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    Gozen

    4.1 (83 reviews)
    ModerateJapanese, Sushi Bars
    Open 11:30 am - 3:00 pm, 5:00 PM - 10:00 PM

    Gozen Photos

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    Reviews With Photos

    Takoyaki
    David P.

    Their playing was very aesthetic and the quantities were generous! The takoyaki, cherry blossom roll, and salmon Oyako Gozen were amazing.

    Bento
    KC A.

    First meal in Victoria and it did not disappoint. The side dishes are really great! I didnt finish the fish balls since I had too much to eat, so the serving size is quite generous. The tempura is also cooked nicely although it's soaked when it's served. I think it's better if there's like something that separates the tempura with the sauce at the bottom so it does not soak. The servers were friendly and attentive to your needs. So we're satisfied with it.

    Sashimi
    Janis M.

    Overall, interesting and fresh sushi - service v slow not due to the server but obviously short of staff. Some people waiting 20 min for bill. To the menu. Great sake list w reasonable prices. We had two rolls and sashimi. V generous portions and too much for 2. Toy Story and flaming eel were great. V dramatic presentation. Parking a pain. Either walk, Uber or use public parking. V popular so reservations a must.

    Zuke Tuna Don (no ponzu - use the shoyu!)
    Alison O.

    A local suggested we check this place out if we liked sushi and boy was I glad we did! You know how you can tell a good Japanese restaurant from a great one? The shoyu! THEY MAKE THEIR OWN SHOYU HERE! This ain't no Kikkoman or Yamasa and I could immediately tell from the first taste. Like a good wine, this had an aroma and aftertaste that you don't get with mass produced shoyu. It was so good by the end of the meal, we were all taking shots out of the shoyu dish. If the owners of Gozen read this: PLEASE SELL YOUR SHOYU BOTTLED FOR YOUR PATRONS! They also use akazu (red vinegar made from sake) instead of rice wine vinegar that adds a level of umami to their sushi rice that is clearly noticeable in a good way (the rice has a reddish pink hue to it). These two ingredients alone easily puts their food on a different level than any other Japanese restaurant. During this visit, I just wanted to savor the shoyu and ordered Zuke Tuna Don (no ponzu!) which was served on their sushi rice - clean, simple and delicious! My daughter is addicted to their Mango Paradise Roll which surprisingly, contains no fish! Kind of a weird combination of cream cheese, egg and other ingredients topped with mango that is refreshingly sweet yet sour! Rock n' Roll, R & B, and Popcorn Roll were the table favorite. As well as the Toy Story Roll, Magic Tuna Roll and assorted tempura - it was all delicious! The Unagi Flame Roll came en fuego - watch your eyebrows! We've been to Victoria twice now and both were 3 day adventures. Both trips the family chose to eat here 2 out of the 3 days! This place is my absolute favorite in Victoria. I'm sure there are other great restaurants in the area but we have yet to try them! If I lived here this easily would be my weekly go-to restaurant.

    Nightshade roll
    Julia T.

    The food was tasty and the proper temperature. The service was excellent although getting the machine took longer than expected, but then we were in a hurry to get to a concert, and we should've stated at the beginning that we wanted the bill promptly at the end of eating. The shrimp dumplings were wonderful, and the spicy seafood noodle dish was just spicy enough. The Hakutsuku saki was excellent, but only served cold, but in beautiful little clear cups adorned with tiny Japanese flowers. It was easy to carry on a conversation as the music in the background was very low-key. Everyone around us seemed happy to be there as were the four of us eating together. I would definitely go back.

    R&B Roll ($18)
    Michelle W.

