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Written by Julie Van Rosendaal
When dining-out rules include sitting on the floor and eating with your fingers, a meal out with kids in tow can be more about visiting and less about enforcing proper table manners.
Kevin Turner, Executive Chef at Brava Bistro on 17 Avenue, loves to eat as much as (or more than) the next dad. (Brava is my spot of choice for grown-up nights out – it’s the only place I know of that makes lobster poutine. Lobster. Poutine. I wasn’t embarrassed when I picked up the plate to lick it clean last time we were there.) Kevin turned me on to Sushi Hiro – a place he and his wife, Robin, like to bring their two young daughters when they eat out as a family. They corral them into a tatami room – your own private little dining room, with sliding doors that help buffer the sounds kids tend to make and contain the mess they inevitably create. (Kyoto 17 on 17 Avenue SW also offers tatami rooms.) On top of all that, you are encouraged to take your shoes off and sit on the floor. Why don’t all family-friendly restaurants operate this way?
Sushi, it turns out, is ideal food for little fingers. There’s no need to master chopsticks, since eating it with your hands is just doing it the traditional way. There’s no cutting required; there are lots of cool colors and shapes; and no need to wait for it to cool down. If you’re worried about the raw fish thing, stick to vegetable sushi – because you generally order by the piece, there is opportunity to experiment. Besides the sushi, kids adore the selection of crunchy tempura vegetables, edamame, rice and long, fat, wiggly noodles. The selection of sake and beer make mealtime easier on mom and dad.
Beyond Sushi Hiro, Sushi House Richmond (on Richmond Road SW by Canadian Tire) delivers their sushi on a model train – an enormous thrill for anyone under 10. (Let’s face it, grown-ups get pretty excited about it, too.) Likewise, at Sushi Boat in Crowfoot Crossing each dish passes by your table on a floating sushi boat.
Wherever you live, there is probably a good sushi place close by (and if you’re thinking of take-out but are tired of pizza, sushi is a good, to-go option, too). Sushi Bar Zipang in Bridgeland is small and casual, and serves crispy tempura bananas for dessert. Wa’s on Centre Street is a well-kept secret, consistently receiving rave reviews for the freshest sushi in the city. Sushi Ginza at Chinook Mall offers all-you-can-eat sushi, if you’ve worked up an appetite shopping.
Sushi Suggestions:
Kinjo Sushi
7101 MacLeod Trail SW
(also has sushi boats)................... 255-8998
Kyoto 17
908 - 17 Avenue SW..................... 245-3188
Sushi Hiro
727 - 5 Avenue SW....................... 233-0605
Sushi House Richmond
90 - 3915 51 Street SW................ 242-9970
Sushi Bar Zipang
1010 1 Avenue NE........................ 262-1888
Sushi Boat
806 Crowfoot Crescent NW........... 239-1818
Wa’s
#2 - 1721 Centre Street NW.......... 277-2077
Julie is a best-selling cookbook author, food writer, cooking instructor and the food and nutrition columnist on the Calgary Eyeopener on CBC Radio. She lives in Calgary with her husband and two-year-old son, Wilem. Watch for her cooking show, It’s Just Food, with co-host Ned Bell on Access TV and CLT stations across Canada. For recipes and daily ramblings visit her blog at juliewashere.blogspot.com.
