While I don't like to encourage more people to make this gem even more crowded I have to admit the secret's been out for a while. This is my family's (wife and teen daughter) favorite restaurant and has been for several years.

I have been a sushi and Japanese food lover for 3 decades or more. I am not a snob about it and I don't obsess like some of the reviewers over at Tojo's. (One reviewer suggested that if you didn't know the history or couldn't tell which coast the food came from you were the equivalent of an AYCE heretic.) But I digress.

Toshi was a successful restaurateur in Whistler but found the pace too daunting in a big bustling restaurant. So he opened his little hobby--sized spot at 16th and Main. Before long he was coping with line--ups every night. And with good reason. The food.

We have never had a bad meal there or even a bad choice within. The fish is always fresh, tasty and the perfect texture. His specials are awesome---our current favorites being the soft--shelled crab in a light crispy batter and the best spicy agedashi tofu we've ever had. A few other recs: the house roll, just try it, the black cod in miso sauce, velvety heaven, the mango/salmon roll, their own creation (I believe); I could go on but am getting hungry and they're not open now.

A brief word about the service. The staff may seem less than warm--hearted at times but they are in fact. They're just very busy in a tight space. We've become quite friendly with most of them over the years.

Final word. Do I like to line up? Nope. But I don't mind that much. We know how to work it so that we never wait too long although once we waited an hour. But we've never, ever said "that wasn't worth it."

So I had heard a lot about this place, and seen the lines, but never felt the need to stand in them myself... on Friday a friend wanted to go there, so we did. There was a wait, but once we were seated the food was delicious and plentiful -- and very inexpensive! Our service was brusk but acceptable, they forgot a few dishes and we had to re-order, but it was okay. I will definitely go here again.

It's been said over and over again to expect a line up. On a weekday, the line ups are around 20-30 min so not that bad. Tried the salmon and tuna sushi and it's very good. House roll and scallop roll were above average. The cooked foods such as the agadeshi tofu, sable fish were above average. Service was fast and efficient but don't come here for the ambiance as there isn't any. It's just a small Japanese run restaurant that gives you great food for a good price.

The 1st time here about 2 yrs ago was a pretty avg experience w/ the cooked food being tasty while the sushi was pretty much standard. The toro's fatty & our table of 5 ordered 10 but later were mistakenly billed for 100 pcs (almost didn't notice just thought that the prices weren't all that cheap). Of course, that was easily resolved as it's a ridiculously obvious mistake on their part. Temp. for some of the fish served seemed a bit warmer than the melt-in-your-mouth experience called for, but I dismissed that as it being the harsh Arctic wind chill outside & the packed rm inside.

Recently, gave them another shot. A ~40 min wait when we foolishly thought hitting them a bit past 5pm would snare us a spot. The sushi pcs were skillfully packed so it doesn't come falling apart, incl. the uni pcs (tho somehow, the 1st pc tasted fine, while the 2nd had a hint of sewage). Admittedly cheap w/ the turnover they can afford fresh ingredients but the quality of the fish was just still so-so. Really fatty toro like overstuffed farmed fish, was almost sickening to eat because it was served so warm it was slimy. The saba somehow came out extra fatty as well while I'm not sure if it's b/c it was cut closer to the belly. The "spicy garlic beef" is not at all spicy but it has a hint of garlic but was very very dry. Not worth the price tag on that. Surprisingly expensive, imo, for the cut of beef & the way it's served relative to the cost of their fish items. The ika karage was interestingly served as fried squid sticks. The old fryer oils made it taste of those packaged Asian dried cuttlefish. Nabeyaki Udon broth was quite disappointing. The "baked" black cod was like drinking oil (possibly undercooked so natural oils didn't get a chance to seep out a bit). Too greasy to swallow, we left that to be tossed after a bite each.

Inexpensive sush but not worth the wait & doesn't quite deserve the hype. For 2, a little over $70 pretip, post tax, no drinks except tea.

I love this place even I dont like the line up. The sushi is just perfect. Not so much rice and the rice was soft exactly how its supposed to be.The avocado was perfect ripe and fresh. I tried their eggplant too but it was ok to my taste because I felt it was a bit oily. But they do have very good sushi. Service is good and efficient.

My expectations were set quite high after constantly seeing the perpetual lineup each time I drive by Toshi's. This place does not disappoint!