    Gozen offers delicious and appetizing special rolls, but falls short on flavour for its hot food. GYOZA ($6): These are 5 lightly pan-fried pork dumplings served with a dipping sauce. They were pretty plain and simple, but I still enjoyed them. TOY STORY ROLL ($16) and R&B ROLL ($18): Given that there are 8 pieces each, the prices for these rolls seem rather steep. With that said, the quality is there for both taste and presentation. Among other ingredients, each roll had a golden fried prawn tempura inside, with fresh salmon laid on top. If you like seared sushi and tuna, then go for Toy Story; if you prefer a sweeter sushi and unagi (eel), then go for R&B. Either way, you're in for a wonderful balance of textures and an overall phenomenal flavour profile. MENTAIKO KIMCHI YAKI UDON ($15): Since my friend can't tolerate spicy food, we requested for the kimchi to be on the side. The kimchi certainly adds a bold flavour (more sour than spicy) to the dish, and one that I think it needs to venture out of its bland territory. I appreciated the addition of nori (dried seaweed) and pea shoots since they offered more textural variety against the soft udon noodles. However, the small portion size left much to be desired. CHICKEN YAKISOBA ($13): My friend and I ordered this after seeing a fellow member of our party eat the udon version. In hindsight, I wish we hadn't since it was incredibly oily and salty. Moreover, the dish could've done with more noodles and less cabbage as we didn't have much to accompany our chicken. As far as service goes, I was a bit miffed because I accidentally tipped 15% on top of the 18% automatic gratuity for parties. When we asked if it could be refunded (since I paid by credit card) or reduced from a different bill, our server declined. To be fair, she told us that tip was included, but I apparently did not hear her. Had we gotten more service aside from having our dishes served/cleared, the additional tip would've felt more justified. In any case, I wish the situation had been handled better and that I had been more careful.

    Fiona W.

    A pleasant surprise! I came here twice - once by myself and another time with 10 people. They were very accommodating with reservations and on a quiet Sunday night it was the perfect small restaurant for a group dinner. Service is extremely attentive here, my water glass was never empty for more than a few minutes - and this is something that I was trained as a former server, so seeing this rule being followed makes me happy when I am dining as a customer. Their tapas are on the smaller side but you do get generous portions of what you pay for. Excellent nigiri especially the uni and toro. Nigiri orders are 2 pieces each. You also usually have to ration the salmon sashimi in a donburi so that you don't end up with just rice, but this small rice bowl was packed with huge chunks of salmon that I could eat it as freely as I wanted without worrying about running out. Can't wait to come back!

    Flower roll

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    2 years ago

    Everything was great. The staff was very nice and helpful but did seem a bit overwhelmed at times.

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    3 years ago

    Its really not even about the food the staff was extremely rude. Wont ever go back. I think this is my first 1 star

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    3 years ago

    always stellar! i ve been here 4 times in the last 2 yrs. Fantastic, this is chicken teriaki and some tuna. yum!!

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    Toro Bar & Bar - Omakase

    Toro Bar & Bar

    4.3(22 reviews)
    0.3 km

    Food never misses but service could be better. Pre-ordered my food for pickup at 530pm and food was…read morenot ready until 6pm. The only thing they said was the food isn't ready and would be longer - they were not apologetic in any way (I had preordered the food more than 3 hours in advance), I had also asked for cutlery for 3 and was provided with 2. Other guests came into the restaurant too and were not greeted nor acknowledged. They were chatting amongst each other about how it's odd multiple servers came by and yet no one was able to assist them but the hostess who was nowhere to be found... I'll be back...but only because the food is excellent.

    Interesting place highlighting sushi and wagyu beef! I stuck with sashimi this round. As the name…read moreimplies, they offer a wide variety of cuts from the fatty belly of fish. Aside from the standard otoro and chutoro from blue fin tuna, they also had toro cuts from hamachi and albacore. I had to try all the toro cuts and actually I landed on the chutoro being my preferred belly sashimi. The bite of the night however went to the uni sashimi which can always be hit or miss. It was probably some of the best and fresh tasting uni I have had! The hamachi sashimi was also a stand out and actually tasted better than the hamachi toro. Service was actually pretty great and their suggestions (which included the uni) were spot on. Definitely need to branch out to the wagyu next time!

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    Omakase

    Gozen - japanese - Updated May 2026

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