Sushi Delight Rating:   2/4 Flags

Tucking into a cup of miso soup at Sushi Delight on Danforth, I discussed healthy pleasures with Chris Fraser: talented writer, OISE Grad student, and facilitator of the eight-week course Story Bowls: A Writing Group for LGBT Women. Chris is a skilled teacher; I attended her Memory Threads; Memoir Writing for Women and found it a space where I felt inspired, engaged, supported, and safe to indulge my healthy pleasure.

We settled into this non-pride-flagged restaurant, exuberantly catching up and talking about lesbian social politics. The wait staff was friendly, and I quickly gave them my mental stamp of approval. We enjoyed very fresh sake (the salmon sushi, not the rice wine) and chicken fried udon (stir fry), the likes of which I have been searching for unsuccessfully for years, but when they arrived, we got serious about much more than emptying our plates.  

“We are such a storied culture,” Chris said. “With all the newspapers, billboards, magazines, et cetera, it can be difficult to find your own voice and [to] remember we are the storytellers of our own lives, and our stories are the most important to tell.” I agreed that self-expression is essential, and added that a queer-focused environment seemed fascinating.

The necessity she felt for this kind of class comes from the issue of silences surrounding queer women, and societal pressure on lesbians not to speak at all. Chris reports that a high percentage of women in her courses are gay but are still affected by that silence, still afraid when they explore deeper emotional issues, still unable to come out in their speaking and writing. A queer class faces these issues as a group and “challenges silence, or nothing makes sense, because we are living it,” she says.  That is why it is so important to find a supportive place in which to explore. Each class is its own universe, a “microcosm,” an invitation to leap and be fearless, reckless.  “I love watching those jumps,” she smiles.

In the class, participants hear selections of published Queer writers, and break down the enormous issues with short assignments. Chris chooses a starting line, which in my experience alleviates the pressure of the blank page. Only positive, constructive feedback is permitted; editing and other textual restructuring is saved for another part of the process. Coming from an academic background, I find it amazing to see how writers can grow so quickly when left to create. Themes focus on issues of sexuality, orientation, and gender, facilitating exploration into questions like “What was the first time you remembered learning about ‘gay’?” “Who were your role models?” and “How did you come out?”

Everyone needs to indulge healthy pleasures and, for a writer, a place and space in which to write, and people with whom to share that process, are essential, especially if it can be shared with a partner. Chris feels that “writing opens the doors for dialogue on all fronts.” It creates the opportunity for self-acceptance and actualization, so you can understand what is going on inside, mentally and emotionally. Writing can be tremendously significant to all relationships, whether it be your relationship with your heart, body, past, parents, strangers, or partner. Chris finds writing a liberating process. When she first started writing about issues important to her, in preparation to speak at an Aids Fundraiser, she felt like she was “on a high for a month.” Chris was reading to an audience in the 519 Community Centre, but voicing your words, no matter how large or small the group, can be terrifying. Understanding that your voice is important is the first crucial step; finding a supportive place to use it is the second. And the third step? Deciding you just have to go for it!

Article taken from an interview with Chris Fraser November 27, 2007.

Feeding the Mind and Spirit

What: Story Bowls: A Writing Group for LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual & Trans)  Women.
Facilitator: Chris Fraser
Phone: 647.436.1761
Course Run: 8 weeks, Jan 28th to March 24th, 2008
When: Mondays from 7pm to 9:30pm
Where: TBA
Price: $250, sliding scale spots available (space limited, so call now!)
Website: http://www.footprintmemoirs.com/

Feeding the Body

What: Sushi Delight
Where: 461 Danforth
Phone: 416.406.0288
Directions: Take TTC to Chester, cross to south side of Danforth and go east.
Parking: Street parking available, Green P Parking available north of Danforth on Pape.
Price: $16-20 per person
Why: Fresh sushi, friendly wait staff, cheap prices, comfortable booths, and an amazing Chicken Fried Udon stir-fry in a Queer-friendly neighborhood. 

It has been said that oysters on the half shell can suddenly make the lights dim and the body ache for some, well shall we call it sexual healing? Marvin can you hear us? Unfortunately I’ve never been much for oysters, that’s just me but that in no way, shape or form means I’ve been immune to this strange food to mind and body connection. Certain foods just have that certain je ne sais quoi and a certain ability to mesh with our bodies and minds and suddenly make us wish we were starring in pretty much anything on Showcase.

