Las Vegas review: Cafe Sanuki

April 22, 2022April 9, 2026 Hitting the SauceLeave a comment

After our big meal at Lefty’s, Jacuzzi and I decided to walk around to burn up all those extra calories. He stopped by for a coffee at Starbucks and asked me if I wanted anything. I said no. Let’s listen to “You’re Gonna Go Far, Kid” by The Offspring for this post.

He returned with a Perrier for me and said this was a long time coming, but it was his apology. Fourteen years ago, I spent a month with my brother in Toronto. On a scorching hot day, I asked him to bring me a Perrier when he returned from his class. He refused because he said he didn’t feel like it. It’s been an ongoing joke between us ever since, and whenever he asks for a favour, I always tell him he should have brought me my damn bubble water. Half an hour later, Jacuzzi ruined this special moment by drinking my sparkling water because he was thirsty and too lazy to line up again for a drink. He even had the nerve to balk at me when I refused to carry his half-drank bottle in my purse. I reminded him that he mocked my bag earlier, stating it was too bulky for travelling.

We left for an early dinner at Cafe Sanuki. Unfortunately, the restaurant was short-staffed and was closed for the next hour and a half. Our Uber driver warned us when he dropped us off that it would be near impossible to get a taxi or Uber in the next two hours due to the BTS concert. Jacuzzi and I decided to grab a beer to kill time. He vetoed the nearby pub, stating it looked too sketchy. Instead, we popped into a family-friendly Vietnamese restaurant. At the stroke of 5:30 p.m., we entered Cafe Sanuki.

I have wanted to hit this restaurant ever since I saw Mikey Chen’s Strictly Dumpling Youtube video. He liked the udon so much that Mikey filmed here twice. Cafe Sanuki makes their fresh-made udon using their Yamato udon noodle making machine. The owner even brings in two udon masters from Japan to ensure the quality is up to par with what you expect.

I ordered the dish Mikey recommended – Seafood in Mentai Cream Udon ($12.90). The mentai cream sauce was surprisingly light, and the fresh sea flavour from the egg roe was subtle. My bowl contained ample amounts of white fish, shrimp and calamari. I enjoyed the taste of lemon, garlic and green onions mingled in the sauce. The noodles were fantastic – so soft, slippery and fat. I’ve eaten udon numerous times in Tokyo, and I prefer Cafe Sanuki’s version.

Jacuzzi ordered the Cheesy Carbonara ($9.50). We had both never eaten anything like this before. The super cheesy sauce created almost a pool-like surrounding around the udon noodles. The sauce was so thick and heavy that you could see the long strands of cheese stretch apart when you pulled the noodles up.

What made this dish unique was the torching of the cheese on the top, combined with the smoky bacon pieces. Jacuzzi said this was so much cheese that one person couldn’t possibly finish a bowl. He exclaimed that you’d only love this dish if you dig a lot of cheese and bacon.

We agreed that the udon at Cafe Sanuki was incredible and worth returning to if we came back to Vegas. Simply Dumpling, you did it again! Hitting the Sauce gives Cafe Sanuki two fat thumbs up.

Cheap Eats · Japanese · Restaurants

Koji Katsu: Best katsu in Calgary

April 24, 2021April 27, 2026 Hitting the SauceLeave a comment

On Friday, I told L to pick the restaurant for our takeout. Usually when I ask him, I don’t mean it. I just want to see where he would eat if I did let him decide. L was craving food from Koji Katsu. For this post, let’s listen to “Drunk” by Elle King and Miranda Lambert.

Based on my last experience, I ordered Ebi Katsu ($17). My platter contained five deep-fried jumbo prawns. L ordered the Koji Special Mixed Katsu ($18), which has two prawns, tenderloin and two pieces of deep-fried cheese with pork. Each order comes with rice, miso soup, pickles, lemon, two sauces, mustard, and a cabbage salad.

Koji makes one of the best ebi katsu in town. The prawns were long and fat, juicy and crunchy. L was surprised Koji didn’t charge more for this dish. I wish Koji could do what he does to the price of prawns for wine. I’d save fat coin.

