Guu (Thurlow)

I went out with a couple of friends last night to watch Inception at Scotiabank Theatre. Our plan was to grab a Japadog down the street and watch the 7:15 pm show, but it was sold out! So we spontaneously decided to go for dinner at Guu instead, and then go for the 9:50 pm show. Guu was great, but I was really looking forward to finally trying the Japadog! Oh well... another time perhaps. I have been to Guu at Aberdeen, and the Thurlow location is quite similar in terms of atmosphere. It's a small but lively store, with the sounds of people chatting and the waiters and chefs yelling orders back and forth. They have an interesting drink menu, including many Guu-created drinks such as milk cocktail which is vodka and Calpico mixed together. They even have their own beer called "Guuu'd Ale". We decided on half a litre of apple wine ($14.00). It was very sweet and fruity, without the strong acidity of regular red wine.

The food menu is somewhat difficult to read if you don't know Japanese. The menu items are mostly written in huge Japanese font, with tiny English font below. I ordered a sashimi salad ($6.50) and an okonomiyaki ($5.80). The sashimi salad was well worth the money. I was surprised by the amount of sashimi on top because I always thought of Guu as an overpriced restaurant with tiny portions. There were 2 slices each of salmon, tuna, scallop, and a white fish (not sure what kind of fish it was) lying on top of shredded daikon, seaweed, and greens. The dish was garnished with roe and mayo. The sashimi was very fresh, compared to most other sushi places I have been to. This is why I love going to authentic Japanese restaurants.

The okonomiyaki was also above par. I loved the sauce and the bonito and seaweed flakes on top!