The previous reviewer is spot on pointing out that the sashimi here is to die for! It's extremely fresh and the toro basically melts in your mouth. I found both the rolls and nigiri to be good as well, but the sashimi is definitely Toshi's main draw.

Ambiance is lackluster as the restaurant is tiny - hence the perpetual lineup. Table turnover is quite high though. On average, expect to wait 30 minutes.

The pricing is very reasonable. It's a bit more expensive than Seto Sushi in Richmond, but pennies compared to Tojo's!

As you can tell from my review history, I frequent Japanese restaurants quite often. For sushi, here's my ranking:

If price isn't a factor:
1. Tojo's
2. Seto Sushi (Richmond)
3. Toshi Sushi

Since this is the real world and price is a factor, especially considering the ridiculous prices that Tojo is charging, I'd highly recommend Seto in Richmond followed closely by Toshi.

I think the (obvious) reason Toshi is so popular is value Yes, the waits are a nuisance but to get very good quality food without paying high end prices is what will keep me coming back again and again. On our most recent visit last week we had two miso soups, spicy agedashi (excellent), spicy garlic beef (very good), and 5 rools (real crab Cali, Alaska, House roll, mango/smoked salmon and negitoro). All good and all for about $50 including tip.

Coming back to Toshi's after a long 'layoff. Still line-ups but it has been very disappointing as the standards have gone down considerably. The Aji Tataki was not fresh and on the borderline to be fishy; and the deep fried body seemed rushed as it was not crunchy enough. The red tuna and hamachi was disappointing as they tended to be the soggy side - not as fresh as it should have been. The only saving grace was the tuna which was excellent. The house roll on the next table looked scrumptious so we ordered one. But when ours arrived, the avocado covering looked dried out so was the rainbow roll. I have had far better at lesser known locations in Vancouver region. All in all disapointed that the reputation is no longer deserved, Would not go back again as it was a serious letdown for a sashimi lover who was originally a fan.

So i waited an hour to get into this place and yes it was frustrating especially with all the line drama of people trying to cut somehow but an hour later i was seated at a table. A lady in teh lineup had told us not to get the regular stuff you can get at other places and she was right, dont order the regular things you'd order at other restaurants like sashimi is the same anywhere you get it same with miso soup, tempura etc. So to make the hour line up worth it order all the different stuff you cant get anywhere else or else you'll end up whining about the mediocre food on this site, what do people expect from stuff like sashimi? Sashimi is sashimi anywhere you order it so be different to make it worth the trip. I got the tuna sashimi with sesame sauce, the spicey agedashi, some sort of eggplant with brown sugar on it, a mango and salmon roll, and a spider roll. Except for the spider roll everything else was unique and made it worth the wait. Are waitress was very attentive everything was very clean and i always like when you can see the chefs making everything so was it worth the frustrating hour long wait? Absolutly because the things i orderd i cant get anywhere else, the fish was fresh, the service was super friendly and it was a nice room and the value was very solid

I had never read a review of this little nugget, but I had walked and driven by numerous times and noticed groups of people milling about outside. I had never heard of Toshi (and I have crazy foodie friends), so I wrongly assumed that these crowds were accumulating due to the lack of good Japanese restaurants along Main and/or cheap prices. Well, I ate there last night and am thoroughly happy and excited to report that Toshi's is always busy because IT IS FRIGGIN AWESOME!

My posse ordered: salmon/toro sashimi, gyoza, the house roll (prawn, cucumber, avacado, roe), negitoro maki, miso and a bowl of udon. I adored everything but the gyoza. They are deepfried, and I hate deepfried foods (except for Mars bars...and halibut...and doughnuts...and hot wings...and......).

My fellow Dinerhere-ites all agree that the food is great here, but I would like to emphasize how wonderful the staff are. First, there were five servers, and only about ten tables. This is a 2:1 ratio! Second, Toshi always has at least three sushi chefs working together, in addition to chefs in the back prepping hot dishes. Our items were at our table within five minutes of ordering.

I was also coddled by several of the middle-aged female servers because I whipped out my own chopsticks, along with their sleek bamboo carrying case. Little did I know that these cases are primarily used by schoolchildren...I really couldn't tell whether these jolly Japanese ladies were laughing with me or AT me ;)