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Editorial Review

Reviewed in Sept/Oct '04 Issue of WHERE

The number of sushi restaurants and takeout places in Winnipeg has exploded in the last few years. It’s become so popular that grocery stores all over town offer freshly made maki rolls. Yet it was not that long ago that Sadao Ohno of Edohei was the only sushi chef in town. In 1988 he opened his ground-breaking downtown sushi emporium, bringing with him a consummate background in traditional Japanese sushi legerdemain. Having apprenticed at the legendary Edohei Tokyo he arrived in Winnipeg as a sushi missionary.

At the time Ohno-san faced many challenges. He had to educate suppliers as to the intricacies of fresh seafood, inspire customers to try this new type of food, and train sushi chefs to work at his level.

After fourteen years in business it’s clear that he was successful on all fronts. Today seafood suppliers bring in ever fresher and more exotic fruits of the sea, while the number of sophisticated sushi aficionados has grown exponentially. In recent years a number of Ohno’s apprentices have gone on to open their own establishments in the city, which has led to a new challenge: competition. In response to this next generation of sushi chefs Chef Ohno has given more responsibility to his own progeny, the supremely talented Makoto Ohno.

The father/son team works together, consistently turning out some of the finest sushi in Canada. While Makoto learned the art of sushi from his father, he describes his cooking style as personal cuisine; reflecting Japanese culinary heritage, Canadian youthful favourites (note the bacon lettuce tomato roll on the menu), and top-notch formal training in Michelin-starred French restaurants in Britain.

The younger Ohno has infused Edohei’s menu with some of those French influences, including frog legs karaage and seared foie gras. There is also an innovative lobster dinner, which includes boiled lobster claw served cold, lobster salad, raw lobster sashimi, and the lobster head baked, with chopped scallop, shrimp and crab. But what he wants to do next is to engage Winnipeggers fully in his culinary quest, and this is best done by omakase, which literally means “choose for me”. To foodies, omakase means “astonish me”, and that is exactly what Makoto will do. Omakase includes dishes not featured on the regular menu, yet doesn’t need to be ordered in advance. However, if you want to give the chef some time to assemble specific ingredients call in advance, and if you want to spend more, you certainly can. The six or seven course-meal is prepared for $45 per person. By contrast, the omakase at the newly opened Masa in New York’s Time Warner Centre is $500US.

At Edohei each plate of omakase is a small taste, artfully prepared and elegantly presented. Cold cucumber soup is frothed to give it a rich mouth feel and an elegant texture. A few drops of oil float on the surface, creating an artistic pattern. The salad consists of shaved greens and seafood served in a wine glass. Bison, a Manitoba regional specialty, is popular here and is served raw and thinly sliced as sashimi. But it can also appear seared and succulently accented with soy caramel sauce.

One of the things that Makoto tries to do is engage all of the senses. Certainly visual appeal is a Japanese culinary trademark. And the taste of everything he does is sublime. But texture is also highlighted, such as the pairing of two ebi (shrimp) on the sushi course: one set raw atop vinegar rice, all silky and supple; the other cooked, and paired with avocado, offering a firm counterpoint to the first. More textural playfulness occurs in a buttery foie gras sushi topped with grilled unagi (eel), while ahi sashimi is paired with caramelized apple to match the textures.

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