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This restaurant has relocated to Vancouver under the same name.
Our usual dinner gang decided to try this place based on the strong reviews below. We were a little disappointed with the experience. The restaurant was simply decorated and reasonably clean. It was also empty on a Saturday night, and while we were there no one came in, even for takeout.
Service was not the best we have had, and although the server was friendly, his visits to our table were infrequent. We ordered a variety of dishes, including gyoza, some roll sushi, sashimi and prawn tempura. All were okay, except the gyoza was cold, and the tempura colder. When I went to the front counter to complain, I noticed that the pre-made tempura was piled high in a metal container in the prep area, waiting to be served. I presume the gyoza was also ready to go, but I could not see where that was stored. I pointed at the tray of cold tempura and expressed my dismay at this state of affairs and the server told me he was sorry. So was I. At least it wasn't too expensive.
Can't recommend.
Firstly the take-out menu here is huge, 6 pages long which is perplexing as there doesn't really seem to be that much choice in the menu. Anyhow its the first time I was given an actual menu versus a condensed font format menu for a take-home menu.
The ambiance here is very solid, they've done wonders with the space; it looks great and very welcoming, more of a modern Japanese sensibility. It's quite spacious inside and tables are spaced apart, and they use interesting beautiful dinnerwear.
Overall I was impressed with this place, the service is a tad slow as they had only one server the day I went, there is a tiny bit of a language issue in understanding each other as well but the menu items are straightforward.
It seems people are slowing discovering this place so they will need to hire more staff soon!
The food --- I wanted to love it, I had such high expectations. The dishes were artistically presented, especially the tempura, my friend had the seafood tempura and loved it, if you are a visual eater you will love this place. My chopped scallop roll was good, as with all true Japanese places the sushi portions tend to be smaller. It wasn't the best chopped scallop roll I've ever had though but it was beautifully presented with flecks of red roe and a few extra scallops on top. The salmon sushi was a bit frozen as well, so it's best to let it thaw out a little your self. It wasn't sockeye salmon though, and it might have been farmed or wild pink salmon I didn't ask. It was probably farmed which is disappointing. I tried one of my friends gyoza's and they were alright. There are some little appetizers served here and I tried the garlic stem with garlic which was a nice change from gomaae.
I wasn't hungry enough for a bento box but they seem to be a very good deal at around $14 each at dinner $8 at lunch.
We tried dessert here as we were influenced by the previous reviewer, we didn't end up trying the matcha cake as the waitress said it was previously frozen and I don't like green tea flavour so much. I tried one of their shaved ice desserts with syrups and ice cream on top. It was alright, for $4 I was expecting a much bigger portion (hey it's ice mainly and the shaved ice place at the Richmond Night Market gives such generous portions). If you try dessert here I recommend you go for the $8 shaved ice concoction as the table across from us had it and that dessert was huge and it would be good for sharing.
Also for the previous reviewer the reason people don't go here is because no one will trust a reviewer who's only written a couple of reviews. And also there have been a succession of failed mediocre restaurants in this location. Ki Sushi (formerly Kirin Sushi) across the street has no competition from this place they are two entirely different restaurants. Mainly because the service and getting your food at Rikka is so leisurely you need to be in the mood for a long leisurely meal. Also the reason Ki Sushi is popular is because of their low prices and consistent high quality, you always know their food is good. Also Ki Sushi only serves sockeye salmon which tastes better. Overall I found Ki Sushi's food yummier, probably because I'm used to their food.
Overall I think this place is worth a try and I will return for their amazing looking bento boxes, I do wish they tasted as good as they looked though, just don't go with too high of expectations, the prices are fairly reasonable apart from dessert pricing. Would be a good restaurant to take a date out to.
Tonight my husband & I tried this recent addition to the Downtown New Westminster area. Though we were seated promptly, we did wait a LONG time for our Dinner Special orders of "Beef Teriyaki" and "Tofu Teriyaki". But, we did not mind because we knew there was only one person working, plus, when we did eventually see the enormity & beauty of our orders, we thought that the price we were asked to pay for them was ridiculously low. (We happily left a 30% tip.)
My husband & I particularly enjoyed our salads, teriyakis, and soups. We were very impressed by how little rice was used for the Nigiri pieces. I really liked the tea too - it seemed to be stronger than the tea usually served in Japanese restaurants.
We WILL be back.
as mentioned in the title, personally I'm getting very sick of how 'easy' it is to have a so-called japanese retaurant. the overall value of sushi seems to be lowered thanks to how accessible it is, the fast food aesthetic. on the other hand, we have the fancy modern hipster new age 'fusion' japanese places that boast trendiness and unusual dishes...and expensive prices. mind you, some of those places are indeed delicious, but here's a happy medium.
