The 7 Best Japanese Restaurants in Calgary

So, here’s one thing almost everyone in our team has in common: we’re huge Japanese cuisine fans. How huge? Like, we’ll-obsess-about-the-quality-of-our-sushi-rice huge.  

With that said, we were more than happy to pig ou—er, we mean review the best Japanese restaurants in the city. It was a long but delicious process whose results we’ll share with you today.

How We Chose the Best Japanese Restaurants in Calgary

Here are the factors we considered in choosing our entries:

Menu – We chose restaurants that provide authentic Japanese dishes, of course, including sushi, ramen, tempura, and many others. It’s also preferable if they specialize in a specific type of Japanese cuisine for a far more memorable experience.

Food presentation – We chose restaurants that demonstrate excellent food presentation to show its authenticity. A great Japanese restaurant understands that dining is about more than just tossing food on a plate.

Accommodation – We chose restaurants that provide proper accommodations like friendly customer service. It’s a plus if they can provide a traditional Japanese dining experience with sit-down tables.

Price – We chose restaurants that offer good value for money. 

Dining experience – We chose restaurants that overall, have high-quality service from the point of reservation up until they set foot outside the place.

1. Globefish Kensington

Menu	5/5
Food presentation	5/5
Accommodation	4/5
Price (A higher score means better value)	4/5
Dining experience	4/5

Globefish Kensington ticked the list of almost all of our favorite Japanese dishes. The best part is that they deliver all of these goodies straight to your door – no need to queue up at their busy restaurant. 

They make this possible through their online ordering options, which let you select either scheduled or immediate delivery. This feature is easily accessible on their website as well as their very own mobile app. 

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If you place your order through their website or app, you will even receive an exclusive 10% discount. We always love simple deals like this, plus it ensures contactless delivery to ensure a safer process.  

But enough of their online features – we’d love to gush about their food instead. 

We actually went to the restaurant several times to get a real taste of their food. For one thing, we noted that they use fresh and great cuts of meat for their sushi and sashimi – the tuna and salmon varieties easily made it to our favorites. 

It’s worth noting too that if you have dietary restrictions, the restaurant will accommodate your needs by customizing your meal. Someone at the table next to us placed a custom order for this reason.

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Oh and in case we forget, all of their sushi options are gluten-free!

However, while we loved the overall taste and quality of their food, we noted some inconsistencies. 

To be exact, our orders in the first week we visited were up to par with our culinary standards. However, come the following week, the food quality wasn’t exactly the same – it wasn’t bad, mind you, but the change in freshness was quite obvious to those of us with better palates. 

Luckily for them, we found everything else adequate with little space for complaints. Food comes fast, dishes are delicious, and customer service is commendable.

Customer Reviews (Click to expand)

2. Sushi Bar Zipang

Menu	4/5
Food presentation	5/5
Accommodation	4/5
Price (A higher score means better value)	4/5
Dining experience	4/5

If you’re sushi and sashimi fanatics like us, we think you’ll enjoy the authentic dishes that Sushi Bar Zipang offers. They’re actually quite known for various traditional Japanese dishes.

We tried out their sushi lunch plate, which includes three rolls of salmon, tuna, and prawns. The serving size here isn’t anything out of the ordinary, but it meets Japanese dining standards, at least.

While they have plenty of offerings, their lunch menu is actually limited to and focused on serving sushi and sashimi. Actually, this isn’t much of an issue for us since it’s typically what diners look for in a Japanese restaurant anyway. 

The quality of food is good – not spectacular, but good for what you pay. Their cuts are also super-clean. 

Their grilled fish was also pretty authentic in terms of traditional Japanese food preparation. However, we couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed since the consistency of the dish varied – two of us ordered it and one of us got a fish that was a bit mushy. 

Despite this, the restaurant makes up for it by offering guests a very comfortable dining experience. Very zen, you might say. On the whole, the place has a warm atmosphere with friendly staff ready to serve everyone as quickly as they can.