I tried L’s deep-fried mozzarella cheese and pork tenderloin. Despite the 11-minute ride back home, the mozzarella was still creamy and warm. The thin slice of pork added another subtle layer of flavour. This dish is best shared, just because of the pure decadence.

The pork was tender and meaty. The tenderloin was cooked perfectly. I could still taste the natural juices of the meat. The breading on the katsu seemed different from my past visit. The batter was softer but still crispy, and the crumbly texture reminded me of breading at Katsuten.

I love nibbling on the side dishes between bites of the katsu. The sourness of the pickles help to cut into the fattiness of the dishes. The miso soup was tasty, loaded with seaweed and strands of enoki mushroom. The large cabbage salad was refreshing. I particularly liked the way the cabbage was julienned; the cool, delicate texture was pleasant to bite into it.

L and I couldn’t finish our food. Even after I ate some of his food, there was a mozzarella stick and half his rice leftover. I left behind an ebi and just under a quarter of my rice. When I reheated our food the next day, it was still delicious.

This third round of restrictions is really hard on restaurants. If you can, support local businesses. L and I will be eating out more often this month, in what I hope is our final lockdown. If I could name this month, it would be Eat, Pray and Love (your local restaurants).

Want more like this? Check out my running list of Calgary’s best restaurants, date nights, and cheap eats.

Cheap Eats · Japanese · Restaurants · Tonkatsu

Koji Katsu: A downtown Calgary spot for Japanese comfort food

May 17, 2020April 29, 2026 Hitting the Sauce

L asked me which restaurant I decided on for our Saturday night dinner. I picked Koji Katsu because this business unfortunately opened up when COVID-19 officially shut down our social lives. For this post, I’d like to dedicate a song to L as he’s been my rock throughout this worldwide crisis. If there was an award for best pandemic husband of the year, he would win it.

In Tokyo, one of the most memorable meals I ate was at Hasegawa, a Michelin recommended restaurant. The tonkatsu batter was light and buttery, the pork so decadent it melted on my tongue. I bought the leanest and cheapest set. For this orgasmic experience, my meal was only 1,000 Yen, which is roughly $13 CAD.

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At Hasegawa and other tonkatsu restaurants I visited, I noticed that there are several different grades of pork. There was an emphasis placed on the fattiness and breed of the pork. L was as blown away as I was from tonkatsu at Hasegawa, but he found the richness from the pork fat difficult to digest. He also find oily meats disgusting. Lucky for him, Koji Katsu uses leaner cuts of pork.

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L and I picked up our order. When we drove home, I could feel the heat permeate from the bags. Even though our ride back was only ten minutes, I cursed every single red light that prevented us from eating our food at the optimal temperature. When we finally made it home, I ripped open the containers as fast as I could to preserve the integrity of the batter.

hire

I ordered the Hire Katsu ($15, 220 grams), the Koji Special Mixed Katsu ($16.50) and a side of curry sauce ($3). Our dishes came with sides of kimchi, pickles, cabbage salad and miso soup. We received a lot of food. If you have a big appetite, you are going to love the generous portions.

cheese

The first dish we tackled was the cheese katsu. I was surprised there was so much mozzarella in each piece. I think this dish would be best ordered at the restaurant because cheese cools down so quickly. The texture of the mozzarella reminded me of squeaky cheese curds. The cheese had began to solidify but the batter still offered a satisfying crunch.

ebi

The jumbo prawn was the star of the show. Man oh man. I’m going to quote Lovegastrogirl, who nailed a description of the mouthfeel of a good piece of shrimp. The prawn itself was long and large, with ‘that nice, plump bursty feel.’ If you are a prawn lover, you must try the Ebi Katsu ($15, five pieces).

platter

The pork used in the Hire Katsu was good quality meat. The tenderloin was lean but still juicy. If you eat a lot of Alberta pork, you’ll know what I mean. The meat was almost fluffy in texture with a clean taste. L prefers Alberta tenderloin to the fatty cuts I enjoyed in Japan.

