We are beginning to run out of a place to eat in Richmond. Since the boys wanted AYCE (All-You-Can-Eat) Sushi, we took a long drive to Burnaby. There are lots of cheap and decent sushi places along Kingsway at around the Metrotown section. We decided to go to Fish on Rice.
There are actually two Fish On Rice with the other one along Broadway in Vancouver. The Fish On Rice on Kingsway is located on the second floor of 4381 Kingsway. When I suggested Fish On Rice, Nanzaro thought I was pulling his legs. He simply could not believe there’s a sushi place with that name. He expected more Japanese sounding names like Akasuka, Ningkasu, Yokohama, Toyota, Mitsubishi. LOL!
Frankly, I knew of the bad reviews of Fish On Rice particularly the fact that they have bad service. I sort of understand that because they have one of the cheapest AYCE Sushi around town.
The Lunch AYCE is $12 but is $1 extra for weekends. Between the four of us, it costs $60 including tips. We went at about 1PM and knew that there would be a crowd — we just did not know how big the crowd was.
We put in our name to the waiting list and was informed that the wait is 1.5 hours and that we were given at most only 1 hour to eat because they closes lunch at 3PM!! Take it or leave it, they said … no negotiation. I wanted to go for another place but the boys wanted this so much and did not mind waiting. It was easy for them to say — they have their iPods while Suanne and I only have each other to talk to.
We did not have to wait for 1.5 hours really. We got shown our tables only after 30 minutes. I guess a lot of people left their names and then left without waiting.
The interior look quite authentic but I do suspect this is not Japanese owned. Seating were cramped and tables were divided into booths of various size. We wanted so much to get seated by the windows with sunken floors but it was not possible because they are meant for bigger parties.
There are rules here … all AYCEs have rules. Here, you could have either AYCE or ala carte but not on the same table. There is also a 2 hour time limit.
Service was indeed bad. The waitresses walked around with their eyes looking at the floor all the time. They were so afraid of eye contact. We had to literally block their path to get their attention.
Mum, as usual being kiasu one, over ordered. Her reasoning that we only have 1 hour to eat but I know she wants maximum value for the money! For those who don’t know the meaning of the word kiasu, see here. I kid you not … kiasu is a word recognized by Oxford Dictionary.
We all regretted … BIG TIME! There were so much food all that we wanted to puke! I mean, why go through the agony of stuffing yourself silly just because it is AYCE right? Not to mention too … the guilt the next day when we step on the scales and found that we just gained 1 KG in 1 day. We never learn. LOL!
The food was not stellar but was quite OK. Some of them had lots of MSG. We, of course, maximized on our order of sashimi. We were not surprised that they are sliced so thin (they are supposed to be chunkier).
Salmon head and salmon cheek. Suanne digs this stuff. She enjoys picking up the flesh pieces. Too much work for me … too much work for the boys too.
I think the above is the Crispy Chicken Skin … it was some skin but not 101% sure if it was chicken. Nice … we like it. Not healthy, I know but they are absolutely delish.
Oyster Motoyaki is another of Suanne’s favourite. It has too much mayo and too rich for me. Suanne makes this at home and has the recipe here. It’s easy to make … check that out.
There are lots of other pictures we took … click on the link below to see more.
Disposable chopsticks.
Beef udon.
Seafood udon.
Teriyaki Chicken, Beef and Salmon.
Fried smelt.
Chicken Teriyaki.
Cold noodles.
What is this? Some salady thingy.
MSG-laden Miso soup.
Eda mame.
Unagi (eel) on rice.
Ugliest looking spring rolls we had ever seen.
Sushis.
Fried chicken wings.
Rolls.
Rolls — BC, Alaska, California and what have yous.
Agedasi Tofu.
you should try kingsway sushi at kingsway and boundary. the service there is great and the food is actually pretty good for an AYCE. the only thing is that the price is a little higher than other places. it’s sister restaurant, richmond sushi, isn’t as good as both service and quality is not as good there.
Have you tried BC Sushi on Broadway @ Arbutus in Vancouver?
Ben,
Fish on Rice (Bby location) used to be Kamei, part of the local Kamei chain (Japanese owned & operated), but I suspect sometime in the past few years the Kamei group may have been sold and its various locations possibly sold to different parties. I’ve heard some bad stories from colleagues who ventured over to FOR for the AYCE lunch.
Sounds like your experience is (sadly) fairly common amongst many AYCE sushi places nowadays, where the rules, overall lack of quality/service and ambience conspire to a mediocre experience.
I noted in your Ninkazu thread that I found the food to be pretty ok (was there last week). Didn’t get a hint of MSG which I’m sensitive to. Which may explain your day-after “weight gain” if your bodies were reacting to the MSG and high sodium levels of the foods (water retention).
Better luck next time !
AYCE Sushi is horrible.
I used to love it when I was a teen with an endless appetite, but not anymore.
Why stuff yourself with below-average food when you can, for the same price, fill yourself up with some authentic Japanese food? I think it’s mostly for the younger crowds who place more value on quantity than quality.
Great review though. I agree about the horrible service.
Ed more or less nailed it. I will eat AYCE not for the quantity, but only for the freedom of being even more “picky” on only the items I want. Quality over Quantity.
However many of the Vegas casino AYCE buffets that Ben covered on previous threads DO look good.
There are many good Mother’s Day AYCE brunch buffets around town too. But sadly that is perhaps the worst day to actually be at those venues due to the crowds.
Agreed with LotusRapper. Whenever I go with friends to an AYCE sushi, it is mostly to try different things, knowingly the quality is not necessarily high. Where else could I have motoyaki, gyoza, fried chicken and sashimi? I know, it is really odd to mix baked, pan-fried, deep-fried and raw…
Having said that, Ben, Suanne, in fact, anybody, if you are in the Metrotown area around lunchtime and Japanese food, I will have to suggest you visit “Hi Genki” located next to the National Nikkei Heritage Centre (6680 Southoaks Crescent – half block south of Kingsway, between Gilley and Griffiths). It seems they are part of the same group as Fujiya.
^Agreed!
Hi Genki is great.
We covered a few months ago: http://eatsnaprepeat.wordpress.com/2008/04/08/hi-genki-when-you-dont-have-a-japanese-grandma/
Ben/Suanne, you should definitely check it out 🙂
Thanks Ed. Been by there many times (I work at Metrotown) but never gone inside. Makes for good place to go sometime.
Not AYCE, but Zipang Sushi on Main is supposed to be good – haven’t tried it yet though.
woah… i haven’t heard anyone say “kiasu” in a long time!!!!
Pingback: Chow Times » E-Bei Japanese Restaurant at Granville and 41st, Vancouver
Hey, have ur guys tried the place across from Fish of Rice ?
Shin Ju it’s called, cheap ayce menu .. and alots of food
Hi Kevin:
For a moment I was trying so hard to think what you were referring to until I realized you were talking about the Fish On Rice on Broadway! No, we had never been to Shin Ju before. Is that Japanese AYCE?
Ben
Awful, awful, awful! I had a Tasty-Go voucher and spent far too long arguing with the manager over the fact that is clearly stated on the voucher that it expired in 2013. He kept on telling me that it was expired despite what it said. He was totally unapologetic and rude: I felt like I was engaged in the “no it’s not” game with a teenager. As a business owner, I can’t imagine being so terrible to customers. The other reviews are right… Really ridiculously bad customer service… Although I can’t speak for the food…