The weather in Vancouver has been absolutely fabulous this summer! It’s definitely the weather for salads and cocktails on the patio porch. I did a pseudo attempt at that today with my good friend S at Guu Otokomae in Gastown.
Normally I’m not a huge fan of Guu. I enjoy their food but I’m not one to fawn over it. Additionally I’m more of a quiet diner where I can actually talk to the person I’m with. I appreciate that Guu is creating an “izakaya” atmosphere and feel so I’ll still see myself here occasionally.
We had made reservations so we got a lovely spot by the open window. Lots of sunlight streaming in with a little breeze. Perfectly lovely.
We ordered four dishes to share: Chicken bang-bang Z salad, takowasa, guu yakiudon and japanese fries. All the dishes were done well and were quite tasty. I appreciated that the fries were different types of yams although I’d prefer a spicier dipping sauce (perhaps a wasabi mayo?)
The takowasa had a good clean taste with the kick of wasabi leaving just the smallest lingering heat. I definitely love it prepared this way better than the more typical Japanese way with grated mountain yam.
Hot, fresh and everything I expected it to be, not stellar but tasty nonetheless.
Surprising highlight for me. Definitely my favourite dish of the night. I love the combination of black sesame dressing with the more acidic dressing that the salad leaves were tossed in. I’d definitely come back for this dish!
Light and crispy with a soft interior these yam fries are a step above what I usually eat at western restaurants. If only the sauce could be improved upon….
Overall I had a really good meal here and a wonderful time catching up with my friend. I probably won’t be back for a while because I prefer a less noisy atmosphere, but I would definitely recommend this restaurant to any first time izakaya goer. The atmosphere is friendly, the wait staff is always up to speed (always refilling water!) and the portion sizes are decent.