Some argue that it’s mostly pursuant to how these foods are portrayed in the media, making these food inducing states nothing more than a figment of our imaginations. How many times have we seen the old oyster’s as aphrodisiacs routine in the movies after all? But, in all fairness, in certain cases it does actually have a lot to do with an item’s actual ingredients. Many times it can also have to do with our own personal tags and direct past experiences that now immediately invoke a sense memory anytime we get the slightest reminder of them. I do agree and believe the media can play a role in planting these types of mental food seeds but not always. In my case it’s often been more about the flavors, aromas and even visuals that seem to make the impact and conjure feelings like those of a cat on a hot tin roof. Liz, can you hear me? So we have some of the most popular top list contenders such as chocolate, caviar, red wine, strawberries and whip cream right? But in reality there is a whole world of amorous foods out there and I think it’s high time we knock some of these spotlight hogs off their soapbox. Personally, one of my all time top list contender’s is Sushi. I know it’s bizarre but it’s true and there’s really nothing I can do. It’s not as though I had some grand movie moment experience when I had my first taste. It’s quite simply just one of those foods that do something to me. (By the way, mom STOP reading here and please skip the next five lines.) As soon as I think about it, I seriously want to touch myself. Alright so perhaps not quite that extreme, however as I’m eating it and well after I’ve finished whether I’m single or not, I suddenly feel like a beast ready to scour the universe for sex. Now luckily under these circumstances I have very strong will power and have never been arrested for carnal indecency, but there have been times…well enough said. My point is that I’m curious to know what other foods, drink’s, aroma’s, etc. make all of you pazzo (crazy) -PS there’s your Italian lesson of the day. So bring it. Let me know some of your own top list amorous contenders (don’t worry I won’t judge) and I’ll see about scouting some of the best places to find them. That way the only questions you’ll have to worry about on your next date is who lives closest and how fast can you get there. Of course, you wouldn’t be doing ‘that’ on the first date…or would you? Best left to a future column yes? In the meantime, I’m imparting just a few of my many favorite sushi spots in & around Toronto incase anyone else out there share’s my condition.

SONO Japanese Restaurant – 2376A Yonge Street (2 Blocks N. of Eglinton) 416.485.8236

Lily Sushi Bar & Japanese Restaurant – 1033 Bay Street
416.925.2133

Kaizen Sushi – 3175 Rutherford, Unit 73 (Vaughan Mills)
905.660.0076 / www.kaizensushi.ca

I had reviewed the original Wasabi, at silverstar and steeles and my overall impression was that it was sushi with the organization, feel and quality of dining at a bubble-tea house. Nothing worth returning to, as the sushi in question left much to be desired. Dubbed “the great experiment”, I concluded that the owners had decided to serve sushi instead of bubble-tea and see where it will take them.

Wasabi’s mad-scientist doesn’t seem to be finished as they had taken on a 2nd location just west of Leslie and Hwy7. Formerly a nightclub named papparazzi’s Wasabi’s 2nd local is much, much larger than their first one and offers, for the first time in the GTA, an all-you-can-eat dining experience like NO OTHER. A menu with all the sushi/sashimi/maki/temaki items are made to order in unlimited proportions, but this is combined with A FULL-BUFFET of items such as customizable ramen noodles, lobster, crab-legs, various skewered meat/seafood and dessert table. The experience cannot be equaled by any of their dining establishment competition and it would appear that the owners had learned quite a few lessons from their first venture into the sushi mix.

You are presented with large dining areas. Gone are the cramped, sardine-can cafeteria style dining areas. In zen-influenced décor, this restaurant has been designed from the ground up, to serve hungry people.

A central area provides an open kitchen where sushi is made-to-order, and the buffet lines the perimeter. Well laid-out, the sushi chefs roll their goods infront of a salad-bar which stands across a teppanyaki grill. Behind that is a line of fried items.

Cooked entrees are adjacent to all this and is crowned by a customizable self-serve ramen bar. Finally, desserts and an icecream bar conclude this pheletora of items.

Oh did I mention that you can order sushi as well?

A complete menu of sushi items are presented at your dining table, with pictures of exactly what each one is. Gone is the ambiguity of Japanese names for fish that draw blank stares from drooling patrons. English, Chinese and icons specifying the vegetarian-friendly fare that is available from a limitless kitchen.

The food is all presented very well, neatly and the staff is friendly. In each dining room there are no less than 3 waitstaff that cycle thru picking up plates or clearing tables. English/Cantonese/Mandarin are languages spoken to various degrees, depending on the waitstaff you get, but with 3 per room, an effort is made to get you someone that can understand you. Clear organization was exemplified during the establishment’s soft-opening.

The quality of the food was above average, but of course there is room for improvement. Slices of sashimi could have been more carefully chosen, however all was fresh and wouldn’t upset any but the most critical diner. Maki rolls were neatly presented and the amount of rice around each roll wasn’t over loaded. Ingredients were suitably portioned and the flavours proved for a fresh taste.

Hopefully, this new hybrid layout of All-You-Can-Eat and buffet will minimize those lost orders that plague other AYCE eateries. Having the selection of items as a buffet clearly eliminates any confusion from knowing what you are ordering and in what proportions. You also get the benefit of knowing its on your plate and just how much of each item you want.

At $19 weekdays and $22 weekends dinners, the prices here are on par with the better AYCE sushi establishments in the GTA and obviously the selection here is something that cannot be challenged. Presentation, dining experience and quality of service are heads and shoulders over all but few AYCE restos.
The bad is that refreshments here are at a premium. Expect to pay $2 per person for tea and softdrinks. LLBO isn’t an option yet, so for those thirsty for some Sapporo or Gekkikan will have to hold off until dining is over.

No steps at the door and bathrooms are clean and handicap-friendly.

Location: 270 West Beaver Creek Rd, Richmond Hill
Food Quality/Authenticity: 4/5
Selection: 5/5
Service and Ambiance: 5/5
Value: 4/5