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| - The first thing you notice is the look: sparse and open, bare greys and faux wood browns, intimate yet energized, with hanging "vine lights" that illuminate both the open kitchen and the food that's about to come from it. The first thing you notice about Aburi Room is the "room" part, and how different it is from other sushi (and even non-sushi) places in the area.
Of course, we were here for the "aburi" part, so let's get to that. After a 15-20 minute wait (no reservations for a party of 2 at 8:30pm on a Friday night), we were whisked to our table and promptly ordered:
1) Aburi Premium tasting menu
- The appetizers (salmon sashimi on a bed of seaweed, edamame, salad) were standard fare.
- The 10 pieces of aburi sushi were really good. The flame seared flavour came through but what was pleasantly surprising was that the "milky"/fattg taste of the seafood also strongly came through. The searing was obviously done skillfully.
- The 2 handrolls (blue crab and spicy salmon) were ok. I know some reviews have said the nori is too tough to chew through. I was fine with it, though I usually eat handrolls with my hand (vs using chopsticks) so I guess that helps.
2) Aburi Lite tasting menu: Same as the Aburi Premium menu, though with only 6 aburi sushi pieces.
3) Chirashi Tart: While it was definitely good, I think it was a tad overhyped, simply because it looks pretty so is very Instagram-able. I paid up for the smoked version, and while the smokey taste did come, I'm not sure if it was worth the $3 extra.
Overall a good experience. Aburi sushi was well done, everything else tasted standard, service was pleasant and efficient, the meal was a tad expensive (and definitely a lot more than other sushi places nearby) but not ridiculously so given what you're getting. I'd recommend to try once, especially if you're looking for something different in the area.
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