stand. Chose a number & put the number that you chose onto your order as identification. Then place the number stand on your table. The noodles were very good, nice soup broth... we enjoyed the noodles very much, we also added a side dish of green beans, dressing on the beans was like the Japanese spinach (Gomae). Beans was crunchy & with that dressing, it was yummy. Overall a very good experience, do check it out if you are in downtown Courtney. You will not be disappointed ! Place was clean with decent seats Come after lunch or before dinner, the place was crowded during dinner time.

We came here for the reviews but we are pretty disappointed. Ramen was cold and the pork tasted…read morespoiled. The tea that was almost $8 tasted worst than free tea (that we usually get when we go for Ramen). The only good thing was the Karagee but 4 pieces for $12 ??? Place was clean but service non existence, didn't even offer water. We are from Vancouver and we go for Ramen at least every other week so we know that is not authentic Ramen.

The pictures don't really do it justice. The flavours of the soups were amazing and we actually…read morefinished it all. Usually at other places I find the soup gets too salty and we just can't finish it after the noodles are gone. Not here, not a drop was wasted. Will definitely be back.

Some of the best Ramen we've had in a long time. The Tonkotsu Black Ramen is so rich and…read moreflavourful, definitely worth a try. Pro tip ... park in the back ...the front street parking is a bit tight. Check the hours ... you won't wanna rush in/out.

Great service even though short staffed. FYI you fill in a checklist for what you want to order…read more Great quality and unique selections for special rolls. More gluten free options than normal (eg gyoza). Generous portions.

Stopped in here after a nice, healthy walk on the Wild Pacific trail to check out the lighthouse…read moreand it was a perfect spot to stop in. The place was clean, there were plenty of seats, the restrooms were clean. Service was super-friendly and fast. I ordered a hot tea which was perfectly soothing after a cold day out hiking. Our party ordered a bunch of rolls, their stuffed mushrooms, spicy garlic edamame, a teriyaki chicken bento box, and spicy Korean ramen. All of their foods were very delicious. The mushrooms were PIPING hot but SO DELICIOUS. I still think about those mushrooms and it's been about 4 days now... The spicy edamame were indeed spicy. Very flavorful and spicy. The spicy ramen, I'm told, was not spicy after asking for it to be toned down a bit. Guess it was toned down more than just a bit. Flavor was still good, though. We were very happy with all the foods, the comfort, and the service. Great restaurant and I would highly recommend this place if you're looking for quality sushi in Ucluelet!

Wow, the first authentic asian place I encountered in my one week trip from nanaimo to port alberni…read moreto tofino. Run by Japanese people and you can feel the vibe through decorations and manners. After having some fake ramens, we especially enjoyed this place which is almost on par with Vancouver ramen shops. Black garlic oil is delicious as always and the spicy one is not spicy at all. The regular chashu is very tough sadly, but the pork belly one was very tender. I gave this place 5 stars despite the tough chashu since this is the best that you can get in the Nanaimo area. We also had the fried oysters which were yummy but quite expensive.

Very ,very disappointed, waited an hour, tasteless broth, one tiny blob of pork that was mostly…read morefat, we were excited to try but we won't recommend or go back. Total waste of money

We were vacationing on Vancouver Island and came here for dinner when in Nanaimo. We had made…read morereservations a few weeks prior to our trip and I would highly recommend making a reservation if you plan on coming here. The restaurant was packed and the kitchen was hustling. There were so many beautiful and creative dishes passing by our table all night long; if I lived here, this would definitely become one of my regular places to go. The service was quick and friendly. The food was incredible; really fresh and presented beautifully. We had met up with a neighbour who had moved to the area and we ended up staying until the place closed. It was just a lovely evening overall. I would definitely recommend Nori for delicious Japanese cuisine but be sure to make a reservation!

