While I have loved Japanese cuisine for years, I generally dine at the same places. In recent months though I have been looking to explore and did my family ever hit the jackpot when we stepped into Maïko Sushi on Sources Boulevard in Dollard des Ormeaux.
This is a spacious restaurant which can seat 175 people. Every spot was filled on the night we visited, with a lineup at the door. Nice music played in the background. As we were shown to our table, I admired the large sushi bar which winds around the right side of the establishment. While Chef and owner Maïko Tran works the entire restaurant, her old daughter Tram Vu oversees the sushi bar and is being trained to take over the business. Her other daughter Chau is still in CEGEP but works at Maiko Sushi as well.
There is a private room in the back which can accommodate 22 people. A minimum of $1,000 must be spent to get the booking.
Chef Maïko and her team have been proudly serving customers since 1997. People from all over the island come to this restaurant. I live in Côte Saint-Luc and happily made the 30-minute drive and did others from my community whom I saw at different tables. For a time, they also had an Outremont location, but it closed in order to devote full attention to the original which has the benefit of ample free parking.
With over three decades of experience, Chef Maïko’s gastronomic creations are a true reflection of the Japanese culture.
As first-time diners, we studied the menu closely and requested some help. Fortunately, our server Jason went through the options with us quite thoroughly. We started off with the Volcano and the Soleil de Maïko. The former featured four fried sweet potato chips, topped with crab meat, imitation crab, spicy mayonnaise, cilantro, green onions, sesame seeds and tobiko while the latter included four crispy rice cakes spread with goat cheese and topped with a spicy tuna tartare and tobiko.
My wife and I loved Nigiri, a type of sushi made of thin slices of raw fish over pressed vinegared rice. On this night we chose the Toro and Maguro: the former consisted of ginger, shallots, radish, tobiko, microgreens with tamarin sauce and the latter, lobster, tobiko, shiso, shallots, crispy Japanese rice, spicy mayo, yuzu
When the next part of the order arrived, this is when things shifted gears. I heard that the steak was really superb here, but I must say that description didn’t do it justice. The 10-ounce rib steak aged for 30 days, grilled and garnished with a peppered porto wine reduction, sesame, wasabi and maple syrup and served with vegetables and mushroom fries with a truffled mayonnaise sauce and white rise was quite simply beyond spectacular! I only managed to finish half of the serving, reserving the remainder for the following evening’s supper at home. The mushroom fries, by the way, were a real treat as well!
The ladies continued with the sushi. Homard and Moelle de Boeuf features miso mayonnaise sauce, served on fresh lobster on a bone marrow and all slightly roasted; Hamapeno is Hamachi sashimis, garnished with jalapeños and jalapeños oil, all served with ponzu sauce; and Kaki-Aghe, a roll filled with fried imitation crab, avocado and tobiko and coated with a mix of fried sweet potatoes, onion and pepper and served with a spicy mayonnaise and teriyaki sauce.
As for Maki rolls, the ladies went with the 9-1-1 (spicy tuna, caviar, cucumber, oshinko, imitation crab, tempura and mayo); Paradis (shrimp tempura, shallot, tempura, teriyaki sauce and spicy mayo); Poulailler (fried chicken, lettuce, spicy mayo and teriyaki sauce); L’Océan (spicy crab meat, tempura, avocado, lettuce and mayo and Homard Farci (lobster meat, cucumber, caviar, spicy mayo and shallot).
Needless to say, we were all quite happily full, with just enough room to enjoy a small digestif. I must note how artistically beautiful each plate is presented here1
There are a variety of soups, salads and appetizers to choose from as well. In the back there is a private room for small parties or business meetings. Maïko Sushi also has a special luncheon menu.
Maïko Sushi is located at 3339 des Sources Boulevard in Dollard-des-Ormeaux. For reservations call 514-684-3131. Lunch hours are Monday to Friday, 11:30 am to 2:30 pm. Dinner is served Sunday to Wednesday from 5 pm to 10 pm, and Thursday to Saturday from 5 pm to 11 pm. Log on to their website at http://maikosushi.ca and follow them on social media, notably on Facebook and YouTube.