Shogi is an AYCE Japanese Buffet restaurant. It's one of the many that have popped up over the years in the GTA in competition for the mighty dollar.
Before I continue, I would like to declare a few things that have impacted this review.
1. Most AYCE Japanese Buffets in the GTA are actually run by the Chinese.
2. With cost of living so high, most businesses can't yield on the price, so they boost offerings (value), decor, and other fancies to elevate the dining experience and attract customers.
Shogi is located by Canada's Wonderland with Rutherford to the south and Major Mackenzie to the north. It's a small establishment located in a strip plaza on the east side of Jane St. The place seems to be under new ownership/management and remnants of the old business is visible (the new ShoGi Sushi sign is actually laid on top of the former business name). The good news it, the old business looks to also be a Japanese restaurant.
The AYCE menu is captured in a single sheet. Rather than go over every item which would be impossible, I'll concentrate on what is lacking and what was spectacular.
Lacking: I noticed immediately that they have no Sashimi offerings. One of my pet peeves when it comes to AYCE. This forces you to order Sushi and often AYCE places threat surcharges if you order too much and waste the food. Other notables NOT present are: soft shell crab (appetizer); Enoki (beef rolls); and beef tataki (raw beef). From Sushi selections, staples like Tuna (Red and White); Ikura (Salmon Roe); Amaebi (freshwater shrimp; Tako (Octopus); Yellowtail; Hokkigai (Surf Clam); Ika (Squid); and Uni (Sea Urchin) are missing. Now I can understand no Uni and Ikura as those can be costly to procure, but Surf Clam is dirt cheap!
Spectacular: ... now that I'm thinking about it, nothing really stood out at spectacular... so I'll just describe some of the things I tasted.
Tempura. The batter was on the heavy side for tempura (not light and airy as tempura should be), so either the water wasn't cold enough, there wasn't enough soda, or it just simply sat out too long. The shrimp was also coated heavily with batter (usually a result of sitting out too long and/or poor refrigeration). Heavy batter will also absorb lots of oil as shrimp will require more time during cooking. The vegetable tempura fared a little better, and while the batter was still heavy, they managed a thinner coating. Overall, I'd stay away from the tempura, 1 star.
Gyoza (pan fried pork and vegetable dumplings aka pot stickers). The filling actually had many of the ingredients; pork, green onion (not exactly chives, but I'll give it to them since most people find that flavour of chives quite powerful), and cabbage. Ginger and garlic was not present, but like chives, many aren't too fond of the strong flavours these give off. The sauce is really just equal parts of vinegar and soy (peppers may be added for spice) and was a little more on the vinegar side. 2 stars.
Specialty Rolls. These were prepared decently in terms of packing. The contents held well when picked up. The proportion of rice to filling ingredients was good. Visually, the rolls were presented well and were cut fairly evenly. 3 stars.
Sushi. Not being a big fan of the carbs, the rice was decent. Not too glutinous and not overcooked. While it held together, I didn't quite get that slight sweetness at the end (when dipping sushi, only the fish should touch the soy, never the rice as it will absorb too much of the soy and that's all you'll taste). There was not wasabi between the fish and the rice (which seems more typical nowadays as everyone has varying degrees of tolerance). The proportion of fish to rice was good, the fish covering the entire length including the ends; however the thickness of the fish was a slightly on the thin side. 3 stars.
Wasabi. Like 99.9% of dining establishments, the wasabi is instant. But even then, this varies depending on level of dilution. The wasabi here had next to no bite, only the slightest hints of horseradish were detected and not consistently. 2 stars.
Gari (Ginger). This is supposed to be young ginger for a milder flavour and marinated in vinegar and sugar. The marination wasn't bad, but the ginger was inconsistent in terms of age. Some of it was young, some wasn't. 2 stars.
Cooked Dishes. These were not bad in general, the fried rice, meat skewers (tori), cutlets (katsu), and grill items (tobanyaki). 3,5 stars.
Miso. Soup was instant (like 99,9% of places) and on the salty side. 2 stars.
Salad Dressing. This varies greatly, but they are mostly vinegar based (very few places make it mayo based, and if so, they're heavily diluted) with flavours of sesame and garlic, doubling as a texture enhancer as well. As simple as this sounds, it's actually quite complex. I can only recall twice being surprised by the dressing, unfortunately this place was not one of them. 2 stars.
Overall the price they charge is not worth what's on the menu. 2 stars. read more