=== 1. VERDICT/VALUE If you've a hankering for Asian…read morecuisine in Nanaimo and there's only one place you could go to, Nori should be one of your top picks! Good food, good service, and in a place with good vibes. === 2. FOOD When dining at lunch, the lunch specials offer incredible value; each option includes 4-piece California roll, small green salad, 2-piece gyoza, 2-piece prawn tempura, a miso soup, and a side dish ("okazu") of the day. Some thoughts: - The portions are decent even if you're hungry! - The prawn tempura (at least today) feel more batter than prawn. - The okazu (at least today) was fried - a fancy spring roll - which is interesting as side dishes in Japan in this context are often fish-based?). - Overall, the food quality is good. Buta Shoga Lunch Special ($22) Shoyu, ginger-marinated pork on rice - a good heart-warming combo as any! Sashimi & Sushi Lunch Special ($23) 6 pieces of sashimi (salmon and tuna) and three pieces of sushi (also salmon and tuna) make this lunch special one of the healthier options on the menu. Chashu Miso Ramen ($18) My little guy loves noodles, even if it comes in piping-hot pork bone broth. Depending on your little one, kids 6 and under in age may need a grown-up to help finish this dish! === 3. SERVICE The place is POPULAR and so be prepared to wait. One the most recent visit during lunch, we were lucky to slide in fairly quickly and the servers were fairly prompt and professional. === 4. ENVIRONMENT It's basic, yet has a modern open-view environment with a view of the bar/kitchen from across the restaurant. It's similar in vibe to its sister restaurant nearby (Horang) but the service is better and diners with small children will find more appealing seating options here. Wheelchairs and baby strollers would fit just fine and your chance at finding a place to park in the shopping complex lot outside is pretty decent!

I tried this restaurant a year later and am happy to report it was just as good! I look forward to…read morecoming back again.

Visiting for a Monday lunch at around 1PM, we had no idea Horang would be that popular. At the…read moretime, the place was completely full and we were advised there would be a 30 minute wait for bar seating. We wandered over to the attached Horang Market, a little grocery store filled with Korean goods, to browse while waiting. In our case, we were lucky to be at the tail end of the lunch rush. It actually took only 15 minutes and we managed to get a table! Korean Fried Chicken, Yangyum Glaze, Half ($21) - A half order of the fried chicken consists of eight pieces. I thought going into the restaurant it would be only four pieces and was planning to order another dish as well, but thankfully I asked the waitress and she explained everything. As a surprise, we actually got nine pieces of chicken since two pieces had stuck together! The pieces are all boneless thighs, with the dark meat allowing the meat to remain juicy through the frying process. It's kept skin on, and the skin is rendered out excellently. They simply salt and pepper the skin, then dip into the batter. The fried coating is applied evenly, resulting in a consistent bite that remains somewhat crisp even through being dipped in the yangnyeom glaze. I'd say the crispness isn't as robust as other KFCs I've eaten, but it's still pleasing nonetheless. The sauce is of course the draw. It's extremely viscous, basically to the consistency of caramel due to the amount of sugar added. It's slightly funky with a faint heat that's barely felt in the mouth. The dish comes with one dipping sauce that isn't required at all given how flavorful the chicken is. We got the garlic aioli anyways, which is surprisingly strong in garlic flavor with the mayo completely eliminating the garlic pungency. It's actually much stronger than a toum that we had from a Middle-Eastern place the day before. (5/5) Charred Daeji Galbi Soban ($23) - This order comes with a variety of different banchan: Mandu - Two pieces. I'm not sure if these are made in house, but I'm leaning towards these being commercial. They have very uniformly thin wrappers housing a mix of savory and very salty ground pork, mushrooms, and vermicelli noodles. The wrappers are dried out and kind of leathery in chew. They are served in a sauce that I think is a combination of vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar, making it sweet, tangy, savory, and salty. I think they precook these and let them sit in an open warmer, which explains why they are so dry. Japchae - The japchae is very salty like too much soy sauce was added, yet also feels very dry and missing the fragrant and oily sesame sheen. The noodles feel undercooked in some portions, being very firm, different from the bouncy texture I normally associate with sweet potato noodles. This isn't a very good japchae. Napa Denjang Soup - Includes napa and tofu. Pretty standard miso taste, not particularly strong or funky. Prawn Twigim - Two pieces. Tender, sweet shrimp, covered with tempura batter and fried. This gives a light crisp coating. They add the same soy/vinegar dipping sauce on the bottom of the serving container, soggifying the ends of the tempura a bit. Kimbap - Two pieces. They are filled with plenty of chopped carrot, a piece of pickled daikon, some avocado and tofu skin in rice and seaweed. Simple, but fresh and tasty. Salad - Greens in a very sweet and citrusy dressing. Lightly dressed, no dressing pools on the bottom. The main dish includes perfectly cooked medium grain rice with great texture and mouthfeel. On top, they have a couple pieces of charred galbi with a thick sweet sauce glazed on top. The taste of the char actually penetrates into the rice, creating a flavorful bite. The galbi is fatty, tender, not too chewy and generally tastes quite nice especially due to the glaze. (3/5) I really enjoyed the Korean fried chicken served at Horang. For the Charred Daeji Galbi Soban, while the main dish was good, I found the banchan to only be subpar to average. Then again, I wasn't expecting to find good Korean food in Nanaimo in the first place, so it was still a pleasant surprise. Washrooms - Three rooms, one for men, one for women, last one accessible.

