Manzo Itamae Japanese Restaurant

Good food. I liked everything I ate, but everything is so costly for the size. Likely there prices are similar for trendy izakayas in the Greater Vancouver. Probably same dishes, but prices increased due to inflation (due to pandemic). Service was ok. Host was a little slow to seat us and I think they almost gave away our table to the next 2-seater that came in after us as we were seated in the waiting area out of view. Servers were quick to clear dishes but not refill tea or check to see if we wanted more dishes. This may be the difference in training between Western and Asian restaurants. Parking was plentiful in their free parking lot (shared with other businesses).

Ate at manzo today, with my family. The sashimi was definitely not fresh. The spicy scallop roll is also not fresh, it was doused in hot sauce in order to cover the lack of freshness. Here's the best part, the udon soup had a COCKROACH in it and the manager NEVER came to apologize. Instead we were given a 5% discount on our bill. I'm sorry 30 dollars isnt enough for me to drink cockroach soup. OVERPRICED, not fresh, would not recommend.

Used to be my favourite Japanese food place in rmd. Today’s special Cod was over cooked - a piece of thin white layer between two black carbonised layers... And very tiny portion apprx 10x2x1 cm in total. Might need a better ventilation - full of smoke inside and can hardly breathe. On top of these, more expensive than before. A bit sad, was really looking forward to coming an hour ago. Three stars for those good old days.

We've been driving past this place for years. Finally, I took a look at the food pictures on Google, and well, it obviously made it to my food adventure list. We added it to our walking list, took the Canada Line one evening to Aberdeen Station, and walked along Hazelbridge Way and then Capstan Way. We didn't have a reservation. The manager greeted us at the door and seated us right away. While walking past different tables with various displays of amazing sashimi dishes, it felt like we were no longer in BC or Canada. Yes, all the servers spoke English, but the place was strongly Chinese Asian rather than Japanese. The menu was vast, but since there was just the two of us, we couldn't order a lot of items. We chose our favourite, hamachi sashimi ($35.95), and ghindara – grilled miso pickled black cod ($19+). The Hamachi sashimi we had was the most amazing I’ve tasted. Extremely fresh and firm. No fishy smells. I've read reviews – most find this place pricey. Well, it was the most we've paid for hamachi sashimi in Canada. BUT, as shown on the photo, the pieces were not thin, they were excellent, the cut was great, and, after the dish was finished, we were well satisfied. At other places with a lower price tag for hamachi, I remember think "that was not enough fish". The servers were all extremely polite, but we need not feel welcomed, and we did not see a lot of friendly faces. It was kind of sad and severe. Oh, note the size of the wasabi(!) We went back with friends to try BBQ fresh fish. The BBQ salmon belly were amazing (Salmon Toro Nankotsu $27.9). They were so good we repeated the order. The chicken wings were fantastic but on the expensive side (Tebasaki $38 for 6).

Manzo is one of those spots you can always count on for quality food. Given that the service isn't always the best (as expected from any Chinese-run establishment), they huge variety of options never disappoint. One of my favourite dish to get here is the Nebeyaki udon. It's a very simple dish - udon in broth served with green onions, Naruto fish cake, prawn tempura, and a perfectly poached egg. I can never pin point what it is but the broth is so delicious, something about it always keeps me wanting more. Note that Manzo also has a menu filled with lots of drink options! As a Izakaya, it's often a spot where people go drink at so it can be a little loud at times.