Speaking of speed, we were impressed at how fast our orders got to us. Their speed is a big advantage, especially if you’re in a bit of a rush. 

Customer Reviews (Click to expand)

3. OMO Teppan and Kitchen

Menu	4/5
Food presentation	5/5
Accommodation	5/5
Price (A higher score means better value)	3/5
Dining experience	4/5

OMO Teppan and Kitchen is Calgary’s only Wagyu Steakhouse, serving both purebred Japanese Wagyu and crossbred Alberta Wagyu. Beef quality is obviously amazing from the start, but there are other things that make them a good option for your next dinner date. 

Now, we need to admit something first. While we hate to be stereotypical, most of us on The Best Calgary team actually do think that teppanyaki cooking really captures the Japanese eating experience. 

Which is why most of us thoroughly enjoyed this place. Here, they grill their wagyu in front of their customers, filling the air with the aroma of delectable beef. 

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The restaurant is staffed by highly-trained teppanyaki and sushi chefs who happily showcase their skills in making the dishes. You get entertainment along with high-quality Japanese dishes. What’s not to like about that?

Anyway, we really enjoyed the portion sizes, like most of the regulars we talked to. To give you an idea of what you get, all teppanyaki meals come with two appetizers, shrimp, soup, salad, grilled vegetables, rice, and ice cream – all in an aesthetic presentation!

And if you’re hoping for a slightly different experience, we recommend their nightly specials. In particular, their Wednesday evenings feature the only ‘All You Can Eat Teppanyaki’ in the area. 

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Then on Thursdays, they offer Wagyu Date Night specials, which provide a blend of romance, entertainment, and culinary delight. We weren’t able to try these, though, so we won’t review them.

At any rate, while the food is fantastic, the overall experience is a bit underwhelming. At one point, we felt rushed to eat quickly and leave the table for the next group – really off-putting considering they have a good reputation. 

Customer Reviews (Click to expand)

4. Shokunin

Menu	5/5
Food presentation	4/5
Accommodation	5/5
Price (A higher score means better value)	3/5
Dining experience	4/5

We recommend Shokunin if you want a cold brew alongside your favorite Japanese meals. They’re actually an Izakaya, a type of Japanese bar that serves a variety of small dishes and snacks to accompany alcoholic beverages.

The restaurant is best known for serving yakitori, so expect to be offered a variety of chicken menu items. If you like, you can browse them on their website ahead of time before making a reservation. 

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Obviously, customers have a great selection of drinks such as sake, Japanese whiskey, beer, and craft cocktails. This makes Shokunin a good spot for late-night hangouts.

What about the food? Well, other than yakitori, we also loved their sable fish sushi, ox tongue skewer, and nappa cabbage – all of which tasted fantastically balanced, not overpowering.

Their tuna sushi was also a delight as the rice was just exquisite. One of us thought it was a bit heavy with soy sauce but not so bad that a good drink can’t help.

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Despite its popularity for its beverages, we’re disappointed that the restaurant doesn’t offer happy hour. The drinks are also pretty expensive, although we do think it’s not the kind of place you’d just go on casually on a whim.

Menu and drinks aside, we believe that their customer service is their strongest suit. Their staff is very accommodating and always helps customers by offering the best or most popular dishes the restaurant currently has.

The only drawback is the difficulty in reserving a table due to high customer demand. Like the other Japanese restaurants on this list, they prefer reservations, so you’ll likely have to make your booking weeks in advance to get the slot you want.

Customer Reviews (Click to expand)

5. Big Catch Sushi Bar

Menu	4/5
Food presentation	5/5
Accommodation	4/5
Price (A higher score means better value)	3/5
Dining experience	4/5

Big Catch Sushi Bar is well-known in Calgary for providing a genuine sushi experience. In fact, it’s their handmade sushi rolls that made them popular among locals – including the sushi-snobs on our team.

In the past, several of us used to frequent their open sushi bar, which allows customers to see how sushi is made. Unfortunately, it’s something we can’t enjoy at the moment due to health regulations around the food and beverage industry here. 