Review: Nana Sushi, Nanaimo…read more Nestled in downtown Nanaimo, Nana Sushi is a cozy gem that serves up comforting Japanese fare with a friendly vibe. I stopped in for a casual meal and left feeling satisfied and warm--especially thanks to their standout udon. The broth was rich and flavorful, the noodles perfectly chewy, and the portion generous enough to make it a go-to comfort dish. While the sushi was solid, it's the udon that stole the show for me. Service was prompt and welcoming, and the atmosphere had a laid-back charm. It's not flashy, but it's the kind of place you return to when you want something reliably tasty and reasonably priced. Located at 14 Victoria Crescent, Nanaimo, BC (250) 591-0755 Visit their website Overall: Pretty good! I'd definitely come back--especially for the udon.

A small little hideaway in the centre of town…read more Small meaning seating for about 20 guest and not all together. It was good sushi and prompt but I also went when it wasn't too busy. The bento box was nice and sashimi was fresh and teriyaki tasty. Tempura crispy and hot. I nice restaurant if you are staying in town and you need to look for it as not on the main drag. Construction of the road should be better once it's done but a good little place for sushi in Nanaimo. Staff were friendly and courteous.

Ordered the west coast bowl which was very delicious and I appreciated that they support local…read morevendors and source organic whenever possible. It is situated in a very cute space and loved that it was dairy free with a creamy dressing. Good balance of veggies and rice made me feel very healthy with my meal choices :) My friends shared the grilled cheese and chicken sandwich and said both were very delicious, but the grilled cheese just barely edged out the chicken sandwich as the more delicious option. However, personally I think the sandwich portions seemed a bit small for my appetite and I would probably have needed to add a soup on the side to feel full. Order at the counter, grab a number and table and your food will be brought to you. Water is self serve and they also sell coffee beans to go.

Amazing fresh unfussy yet complex flavors. The beet ginger aioli was amazing!! It reminded me of a…read more70's restaurant done up in mid century beach style. Very glad we found this spot.

Went here for dinner last week, the bistro is small but comfortable. We didn't have a reservation…read moreso we were invited to take two of the four seats at the "bar". No problem! We ordered 4 different rolls between us, tea, and a melon soda. Easily top 3 in the area, cemented by the fact that it's within walking distance from our house. This will be our new go-to for sushi. The food was excellent and the atmosphere was chill and welcoming.

Super delicious authentic Japanese food. A true gem in Nanaimo!…read more I got a salmon don. The rice was so good- so tasty and fluffy. Some very tasty agedashi tofu and my hubby got a vegetarian curry with potato croquette and veggies. This is his most favorite Japanese dish and we rarely find it on menus. Hurray Bistro Taiyo, we will be back! Ps. We got the special desert: Green tea pudding which was super delicious too, creamy, sweet, and green tea flavored. Yum!

The service was good but I dont recommend this place for anything else, food is not good and it…read morelooks like it needs more knowledgeable people in how to run a restaurant!

This was one of my favourite places to go when I was in town until today.. They have delicious…read morewings and today they were on the happy hour menu, you have to purchase a minimum of ten wings to get the offer. Unfortunately I can't eat that many, so I asked if I can order them and take the remainder home.. I was told absolutely NOT repeatedly.. I could understand them saying no if 1) I didn't order a drink (I would've ordered more if I got wings) 2) I didn't come here regularly (I come here a minimum of once per week and order off the regular menu) But to not even make an exception for me to bring home leftovers, that has turned me off this place, so today will be my last visit.