ire piece

My only minor quibble is that I found that some of my rice was overcooked. L said his rice was fine. I enjoyed the deep spices in the curry and it helped to hide the clumps of rice. I would order the curry again.

sides

The sides and condiments deserve a shout out. I loved the smear of hot mustard and lemon, both of which helped cut into heaviness of the meats. I enjoyed the salty sweetness of the miso soup and the little pieces of puffed tofu, seaweed and enoki mushroom. L liked the sesame dressing for our cabbage, which I found nutty and heady.

coleslaw

L and I are looking forward to our next visit. When the COVID-19 restrictions lift, I can see this little restaurant being popular with the downtown foodie crowd. Hitting the Sauce gives Koji Katsu two fat thumbs up.

For more reviews like this, see my picks for cheap eats in Calgary under $15.

Japanese · Restaurants

True World Grocery Store – Sushi, sashimi and onigiri

May 16, 2020April 29, 2026 Hitting the Sauce2 Comments

Have you every eaten an excellent bowl of instant ramen? In Japan, I could buy an instant version of an award winning ramen made by Nissin Foods and a Michelin-starred restaurant. Back home in Calgary, I noticed the ramen from T &T Supermarket and E-Mart isn’t nearly as good as the Nakiryu and Nissin ramen I bought at 7-Eleven.

L agrees with me. As a result, we buy our instant ramen at True World Foods, a grocery store that sells authentic groceries from Japan and take away lunches. For this post, let’s listen to “She’s Just My Style” by Gary Lewis and the Playboys.

True World sells a limited amount of freshly made sushi and sashimi. On our most recent visit, the special of the day was a plate of sushi and a bottled beverage for only eleven bucks. We bought the Coho Salmon Sushi ($10.99) and a Mixed Sushi Roll ($10.99).

salmon

The salmon was tender and fat with flavour. The mayonnaise offered a spicy kick, which helped to liven up the cold, thick mound of sushi rice. I found the portion surprisingly filling.

sushi

The mixed maki roll was filled with tuna, salmon, avocado, tobiko and Kiwi mayonnaise. Despite the fact the roll was made beforehand and eaten after a long car ride home, it was still one of the better rolls I’ve tried in Calgary. The tuna and salmon were so flavourful, it was obvious True World uses high quality seafood.

sushi piece

I only buy soba noodles ($7.99) if one of the ingredients is yam. Otherwise, I find the noodles too soft. I couldn’t tell the difference between the soba noodles I bought from True World and E-Mart. Both stores charge roughly the same price.

soba pack

I add a healthy squirt of wasabi to the dipping sauce (soba tsuyu), toss in the noodles, then top my bowl with nori, a sliced farm egg, green onions and cucumber. No matter how hard I try, my version isn’t nearly as tasty as the premade soba I bought from 7/11.

noodles

L and I tried a pack of ACE Cook Wonton Mein ($12.99). L informed me that Chinese ramen is popular in Japan because ramen originated from China. I didn’t care for the wonton broth, I prefer miso or tonkatsu.

ramen pack

We tried this ramen with the seasoning included, a miso soup package, and the leftover broth from Con Mi Taco. The noodles were good – thick and toothsome. I’d buy this pack again, but in a different flavour.

nood pull

I found the noodle texture of the ACE Cook Wonton mein superior to the Ace Cook Maru Uma Miso Ramen ($3.99) instant noodle cup. The miso noodles were light and almost papery in texture. The broth was mild, the dominant flavour came from the sweet kernels of corn.

instant

When I cooked up the Daikoku Big Sauce Yakisoba with Spicy Mayo ($4.99), I added enoki mushrooms and a poached egg. I wouldn’t do this again because the extra ingredients watered down the yakisoba sauce.

Despite being too watery, the flavour of the sauce was still creamy and spicy. The noodles had a good chew to it. I’d buy the yakisoba noodles again.