I've been going to rikka for a year now, and have decided to write a review. own by an awesome japanese/korean couple, this restaurant is nice, quiet, quaint little place, for people who like a down-to-earth and simple aesthetic. but what's really amazing is the food...I recommend NOT getting the usual, the sushi. instead, go for the combos, get the yaki-udon, get the saba (mackerel), or get anything under the 'japanese dishes' section of the menu..especially pork shogayaki. here is where the value really pays off, and one could definitely taste something unlike those trite and run-of-the-mill 'japanese' restaurants. especially with the dinner combo - the best deal by far - one could really see the care put into the presentation of the food, and taste the nuances of every tid bit: the zucini and carrot slices in the chicken teriyaki, the juicy and tender saba, the crisp in the tempura leaves (yes leaves), and the pomegranate seeds on the salads. the nigiri sushis always come with quite a big slice of fish, in comparison to the rice. and everything is homemade, including the soy sauce and gyoza.
the only thing worth complaining about might have been the service. a few times I had to wait quite a bit, but this problem really has been worked on, and is really no issue anymore.
go, now.
I have been enjoying Japanese food for several years and i think that Rikka is the best sushi that I have ever had. Everything is made in house, including the Soy sauce, all the ingredients are fresh and all the food that I have tried has been bang on. The atmosphere in the restaurant is pretty typical of a small Japanese restaurant but the food is excellent. Fair prices, great food I now order from there regularly.
Visited Rikka on a saturday night and found ourselves in a nearly empty restaurant. Usually that's enough to deter people from even entering in the first place, but if I had followed my usual instinct and walked away I would've made a terrible mistake.
The lone japanese chef does a great job at making sushi both palatable and presentable. We had several rolls, spider, house, dragon, futomaki, and each was a hit.
The server girl (presumably daughter of the chef?) was genuinely friendly and patient.
The food does take more time to get to you than other restaurants due to there being only one cook, but you can be sure he isn't rushing anything.
My suggestion is to bring a few friends to chat while you wait and take the opportunity to grab a take out menu. Rikka truly is a restaurant deserving of much more recognition.
It's owned & operated by a Japanese man. The food is very good and authentic Japanese, but recently they changed the menu and prices have gone up in the new menu, which is quite sad. The portions are smaller in comparison to the prices, but the food tastes quite good. As soon as you are seated, they serve green tea; as for appetizers go I like their Agedashi tofu, kolokke and the fried tuna tempura in homemade teriyaki sauce is amazing! For main dishes I like their chicken katsu don or teriyaki don; I tried a pork dish cooked in ginger sauce, but that didn't go well for my taste, the meat was too fatty & chewy.
Anyway, they also have Japanese desserts like kakiage, which contains some shaved ice, with vanilla ice-cream, some fruit pieces like kiwi & strawberry, some sweet jelly, some sweet red bean paste and some kind of sweet gummy bits, perfect for a good summer day!
The service is not so great, since they don't have any servers or kitchen help, the owner is the only person cooking & serving most of the time. I guess being opposite to Kirin, is a disadvantage for them, because Kirin sucks most of the customers who feel like eating Japanese. As for me, I would prefer Rikka any day, instead of Kirin. Although they should get a liquor licence & serve some nice japanese sake or beer, that would go great with their food!
I do not normally give restaurants all 5 stars, but this is my 2nd time (and honestly), giving such a wonderful restaurant a good review.
The food was great, I have tried many of their dishes, I especially love the Salmon Teriyaki, Salmon Don and (their new dish) Natto with Fish (I could be wrong on the title here so bare with me). The quality and presentation of the food is great, the chef does a wonderful job on presenting it.
The service is great, it may take a little while for the food to be prepared, but I reassure you, it does NOT take entirely to long, it takes roughly 5-7 minutes to get your complete meal. The staff and chef are wonderful people, they have great attitudes.
The value is great because the price is reasonable, $8 for a bento box is well worth it, I was overstuffed.
The atmosphere was good, the music is very relaxing and the layout of the restaurant is nice, especially the lanterns on the left-side during dinner hours.
In conclusion, if you want to be in an authentic Japanese restaurant, I highly recommend coming here, you wont be disappointed.
Thank you.
This place is awesome. I don't see why more people don't go to this place more often. It seems that the Kirin across the street is hogging all the business most likely because they have a nicer interior. The food and presentation at Rikka is pretty amazing for the price you pay. The family that owns it is Japanese which seems to make all the difference. The staff is homely and they make you feel as though you are the only one there (which you usually are). Possibly the one main downfall is that all the times I've eaten there, there has only been one chef and it takes him a while to knock the dishes out. The Matcha cake is a lie.
| 1. | Keg Steakhouse & Bar, The (36 m) |  |
| 2. | Ki Sushi (69 m) |  |
| 3. | Old Spaghetti Factory (97 m) |  |
| 4. | Sarpino's Pizzeria (118 m) |  |
| 5. | High Rise Pizza & Treats (119 m) |  |
| 6. | Theresa Mae's (119 m) | |
| 7. | Sweetheart Cafe (128 m) | |
| 8. | Westminster Club (128 m) | |
| 9. | Wild Rice (129 m) |  |
| 10. | Crepe Des Amis (129 m) |
