Aira Sushi is located at 10459 Yonge St. in Richmond Hill, the municipality just north of central Toronto. It's conveniently transit-accessible on the York Blue bus line which connects to Finch subway station (only one fare with Presto!) Aira has one all-day AYCE price which of course includes sashimi and other dinner items. We went for a late weekend lunch. AYCD canned pop $1.50 which is notable. Soy at table was very fresh, flavourful, wine-like, not salty and excellent. Ginger is not dyed pink. Disposable chopsticks are used sadly, but we brought our own as always.
Salmon, snapper aka tilapia, and butterfish aka escolar sashimi were excellent. Tamago sweet shrimp was alright. Salmon Rose was very large with generous pieces of very fresh salmon, although they were so large they tended to fall apart a little bit, but I don't mind that at all. We were blessed to finally have real wasabi which I brought with me (no AYCE uses it due to the cost) and it does make it better.
Miso soup was rich and flavourful, but it was a bit off and had a slight tang. Green salad had onion in the dressing, and Mishy and I agreed that it was not good at all with that and a poor flavour combination, and we could not finish it. Cold tofu was very good with a soy based sauce. Mishy didn't like the cheese wontons saying that they were overcooked and the worst ever, and no argument from me that they were overdone... when they cooled to edible temperature they were not very flavourful. The deep fried scallop aka surimi was also dry, so I think they've got the oil too hot. Redemption came in the form of the chicken teriyaki which was fantastic, smoky, wonderful, among the better that we've had, and Mishy did not use the word rubbery on it. Beef short ribs were quite good due to the seasoning.
Chicken katsu aka torikatsu was pretty good although the sauce did resemble ketchup or something similar but it was light and flaky breading. Beef teriyaki was served steaming hot and sizzling in a metal pan, however for all the presentation, once it cooled off it became very chewy, and also didn't have very much teriyaki flavour, although the cut of beef itself was somewhat flavorful. Popcorn chicken Mishy indicated was drying and seemed like a reheat, and I again agree with her. Black pepper beef was quite good, but it seemed to have some old pieces mixed in which tasted off, and both Mishy and I noticed this. Teriyaki salmon belly was good when hot... don't let it go to room temperature. Coconut shrimp was tasty.
For dessert, mango, chocolate and strawberry ice creams were fantastic, creamy with zero freezer burn and premium flavours... this was as per Mishy, as sadly I completely overdid it and could barely finish the entrées. Usually "there's already room for dessert" applies... this was a nigh-unique event for me. All-day weekend price is $41. This is only slightly over standard these days, and the AYCD canned pop is an excellent value. However I think it’s time for a turnover in the kitchen; the sushi bar’s offerings and desserts were uniformly good, but there were numerous significant shortcomings in the kitchen output which weigh heavily on the final tally.
Rating 6 – 6.5 / 10
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