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View Full Version : Review: Red Ember



xolemonteaox
06-21-2012, 09:14 AM
Red Ember

609 14 Street Northwest, Calgary, AB T2N 2A1
(403) 453-0577

Food Rating: 7.5/10
Ambience: 8/10
Service: 8/10

Went near the end of March, and they recently opened. Taking over Sushi Kai 609’s location, newly renovated with new owners and new staff. However, the appearance and presentation of the nigiris, rolls, and sashimi is pretty similar to Sushi Kai’s.

The staff started us off with a small taster; it was a small piece of tempura. The batter wasn’t overly thick, it wasn’t too dry, and it wasn’t oily either. You can taste the fish through the tempura batter.

Yam Tempura
http://img198.imageshack.us/img198/3306/sam0601n.jpg
The batter was thin but it was more oily than I would like. It was cooked perfectly, wasn’t mushy, nor was it under-cooked.

Assorted Nigiri and Rolls
http://img51.imageshack.us/img51/3232/sam0603o.jpg http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/4344/sam0604r.jpg http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/747/sam0605n.jpg http://img812.imageshack.us/img812/6969/sam0606v.jpg
This is where it reminds me of Sushi Kai a lot, the tall, narrow pieces of roll and having all the nigiris and rolls on one plate. Nothing was bad about it, but it was average. The toro wasn’t fatty enough though. The saba was also very marinated, just like Sushi Kai’s. so you can’t taste the fishy-ness that saba has.

Tempura Green Tea Ice Cream
http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/4919/sam0608y.jpg
Went for the tempura green tea ice cream and I found that the green tea was a little light. The owner told us that they purposely had someone customize the ice cream to incorporate lemon into it. You can taste the lemon and green tea, but it wasn’t too strong.

Overall, I did like Red Ember, but it wouldn’t be the first place I think of for sushi. I like it also because it reminded me of Sushi Kai (prior to AYCE).

npham
06-21-2012, 02:12 PM
What's pricing like? This place is just down the street from us and was wondering how it was.

xolemonteaox
06-21-2012, 04:04 PM
Originally posted by npham
What's pricing like? This place is just down the street from us and was wondering how it was. I find the prices for the appetizers pretty average ($5.75 for gyoza, $8.95 for beef tataki), tempura ranges from $5-$9. The hot food is a little more expensive (teriyaki chicken nearly $16). I find the nigiri ($2-$3) and rolls (average ~$10 for specialty rolls) to be pretty cheap, but keep in mind that they are very small compared to Towa's rolls. If you ate at Sushi Kai before, it is very similar in size and style.

Edit: Found their take out menu, might help!!
http://img560.imageshack.us/img560/3874/36280827.jpg http://img593.imageshack.us/img593/4245/97698924.jpg http://img23.imageshack.us/img23/636/58536738.jpg

npham
06-21-2012, 04:30 PM
Seems like a pretty cheap place. I'll have to check it out soon.

npham
06-22-2012, 11:42 PM
Ended up trying this place tonight and it wasn't good, barely average. Sushi rice was all wrong. Fish was at all sorts of varying temps, some had ice crystals and others were room temp. Agedashi tofu was beyond bland, though fried/battered well. Only decent piece of sushi was the smoked salmon. Rolls were not executed well, and it tasted much of the same.

Service was fantastic though. She got busy towards the end and apologized for not checking in on us as much. Ordered a roll but never received it either, however there was no fight, and they simply took it off.

Food Rating: 6/10 - Globefish a few blocks away is a much better option for nearly the same price.
Ambience: 8/10 - Clean, a little cramped and hot, but decorated well enough for a sushi joint.
Service: 9/10 - Only one server, if there had been another one, it would have been a 10/10.