my boyfriend and i use to love going to gyoza king for their good portions and reasonable prices. i went there last week with two other friends and the food portion is definitely not the same as before. it's actually quite sad and disappointing. the service was not as attentive as before as well and the restaurant wasnt even full. we had to ask things several times when they should've been automatic, ie. refilling waters and taking our empty plates away.

I remember my friend told me that Gyoza King (along with some other Japanese restaurants on Robson) buy their "homemade" gyoza frozen from Hon's, a Chinese restaurant famous for their wontons. This shocked me. I refused to believe it at first because I lived in Japan for two years and I would never think that a Japanese restaurant would source their food from Chinese people and pass it off as their own. The Japanese consumer is very discerning and do not accept low quality substitutes.

Unfortunately, the Robson consumer apparently is not.

FOOD: We ordered the gyoza just to test it out and it was bland and definitely looked and tasted like frozen gyoza bought from a supermarket.

DRINK: I saw an ad for awamori shochu on the wall and told my friend I had the pleasure of drinking this excellent variety of shochu made famous by Okinawa. One of the distinctive things about awamori is that it's always at least 30% alcohol by volume. Below is a clipping from the Wikipedia page:

"Awamori is typically 60 proof(30% alcohol), although "export" brands (including brands shipped to mainland Japan) are increasingly 50 proof (25% alcohol). Awamori is aged to improve its flavor and mellowness. Some brands of awamori (notably hanazake) are 120 proof (60%) and will catch fire."

My friend wanted to try some so I ordered two on the rocks, no water (~$22 total). I was specific about the "no water" part because I wanted my friend to taste the full flavour. What we got was clearly regular shochu on the rocks - definitely not 30% alcohol. I was shocked again and had an internal debate about whether to bring it up to the staff; complaining about the food in any restaurant is extremely rude by Japanese standards, and these people were Japanese. But I was sure that the drink is not what I ordered and they probably substituted less expensive regular shochu (~15% alc.) thinking I could not tell the difference, which insulted me.

I sent the drink back and the waitress was initially surprised I could tell the difference. I told her I lived in Kyushu for two years and I am a big fan of shochus from all over Japan. She insisted it was awamori and that I must be too much of a "strong drinker" to not notice 30%. But 30% is 30%. When one drinks 15% and 30%, the difference is obvious to anyone except perhaps a deceased person. She then suggested it was perhaps because she added water, despite me asking her not to. She gave me another shot to see if it was the same, but I was already thinking about leaving and never coming back.

Watch out for these so-called Japanese establishments. Some of them will misrepresent their goods in a very distasteful way that does damage to the image of Japanese quality and cuisine as a whole.

Food: This is one of my favourite Japanese restaurants in Vancouver, and they have bar none the best gyoza. I personally think the Pork Prawn and Chive gyoza are the best and would recommend those as a benchmark dish. Other recommended dishes I would recommend are: the hamachi special when they have it; ginger pork and ginger beef sets; and the udon or ramen noodle soups. Personally I'm not so into the fish specials like mackerel, etc.

Service: Has always been excellent here. All the employees are always cheerful and polite, including the waitresses and the chefs behind the counter. I've been here many times and only once had to return something which was overcooked, which they immediately replaced with apologies and also gave us an extra tofu dish which is always great. Also, we went out of town for a while and when we came back they recognised us and gave us a free appetizer to start the meal as a welcome back; I've never had that happen at any other restaurant I've frequented.

Value: Good value, you can spend $8-12 per person and get a filling, good quality meal. Brought many friends and co-workers here and they always like it.

Ambiance: Great feeling here. Friendly employees, lots of happy noise from customers and good energy. Comfortable and clean surroundings. They pack a lot of people into the small space but it always feels cozy and intimate, like you're surrounded by friends.

My boyfriend wanted to try this place out as he'd heard that the gyozas were the best in town. We visited with a friend on a Sunday afternoon with the intention of having a quick snack and then heading home for dinner. We arrived and fortunately were seated quickly however we took the last seats in the house which were quite cramped near the door to the bathroom. The server didn't speak very good English but she conveyed the message that we should order quickly as the food might take awhile. She did not explain why it might take awhile but we waited around an hour (after ordering) for a few servings of gyozas to arrive.
The quality of the gyozas was high however there was still no explanation as to what the wait was and when I had been trying to ask where the food was the server didn't seem to comprehend what I was saying. I understand I had been warned but when you're told there is a wait you think perhaps 20 minutes at the most. The other issue I had was that the server didn't know which gyozas were which. This would have been okay as we were all sharing except that I'm a vegetarian and preferred not to eat the meat gyozas.
The reason I would like to go back is that the atmosphere was very cosy and made me feel like it would be a fun place to idle away a few hours eating, drinking and talking. I also see the mark of a good restaurant when you're in a Japanese restaurant and almost everyone eating there is Japanese. The final thing I liked was the disclaimer on their door "we do not sell sushi but we will introduce you to lots of other great Japanese food" or something along those lines.

Don't know why everyone is hating on GK.. I've been a fan for over a decade... love udon bowl, ebi-mayo, agadashi tofu, chicken karrage, and prawn gyoza.. and the vodka drinks are strooonnng ... always nice. Servers are nice - place is cute.. and the food is pretty cheap...open late makes it a frequent spot for me....

They do not, repeat do not, serve sushi, sachimi here but nevertheless they are a Japanese restaurant cafe. The rstaurant emphasizes a dislike for sushi which suits me fine but as fara s quality of food, lack of service and value Gyoza King is throughly a japanese restaurant. The food is cheap but you get what you pay for. They serve pasta dishes, salads and egg rice mixes. The food is cooked but you can do better at nearly any restaurant in town in all terms

I love qyoza king! its one,if not my favorite japanese restaurant in vancouver. I have late night cravings and i'm so happy that they are open late...everyday! i always try something new, specially when they have specials. but i always have to get their Tofu Salad and salmon sashimi. It is sooooooo good. it is a little bit of a wait, no surprise there. But the servers are always so nice and the food is well worth the wait.

I lived in Japan for a few years and going to Gyoza King takes me right back to Tokyo. I've been a patron of GK for the past 10 years and have always had a good experience. Love the food and the fact that 2 can dine for a total of $30. I highly recommend GK to anyone who wants an authentic atmosphere with delicious food and great value.

I had a lot to eat here, and I really don’t remember the names of the dishes that I was eating and sharing. With the exception of the karaage, I enjoyed everything. And the karaage looked good, it may be a matter of personal preference. The gyozas were tasty though; not oily, overdone, or overwhelmed by their fillings.

Good cheerful service and reasonable value.

Yeah!

My first impressions of Gyoza King was a cheap and cheerful. The restaurant has character and the food is better than your average izakaya.

Despite what the name of restaurant, the gyozas were just okay. They actually tasted store-bought rather than homemade. Of all the food I ordered, Beef Yaki Udon and Ebi Mayo were my favorite.

The mood is dim, cozy, casual which is great for drinking. However, it is difficult to get comfortable, due to small tables and chairs.

It does not have a hip/modern vibe. Think more Guu rather than Hapa

Gyoza King is a unpretentious, casual, Japanese Izakaya good for drinking sake & beer over delicious tapas.

Highly Recommended