Jimmy and I went back to Arisu not too long ago, and we actually loved it! Just wanted to add to this post because a lot people have been stumbling upon our post about Arisu recently. New post (as of July 17th, 2010) can be found here!
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Once upon a time, Lucy and Jimmy heard that the owners of Mr. Dumpling were opening a new sushi restaurant across the street. Excited by this idea, they decided to visit the new place, Arisu.
Though the menu was completely different from Mr. Dumpling’s, they were expecting to get the same type of food. Lucy ordered the bulgogi bento box (not pictured), and Jimmy ordered the kalbi bento box.
First came the salad. It was an iceberg lettuce salad with shredded carrot and light, citrus dressing. Both Lucy and Jimmy agreed it tasted okay—not bad, not good, just okay.
Next came the soup. This was a plain miso soup was made with only white (shiro) miso. Again, Lucy and Jimmy agreed it tasted okay—not bad, not good, just okay.
Last came the bentos. Both of the bentos looked exactly the same, except Lucy’s bento had bulgogi (not pictured) and Jimmy’s had kalbi. Both of the bentos came with tempura (shrimp and vegetables), tofu, a California roll, and a large scoop of rice. Lucy and Jimmy agreed all of the items tasted okay—not good, not bad, just okay.
After paying their bill, they walked home and talked about their meals. Because nothing was good, nothing was bad, and all the dishes were just okay, Lucy and Jimmy decided that they would never return. Lucy and Jimmy agreed that they would go back to Mr. Dumpling, the original restaurant. After crossing Arisu off their restaurant list, they lived happily ever after.
The end.
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Sorry to hear that you had a bad experience as Arisu. I actually quite like the place. Yes the Korean isn't the best... but really there isn't a great Korean food place in Kingston. Ta-Ke is OK but very very expensive. Akira is OK but better for fish. Their bulgogi and their cheegee is pretty good.
ReplyDeleteI tried out Arigato Sushi (what was left of Mr. Dumpling after Arisu opened) and it is much much MUCH worse than Mr. Dumpling. I had the duk boke and the rice noodle was grossly undercooked. The kimchi was horrid. The spicy fish combo was heavy heavy HEAVY with tempura flakes. Mr. Dumpling was much better.
The thing I like about Arisu is that it harkens back to the Korean politeness that I've heard so much about. You show a bit of generosity to them and they return the favour. I've been having a lot of Soju there and have been receiving a lot of free appetizers. And this includes free fried Tofu with spicy sauce, free chap chee, and other free items. And this is above and beyond the Kimchi/Turnip/Sprouts that they offer with all meals.
Anyway, Lucy I invite you to revisit them. For the most part I agree with many of your reviews but I quite like Arisu.
Wow, it almost sounds as if we visited completely different restaurants!
ReplyDeleteThe service was polite that day, but our waitress almost completely ignored us. In fact, she spilled my miso soup on the ground and didn't clean it up. She did give me another bowl of soup, but then ignored the soup on the floor. I was a little disconcerted by this.
While it's entirely possible that we visited on an off-day (early dinner in the middle of summer, a few weeks after their opening), I don't think I'll be able to bring Jimmy back. He was very unhappy about his experience. I'll drop by sometime with some friends, so I can re-evaluate.
Thanks for offering another point of view! It's nice to hear what another foodie thinks about a restaurant!