Make sure you google the instructions on how to prepare the noodles because there is no English translation. Some of the packages include two or three seasoning packages, and in the case of the yakisoba and tempura soba noodles, there’s an order to follow procedure of draining the noodles and layering the seasoning.

When I made the Nissan Tempura Soba Noodles ($5.99), I mistakenly poured the hot water over the tempura cake. I should have added the cake after the noodles were cooked. Despite my error, this was still a killer bowl of noodles.

The broth was legit. The tempura, despite my blunder, had that same distinct flavour I experienced in Japan. The soba noodles were a tad light and lacked that bite I like. However, the flavour of the broth made this worth it. I drank every last drop, and I normally try not to drink the broth because of the fat and sodium.

Whenever L and I visit any Asian grocery store or bakery, he always buys mochi. He stated emphatically that True World sells the best mochi in Calgary. You can find several varieties in the freezer section.

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Here’s my final tip for you. If you show up two hours before the store closes, you get 10% off select sushi and sashimi. I hear from reliable sources that the sashimi in particular is stellar.

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For more reviews like this, see my picks for cheap eats in Calgary under $15.

Japanese · Restaurants · Seafood · Special Occasion · Vegas

Las Vegas Review: Raku Japanese Charcoal Grill

January 28, 2020April 12, 2026 Hitting the SauceLeave a comment

My friend Ms Biz highly recommended Raku for my birthday dinner. This was my favourite restaurant on our trip. If I could only go to one restaurant in Vegas, Raku would be it for me. For this post, let’s listen to “You Might Think” by The Cars.

I told Beep Beep I didn’t want any alcohol with this dinner because I wanted to focus on the food. I’m becoming my father. Ludwig won’t drink if he’s listening to classical music because he needs his full concentration. For beverages, we ordered Hoji Tea ($2.50).

tofu

To start, we shared the Half Tofu ($4). The consistency of the homemade tofu was like a ultra creamy cheesecake. We were instructed to cut into the tofu and taste it using two types of seasoning.

marcha

The first approach was to dust the green matcha salt over the cold tofu, along with the condiments of bonito flakes, chives and grated ginger. This style accented the fluffy texture and clean taste of the tofu.

tofu soy

The second version was to add Raku’s specially made soy sauce. I preferred this style because the sauce was unique in flavour and I enjoyed the thick consistency of the sauce paired with the ginger.

enoki 1

My favourite bite of the night was the Enoki Mushroom Bacon ($3.50). In fact, I loved it so much, we ordered a second one at the end of our meal. Two things stood out for me. Flavour and texture.

enoki 2

I enjoyed crunching into this bundle of love. The mushrooms took on all the smoky flavours from charcoal grill. The bacon bound all the mushroom threads together and provided a salty omph.

scallop

The Butter Sauteed Scallop Soy Sauce ($7) was perfectly seared. The exterior of the scallop was hot and crispy. The center of the scallop was cooler in temperature and still silky smooth.

beef

The Kobe Beef Outside Skirt Steak ($8) was served warm. The meat was flavourful and fell apart like a filet of fish. The steak was chewy and juicy.

tendon

The Kobe Beef Tendon ($4) was my second favourite bite of the night. The tendon was soft and sticky. Like the enoki wrapped bacon, the tendon took on the flavour of the charcoal. I’d order this again.

foie gras

The flavour of the Foie Gras ($19) was subtle. For foie gras, I found it was light and clean. I enjoyed this dish but I prefer the heavier, richer, smokier flavours of the tendon and enoki mushroom.

shrimp

For the Crispy Fried Shrimp ($7), I didn’t add any other seasoning or sauce because I preferred the simple, natural taste of the shrimp. I could taste the sweet juice of the whole shrimp.

shrimp 1

This is one restaurant that deserves its hype. I’m already planning another trip to Vegas. I’m eager to return to Raku and based on lovegastrogirl baller recommendations, I want to check out Carbone and the Vegas Golden Knights.

ill

Thank you Beep Beep for treating me to a food and booze fueled trip! You started my birthday week with a bang. Beep Beep!