This place is incredible. We came here to try the ocean garden roll - made without rice and wrapped with cucumber. They actually have a few riceless options, nice for those who don't like rice (like me!). Also had some gomaae and it was delicious. Excellent sesame sauce and perfectly cooked spinach. The sakura roll was also delicious, as was the alaska roll and yam tempura roll. Tuna and sashimi arrived fresh and beautiful cuts. We were incredibly impressed.
The service is wonderful. We were welcomed at the door by the waitress and all of the sushi chefs. Our tea was kept topped up and the waitresses were very polite and friendly. When we left, all of the waitresses thanked us and the sushi chefs waved and said thank you.
This is definitely our regular sushi spot. More places need to get on board the no rice rolls. They could all take a lesson from this excellent service too!
Not sure what the previous reviewer was smoking but it was obviously a vengeful review - I doubt they've even eaten at this place.
If this is one of the best sushi places on the NS then I am moving to Vancouver. Service was poor. The waitress was taking our order while looking elsewhere. She was writing her order on a napkin and her hands were dripping wet. The Miso soup was too watery. The Nigiri sushi, salmon and tuna come quickly enough and were just adequate. All the rolls we ordered were all made too quickly and were falling apart. The rolls with tempura all had a heavy oily flavour. I took a friend of mine who is a sushi connoisseur because of the reviews here and the NSN Awards. I was really embarrassed. Yes, the price is cheap but who cares.
I've been going to this place for a few months, decided to finally write a review.
On first glance, the place isn't much. They try and spice up the decor with some art, but it's still pretty bland and dirty. We had a window seat and there were LOTS of bugs dead on the sill as well as cobwebs a lot of dust. Tables were well organized and clean, and the chairs were fairly comfortable.
The server was friendly enough, didn't speak English very well but then again most sushi restaurants are known for that. She tended to linger around a bit and didn't really seem to know what to do at times, but was cheerful so she was probably new.
The food was average if not a bit below. I had the Sakura Combo(#7 on lunch special menu) and my date had the Teriyaki box#2). The Sakura roll was tasty but fell apart very easily. The Tuna roll was good, although fairly sweet. The kappa roll was bland to say the least, tasted like water. Literally. The miso soup also was very weak and more or less tasted like a mouthful of onion stock. My date's teriyaki was very dry and tough. She ate a bite of it and then couldn't stomach the rest. The salad was ok, as was her california roll. The prawn tempura was fine, the vegetable tempura not so much.
Pricewise, it's not terribly expensive, but more expensive than any other sushi place we've gone to.
The best part of the whole meal was the Sakura roll, which I would consider takeout at best. The selection of interesting rolls was intriguing but unfortunately it won't be enough to get us to come back.
Decided to try Aka Tom Bo based on the best on the North Shore ratings and reviews here on Dine Here. Have to agree it's really good. They have a wide selection of special rolls - we tried the Canuck roll and the Crunch roll, both very good. Also have some other good rolls, including mango spicy tuna and smoked salmon and avocado which were excellent. The only thing that stopped me from giving the food 4 stars was the presentation - the rolls were obviously made extremely quickly, and it showed. A little more care would go a long way here.
One really nice surprise was the way Aka Tom-Bo serves their agadashi - the quite large tofu cubes are served on a separate plate rather than in the sauce. You just dipped each piece in the accompanying sauce, so there were no soggy pieces at the bottom of the bowl. Great idea.
The restaurant was very clean, the ambience is fine for a lower end place and the service was very prompt and friendly. We will definitely be returning soon.
We order from this resturant at least once a week and it is consistently fabulous. The rolls are always fresh and well made. The yam tempura and dynamite rolls are usually warm because they are so quick in delivering it to our house. We love the spicy tuna, mixed with green onions, sesame oil and spicy sauce, delicious!
One of the best things about the rolls is that they cut them into eight pieces so they are just the right size, never too big.
This is the best sushi place that we have found in North Vancouver!
My friends and I were planning to go for lunch at Honjin. Turns out they only are open for dinner on Sundays, so we tried out Aka Tom-Bo. We're glad we did because it's a nice place for sushi on the North Shore. Honjin may have a slightly better ambiance, but the sushi here was just as good, and the service was great. They also have an outdoor section here for good summer weather. Got the Deal 12, and was quite satisfied, a good lunch for a decent price (sub $10). My friends got some individual sushi selections and were also happy with it.
If you're one of those "Sushi is my religion" types and want only the most expensive, exotica and almost squirming sashimi and you think negiri is for the masses, this isn't the place for you. It's a good neighbourhood sushi joint. I did a take out here today and was quite impressed about the value for money... Cucumber rolls, futomaki, spicy tuna roll and dynamite roll were all very fresh and tasty... The futomaki could have been rolled better... All the rolls are quickly prepared and the service is pleasant... Everything together cost less than 15 bucks... That's a sweet deal...
I really wanted this place to be great as it is the closest sushi joint to us but the simple fact is that the rolls, although creative in some cases, just aren't as well made as other nearby places and the fish not as fresh. Also I find the decor and ambiance of the place pretty depressing. I tried the fish cakes last time i was there and they looked and tasted shop bought frozen then deep fried. On a plus side, if you like large portion then you will be happy as their bento box portions are huge.
The first time we went there, we got 2 pieces of their Ocean garden roll on the house when waiting for the food. They became out all time favorite. They crunchy roll was also very nice, a bit messy too eat but good solid in flavor. I haven't tried their Sashimi but I noticed the chef's presentation was very beautiful, one Sashimi my next table ordered was like Peonies on the plate.
We also tried their Teriyaki chicken Udon Noodle soup. It came with big piece of meat. But cuz we were too full to taste it's true flavor, it didn't stand out like other dishes.