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Still, nothing beats their ability to provide a fresh take on one of Japan’s oldest forms of sushi, called oshi. What distinguishes their oshi rolls is that they deviate from the traditional serving by incorporating new techniques to elevate the simple dish.

Unfortunately, as impressed as we were with this dish, there were some customers who had the opposite experience. Some complained that it’s not well balanced: they said the rice prevented them from tasting the delicious toppings.

If you ask us, there really were some pieces with just a hair too much rice. We admired their flavor combinations though, and the freshness of the ingredients in the dish. 

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Beyond this, it’s their excellent sushi rice (red-colored shari) that’s a true game-changer in their menu. The restaurants make it with aged akazu (red vinegar) from their Japanese supplier, ensuring authentic preparation and presentation. 

The problem is that they can’t serve sushi rice today (as of writing) due to a shortage of akazu, which is kind of a turn-off for the fans. Nevertheless, Big Catch Sushi Bar is still a great place to eat Japanese cuisine, especially for good sushi.

Customer Reviews (Click to expand)

6. Japanese Cuisine Daruma

Menu	3/5
Food presentation	4/5
Accommodation	4/5
Price (A higher score means better value)	4/5
Dining experience	5/5

If there’s one thing this place is known for, it’s authenticity. Well, the restaurant is owned and operated by a professional Japanese chef who has over 30 years of experience… so we’d be pretty annoyed if it weren’t authentic in its approach to the cuisine! 

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For most of their customers, they’re a cozy spot for traditional Japanese cuisine. It’s because they have everything most people craving Japanese food are typically looking for.

They also have a lot of the comfort food you’d expect from your classic izakaya, though they call them tapas here, probably to make them more recognizable to us hopeless non-Nihonggo speakers. Their selection includes takoyaki, gyoza, yakitori, dashimaki, and beef tataki.

Honestly, all of them were supremely flavored. Plus, the portions were fantastic and we did feel like we really got our money’s worth (considering we spent quite a lot during our visits).

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Of course, there are other goodies on their extensive menu. It’s available on their website, and we highly recommend crafting your own set of orders from there ahead of time so you don’t have to scramble over what to order once you get to the restaurant. 

We also gave the restaurant high marks for its accessibility, which includes being open every day for lunch and dinner (except Saturday, which is only for dinner and Sunday is closed). 

Delivery and pick-ups are not offered, but at least they accept walk-ins, by the way, which seems to be a rarity now in Japanese restaurants here. 

Customer Reviews (Click to expand)

7. Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ

Menu	5/5
Food presentation	4/5
Accommodation	4/5
Price (A higher score means better value)	3/5
Dining experience	4/5

Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ in Calgary is a great option for a group of friends looking to try Japanese cuisine. There are a lot of reasons why this place is sought-after for Friday night hangouts with friends or family.

The first is the social dining experience that the restaurant provides. Gyu-Kaku offers the fun of yakiniku (grilled barbecue), and with a personal grill installed at each table, everyone becomes an expert cook (albeit with the help of their friendly staff). 

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The staff not only assist you in cooking the dishes, but they also recommend great dishes to cook from their menu. That’s why, even if it’s your first time at Gyu-Kaku and you have no idea how to prepare your food, you’re pretty much fine. 

Speaking of the menu, the restaurant offers a variety of meats, including their best-selling harami skirt steak and angus kalbi short rib. Not to mention the icy cold beverages they can provide: Japanese sake and shochu – perfect to sip with the barbecue!

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Most of the meat dishes were great. However, we had mixed feelings about their fried rice, which was often sticky and inconsistent in taste (it’s really good when it’s good though). 

Aside from that minor flaw, Gyu-Kaku is an excellent choice for a fun Japanese dining experience that will inspire laughter, conversation, and amazing times with loved ones. And if you’re looking to spend a little money on a drink, happy hour is also available.

Customer Reviews (Click to expand)

Quick Comparison of the Best Japanese Restaurants in Calgary

FAQs About Japanese Restaurants in Calgary