Ottawa Foodies

I've ordered take-away and randomly purchased sushi from Kochu on numerous occasions for lunch at work.

Space: I have not eaten in at Kochu but I have waited for my food on occasion ;). It's very bright (which I'm sure is due, in part, to the giant windows above the restaurant) and always clean. It's nice to be able to watch as the staff prepare your food; there is one bar by the prep area, and two little tables along the wall. It is very small and I've seen it PACKED with people before, so be forewarned...

Service: Excellent service every time I've been. Phone orders are quick and efficient, everything is confirmed by reading it back to you. Very pleasant vibe from all the staff - each time I've been served by Misun Jang herself (one of the owners) and she is a wonderful host.

Menu: The menu is very easy to read - there are takeaway copies as well as sheets on the bar place settings and on the wall in the restaurant. There is a variety of maki, sashimi, nigiri, rice dishes and hot food. Right by the entrance there is also a small cooler with drinks, daily combos, salad, etc.

Food: I cannot express enough love for utterly fatty crazy roll (avocado, cream cheese, spicy sauce and crab stick), the spicy shrimp tempura, and the dynamite rolls. Smaller rolls (i.e. cucumber or sweet potato) are actually pretty large and are very well made. I was not a fan of the bulgogi roll, but I believe that is a taste preference. The lunch combos (often with a shrimp/salmon nigiri and variety of rolls) are a good deal and delicious.

The gyoza are tasty and are not the frozen ones you seem to get everywhere in the city. The edamame portion is large and well-salted. I have had the Spicy Pork on Rice dish and the flavour was good, but I was personally not expecting so much sesame oil flavour to come out of the dish - so much so that it was almost overpowering.

Also, the option to get your rice as brown rice is pretty fantastic; the brown rice is always very well prepared and tastes perfect.

Overall: A little bit different from the sushi you would "normally" expect, but remember that this is a Korean restaurant and as such, their food is not going to be perfectly in line with a Japanese sushi experience. I think it is wonderfully outside the Ottawa norm, the service is friendly, and it is incredibly convenient. I am sad to not be working so close to them anymore!

excellent service - attentive, enthusiastic and fast.

great menu selection and good prices comparable to other places. good quality. dumplings were very yummy, inari was great and the dynamite roll and shrimp and mango roll were very good. Would definitely go back.

had the bulgogi roll over the weekend
the beef was tender and flavourful
th lettuce and other veggies added freshness

every nice roll!

the dragon roll is for avocado and shellfish lovers

Having been to the other small sushi place on Elgin (Green Tea), I was a little worried that there would be limited vegan selections at Kochu as well. Boy, was I pleasantly surprised!

They have a couple of tables outside where I enjoyed a quiet dinner with a friend. I had the Vegetarian Sushi Combo (vegetarian, sweet potato, cuke and avacado rolls), inari and miso soup. I traded the avacado rolls in my combo (my most hated vegetable/fruit) for her wakame rolls. The rice was very tasty, and it was fresh but not warm - thanfully. The flavours in the vegetarian roll worked very well together, and they weren't over stuffed which made them easy to eat. (I've found some multiflavour rolls at other restaurants get huge, unwieldy and almost gag inducing.) To top it all off, the presentation was simple but nice.

With green tea, my meal came to just under $20 which I found quite reasonable for the quality and quantity of the food. I will definitely be heading back as soon as my next sushi craving hits.

went back again
picked up, for myself

miso soup (++), good, tasty
wakame salad (+) par but most are bought premade
kimchi (+++) very good, very garliky, could be spicier

the spicy pork (++++)
had it on brown rice (WOW!++++), I wish my brown rice tasted that good

the pork was nice and tender and very tasty
just enough spice to keep the lips tingling for several minutes afterward

my better half also tried the miso soup (big fan)

ordered the udon noodles with veggies (not realizing it too was soup-like but looked upon them favourably as the meal progressed)

loved the California roll which utterly surprised me as avocado and cukes are NOT faves but I guess there was just enough and not too much as with some cheaper places

and commited many counts of theivery of my pork (which normally does not comprise much of their normal diet) swearing to order it next time for themself so I guess I will be trying the bulgogi next

absolutely my fave take out place!!
and all I had for under $20

grabbed a quick bite here on friday while on break from a double

my upteenth time, savouring their offerings

still amazes me at the quality and flavours

didn't even mind missing my bus and having to walk back to Sparks and the buskerseekers

while I like my spicy rolls to have more of a kick, I've found almost every where I have tried in Canada to lack said kick

and the sashimi pieces are quite large for the $ while quality is top notch just wish they offered saba and kamachi, my faves

will have to try the more traditional Korean offerings at some point

Embean, Korean sushi tends to have a touch of sesame oil in the rice and the use of Korean pepper

hmmm...a dreary wet Sunday (only day off this week)...I might forgo cooking today and grab a bowl of miso soup and try their spicy pork with a side of kimchi

the only downer about this place other than the rather limited seating is the lack of LLBO licensing but meh....

the food and the gracious sisters more than make up for it

i love their dynamite roll, it has a perfect crunch to it.

I used to live right next to this place so I went quite often. The sushi is excellent- apparently "korean" sushi rather than japanese... I didn't know there was a difference, and there doesn't seem to be one. But anyway. What I like about this place is that they make each order fresh. You have the option of purchasing take-away boxes if you're in a rush. But if you have 5 minutes to spare, they make it to order, and it's quite a difference! They will also use brown instead of white rice if you specify.

They also have a spicy beef dish which is quite good.

And they do big platters if you call ahead.

I haven't been to any of the "classy" sushi places in town, but I'm quite happy with this place.

I was there a couple days ago to pick up a bibimbap for take out. The lady behind the counter was very polite and the service was prompt. It was definitely one of the best bibimbaps I've tried around Ottawa Center area. However I do find the portion was a little small. But that is not going to stop me from going back!

Better late then never... Here is a pic of;
-Sweet potato roll, Shrimp roll with mashed avocado and Salmon Kamikazi.

I agree that these are indeed great. I was a little worried because they have tempura flakes in them which can be very drying if over used, but they were a very pleasant addition to this roll.

These are our new favourites in the realm of Sushi.

We discovered these at Kochu several months ago and they keep us coming back. The taste is like nothing else. We could make an entire meal out of them.

miso, in this case

very light, mild, tasty, just enough of that "cheesy" miso flavour without being too salt

great flavour
nice and garliky
I do fancy mine spicier but still......

yes they do
I forgot to mention there is an extra charge
50 cents on rolls and 1$ for the bowls but more than worth it

Chef Obi, does Kochu happen to do any brown-rice sushi?

because I'm currently doing a carb kontrol diet, white rice is out
not always a big fan of brown rice BUT the brown rice offered as an option in lieu of white rice blew me away

very flavourful! light and fluffy

in this case, pork bulgogi aka Gochujang bulgogi, was very very good

being an afficiando of pork, this ranks up there
tasty!
sweet, spicy and salty
num num num
stirfried with onions and carrots
sprinkled with black and white sesame seeds and served on brown (white available) rice..wow!

My wife and I ordered bibimbap from Kochu a few weeks ago. Along with the usual veggies, rice and egg, their version includes beef strips which I think are marinated in bulgogi sauce. Quite tasty, and reasonably priced at $6.95.