For the quality and portion of food, their rice is very good.
the place is clean the staff is attentive.
We have taken out from here for months now and have received fantastic food and great service 100% of the time.
Many people say Honjin is the best on the N shore but I'd argue that this is equal or better, definitely better value.
We usually aren't too adventurous with sushi, particularly with the cleanliness issues many of the restaurants have but Aka Tom Bo has proved to be great in all regards. If you don't already check out sushi restaurants on the Coastal Health website.
We will continue to go there.
Tried this place for lunch and had a good variety of lunch specials such as boxes and roll combos. Tried their roll and sushi combo which was very good. Rolls included some sort of smoked salmon, tempura roll. Sushi pieces are a bit on the small side with the rice being a bit big. Fast service which is important at lunch. Room is a bit run down and needs a bit of attention. Will go back and try again.
I have ordered delivery from Aka Tom-bo a few times. The food always arrives fresh, hot, and within 20mins at the latest. Best local sushi and cooked Japanese I've ever had.
Way better option to tradtional pizza or Chinese delivery food, and much healthier.
They are worthy of your business.
Went to north vancouver today with my friends and discover this nice sushi restaurant. The place is small but VERY CLEAN. The food is great, Miso soup and Crunch Roll are delicious, the waitresses are very friendly too!
Aka Tom-Bo makes the best sushi that I have had at a moderate priced sushi joint. It is the only sushi restaurant that my friends and I will go to in North Vancouver. Don't waste your time getting cooked meals here, order what they do best...sushi. Their sashimi is always top quality and very fresh. The chefs sushi creations are amazing especially the crispy tuna delight and the king crab roll (they are to die for). Service is excellent, the servers are always kind and friendly, the only thing that could be a bit better is the ambiance (it's a bit boring).
Mrs. C and I were looking for some NS sushi and we decided to give ATB a try based on the reviews here. The restaurant is nice inside, and it is very clean, including the w/c.
We were seated by a friendly server and perused the menu. I had a bento box B (beef teriyaki, tempura, sushi) and a triple combo (tuna/salmon/cucumber rolls). My beloved dining partner had a chicken udon, and shared part of my sushi. We started with miso soup, which was like dishwater. Not an auspicious beginning. Then I had the sushi which was pretty good. The teriyaki however was burnt, and the tempura was hard, cold, and not at all good. We were given two pieces of free sushi roll, which had cucumber skin instead of seaweed and a filling like California roll. That was different and quite tasty.
The udon was reported to have lots of chicken and veggies, but the broth and the noodles were sub-par. On the plus side the chicken was marinated, which is a good thing with chicken udon. The service was okay, but the server had to be summoned repeatedly for tea and for the forgotten rice with the bento box.
All in all a mixed experience. The sushi was quite good, but the rest of the meal was a tragedy.
Can’t recommend.
At first glance, this place would seem to be your average Japanese Sushi restaurant. It has all the typical things you would expect on the menu... California rolls... Bento boxes... tempura... etc.. etc... just like hundreds of sushi restaurants all over Vancouver. They have the basics down - the staff are friendly and efficient. And the restaurant is modern and clean.
So what set's them apart?
Simple - they do it all *BETTER* than everyone else.
I can order the EXACT same bento box with the EXACT same items somewhere else, but Tom-Bo's is tastier. It's the same but BETTER. Their Udon (noodles) are wonderful, with a fragrant yet delicate soup base - and in my opinion, better than many other Japanese restaurants that claim to specialize in it. It's just BETTER. Their Sushi and rolls may have the same names, but they are just BETTER.
Now, in addition to the typical stuff, the chef has created rolls of his own unique creations. And they are delicious. Try the Crunch combo, or their unique cucumber wrapped sushi (I forget the name, but you'll know what I'm talking about right away).
While our favorite Sushi place remains Sen up the street. and our award for best rolls still goes to Sen, Tom-Bo's is a close 2nd and offers a great deal more variety than Sen. If you love Sushi, you'll love Tom-Bo's
P.S. Try the Seafood Seaweed Salad too. I don't think it's for everyone, but we love it.
i took my parents there last night and yeay! great survice, although it was pretty busy they still kept up and made us feel cared for. very young staff so you have to give them props for being so professional and talented because the food was top notch. we even got a crunchy roll for free just because. and my mom's salmon teriyake wasn't ready in time with the rest of our meals so they gave her chicken and then brought the salmon too as soon as it was ready. everything was well portion, beyond well priced and the place was so cozy and CLEAN! def going back and i will tell everyone i know to visit this place. :)
The sushi at this place is delicious. I have had both eat in and take out. Both are well presented, fresh and taste incredible. I love their special sushi rolls. The servers and chefs are accommodating of special orders and food allergies. The service was good and the restaurant was exceptionally clean. Overall a winner on the North Shore!
I always get take out. The staff are very kind and friendly, and the sushi is first rate. A overall very good neighborhood sushi place, and a standout among the dozen or so similar places in the vicinity.
I tried this place after having some of their rolls at a friends place as take out. I liked it so much that I took the family for a night out here.( I think the owner is Japanese, but I've been wrong before!)
First off the place is CLEAN, a nice change from my usual sushi Town or Sushi garden spots! ( They are starting to get a bit gross!) The specialty rolls are amazing! I HIGHLY recommend the Crispy spicy tuna roll, it's my new fave, they have a rice free roll using cucumber as a wrap and that was great too! They service was quick and gracious, because we ordered a lot they gave us a complimentary roll and the food arrived quickly thereafter, my kids raved about the Teriyaki don bowls and the tea was always full. The prices are more than reasonable and I'll definitely be back
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