REVIEW | GYU-KAKU JAPANESE BBQ | EDMONTON

With over 700 restaurants worldwide, it was about time that global chain Gyu-Kaku opened its doors in Edmonton. Gyu-Kaku (translation: horn of the bull) is a Japanese yakiniku restaurant, where customers cook meat, seafood, vegetables, even desserts, over personal grills installed at every table.

Gyu-Kaku opened to much fanfare at the beginning of June. They took over one of the retail bays that was formerly Sobeys on Jasper Avenue and 104th Street.

It's a decent sized space, with large booths and tables outfitted with grills in the centre. Because the restaurant is pretty new and quite popular, I would definitely plan ahead and make a reservation beforehand.

In terms of ordering, items can be ordered 'a la carte' or through a course menu. The BBQ course menus, recommended for different sized groups, include a good variety of items for a set price. If it's your first time, definitely order one of the course menus for less hassle and the best value.

Although we were a group of four, we went for the Kabuki course menu ($85.00) recommended for three people. The samurai course for four just seemed like it would be too much food for four girls. With the Kabuki menu, we still found the portions sufficient and we all left pretty full by the end. If anything, you could always order extra food a la carte.

All of the set menus start off with the Gyu-Kaku salad. Romaine lettuce, daikon radish, tomatoes, cucumbers, red bell peppers and a hard boiled egg. It's drizzled with a house dressing that tastes of miso and sesame. Pretty standard. Considering all the meat that you're about to consume, it's important to have some roughage in the diet.

The course menu also came with fried crunchy calamari, served in an adorable miniature fry basket with chili mayo, which isn't really all that spicy. I thought the batter on the calamari was light, but it could've used a little more time in the fryer to crisp up a little more. I know it's seafood but the calamari also tasted a bit fishy to me. LT thought it tasted fine though.

Most of the meats you order are pre-marinated, but they have a selection of three dipping sauces on the table. Sweet soy, spicy, and ponzu. I didn't have to use the dipping sauces much but my favourite was the sweet soy.

Then our meats finally started to arrive! The menu explains everything but our server was also good about telling us cook times and the best places to put the meat on the grill.  

As part of the Kabuki course, we got two plates each of the filet mignon and the kalbi chuck rib. The filet mignon is seasoned simply with salt and pepper. It's a lean cut but it's tender and meaty. The kalbi chuck rib is thinner, but has more marbling. It's also pre-marinated in a sweet soy sauce with pear juice and ginger. 

The draw at Gyu-Kaku is definitely the DIY experience. Being able to grill everything yourself makes it fun and interactive. One thing I also noticed about the grills here was the absence of smoke in the restaurant. Unlike Korean BBQ where you leave smelling like a marinated cow, we didn't leave with heavy smells in our clothes. Their grills have their own down draft system where smoke is sucked into underground ducts. Our server was also really good about changing the grills over to prevent meats from sticking and burning. 

Our second round of meats were chicken thighs (x2), marinated in a basil pesto, and spicy pork shoulder (x2), marinated in spicy gochujang. I wasn't a fan of the spicy pork so much but the chicken was alright. If they weren't already included in the course menu, I probably wouldn't choose them a la carte. Go for the good stuff! (We're in Alberta after all.)

We were also supposed to receive two plates of the garlic shrimp, but we only ended up getting one. Unfortunately we didn't realize it until after we left the restaurant and were reviewing the menu. Besides that, the shrimp are a good size. They're marinated in garlic paste along with sesame oil and soy sauce.

Some more greens making an appearance. We got the garlic spinach and broccoli. The veggies are packed in a foil pouch with butter sauce, which helps them to steam and cook.

The Kabuki course also comes with three bowls of rice, but we decided to tack on an order of garlic noodles with beef ($10.50). The noodles are stir-fried with red bell peppers and green onions in a garlic sauce. Simple and tasty.  

To end the meal, LT and I also ordered dessert from the a la carte menu. We ordered s’mores ($4.00) which comes with all the necessary ingredients to make two s'more sandwiches.

Both LT and I have never been camping before (we're city folk) so it was fun to indulge on this campfire classic. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get the marshmallow super toasty with the grill but it was still melty and delicious. 



All in all, it was a fun experience at Gyu-Kaku. We had a mishap with our bill at the end (being charged more than twice the amount) but the manager was super apologetic and quick to rectify things when we found out the mistake. At the price point, it's probably not an everyday restaurant for most people but if you're out with a group of friends or celebrating a special occasion, it's actually not too bad.

It's summer. It's BBQ season. Why not give Gyu-Kaku a try?

Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ

www.gyu-kaku.com

10416 Jasper Ave

Edmonton, AB
(587) 416-0957

- CT

REVIEW | SAWADDEE THAI | SHERWOOD PARK

Hi, hello, sawaddee kha! 

Since 2015, Sawaddee Thai Cuisine has been greeting every customer that walks through their doors with a smile. Sawaddee is a small family-owned restaurant located off of Wye Road in Sherwood Park. Very rarely do I find myself in this part of town (I'm a peasant if you didn't know), but a recent errand in the Park prompted me to look for a dining opportunity that wasn't a chain.  

The restaurant is mostly comprised of booth seating running along the left perimeter. Only a few tables were occupied during Sunday lunch so we had our pick of them. The walls are painted with bright purple and fuchsia, but instead of looking garish, the dark wood paneling and a dimness in the lighting tones the colours down and gives the space a cozy charm.

There was only one server running the show but she was the friendliest soul, checking in often without being overbearing and making sure waters were continually topped up.

We don't eat Thai food very often, but Sawaddee's menu seems like it covers a good chunk of traditional favourites. Between the two of us, we decided to share an appetizer, a main, and a noodle dish. 

Curry puffs ($7.50), or karipap in Thai, are fried pockets of dough filled with chicken, potato, onion, and curry powder. The menu says two pieces come with an order, but we lucked out and were given three. These were tasty little morsels, delicately spiced and piping hot. They were at most two-biters, so at first glance, they did seem quite pricey for the portion. But coming from someone who has folded a lot of wontons, spring rolls, and dumplings in their lifetime, I know the cost comes from each small fold and crimp in the dough. It's definitely a labour of love.       

For our main course, we decided on the pla rad prik ($17.00), crispy fish topped with a sweet sauce, bell pepper, and fried basil. The pieces of fish are lightly battered and flash-fried. They're crispy for the most part but they do get soggy the longer it sits in the sauce. Speaking of, the sauce was a little too sweet for me, so I wouldn't hesitate to ask for the dish to be made spicier than it's indicated on the menu. The fried basil is definitely one of the best parts of the dish -- crispy and aromatic!

What visit to a Thai restaurant would be complete without ordering pad Thai ($17.00)? I know, I know. It's like ordering butter chicken in an Indian restaurant or sweet and sour pork in a Chinese restaurant, but I happen to like them.

The pad Thai consists of stir-fried rice noodles with tofu, egg, peanut, and tamarind sauce. You also have a choice between prawn or chicken for a dollar less. The flavour was sweet, but in a balanced way. The noodles weren't wet but they weren't dry either. It was the perfect in-between texture for me. Definitely one of the better pad Thai's I've had.   



If you ever find yourself gallivanting through Sherwood Park, Sawaddee is definitely a hidden gem worth finding.

Sawaddee Thai Cuisine
www.sawaddeethaicuisine.ca
664 Wye Rd #190

Sherwood Park, AB
(780) 570-1999

  

- CT