Oriental Gardens (Kamloops)
I didn't think having sushi in Kamloops would be a good idea, but it turned out I was wrong. Oriental Gardens is a nicely decorated restaurant with a very spacious dining area and even tatami rooms for a small surcharge ($0.70/person). The entrance features a miniature rock garden complete with the serene sounds of streaming water.
The menu consisted of both Chinese and Japanese dishes, but we only ordered from the Japanese section. First something hot to warm us up! The miso seafood udon ($15.95) was hot and satisfying with shrimp, salmon, fish balls, fish cake and mussels.
We tried 3 different sushi rolls (from top to bottom): kampyo maki ($5.95), blackjack roll ($11.50), and spicy tuna roll ($6.95). Surprisingly my favourite was kampyo, a vegetarian roll with cooked gourd strips and mushrooms, topped with a pink sweet-salty Japanese condiment called denbu which is made out of fish. The spicy tuna roll was a bit spicier than I had expected, and I've noticed that this is always the case at a Chinese-operated restaurant. I think it's because Chinese people prefer stronger flavours in general. The blackjack roll was also quite good with prawn tempura, raw salmon, cucumber, avocado and cream cheese.
The meal ended with complimentary fortune cookies. I thought it was a nice touch, but it seemed a bit unsanitary that the unpackaged cookies were just thrown on top of the bill.
The food was decent but obviously the quality is not comparable to good Japanese restaurants in Vancouver. Though if I find myself in Kamloops again, I definitely wouldn't mind coming back for some sushi.
The menu consisted of both Chinese and Japanese dishes, but we only ordered from the Japanese section. First something hot to warm us up! The miso seafood udon ($15.95) was hot and satisfying with shrimp, salmon, fish balls, fish cake and mussels.
We tried 3 different sushi rolls (from top to bottom): kampyo maki ($5.95), blackjack roll ($11.50), and spicy tuna roll ($6.95). Surprisingly my favourite was kampyo, a vegetarian roll with cooked gourd strips and mushrooms, topped with a pink sweet-salty Japanese condiment called denbu which is made out of fish. The spicy tuna roll was a bit spicier than I had expected, and I've noticed that this is always the case at a Chinese-operated restaurant. I think it's because Chinese people prefer stronger flavours in general. The blackjack roll was also quite good with prawn tempura, raw salmon, cucumber, avocado and cream cheese.
The meal ended with complimentary fortune cookies. I thought it was a nice touch, but it seemed a bit unsanitary that the unpackaged cookies were just thrown on top of the bill.
The food was decent but obviously the quality is not comparable to good Japanese restaurants in Vancouver. Though if I find myself in Kamloops again, I definitely wouldn't mind coming back for some sushi.
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