The Round-up:
- Food - 3.5 out of 5
- Service - 2 out of 5
- Decor - 3.5 out of 5
- Total - 9 out of 15
Monday to Friday, lunch and dinner/Saturday, dinner only/Sunday, closed
1950 Broad St., Regina, SK.
Phone: 306-585-8880
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I wish this Japanese restaurant earned a higher score -- I really do. Not only is Hanabi close to a number of downtown offices and hotels, its bland storefront hides a warm and inviting dining room that puts you immediately at ease. The lanterns, curtains, sushi bar, and large number of semi-private booths could almost -- just for a second -- make you believe you were in Japan.
Hanabi's menu is full of Japanese favourites: Sushi, Tempura, Bento Boxes, Teriyaki and Edamame (whole soy beans) are all there. For the more adventurous, there's Soft Shell Crab, Okonomiyaki (Japanese pancake), and Seaweed Salad. There are also a a few Korean dishes on the menu.
When visiting for lunch last week, my friend (let's call her Ms. Thang) and I ordered a number of our favourites. It was her birthday and we have sushi on her birthday almost every year.
We asked for Miso Soup to start, followed by Gyoza (pork dumplings), Salmon Rolls, the Cream Cheese Roll (a house specialty), and two Inari (tofu pockets).
Things started reasonably well. The Gyoza arrived in about 10 minutes. They were OK, but I am almost certain they were store-bought -- a bit of a disappointment.
After another 10 minutes or so, we got the Inari, which usually come at the end of a meal, like a dessert item. At least they tasted good.
Then came the Cream Cheese Roll. Crisp seaweed wrapped itself around salmon, cream cheese, cucumber, avocado and a "Special Sauce" (our waitress told us it was warm apple sauce). This roll was a new one for both of us, and it was delicious.
Next up, and after another noticeable delay, we got one of the Salmon Rolls. The other was mysteriously absent. We split the eight tasty morsels of soft sushi rice and tender pink salmon. And then we waited.
Finally, the next Salmon Roll landed on the table. We devoured it quickly. Lunch hour was basically over at this point. It was at about that moment that Ms. Thang, who was getting testy, had a realization. "Umm, we never got our Miso," she said, usually the first item to arrive within minutes of ordering.
"No, we sure didn't," I said, and rolled my eyes. At that point we had no further time to waste.
I asked for the bill. It came two or three minutes later, so I put my money in the billfold and waited for the waitress to come get it. She didn't.
Ms. Thang and I gathered our things and headed to the till, by this point grumbling to each other about the service.
"How was everything?" asked the sweet and smiling hostess.
We diplomatically told her that the food was great, but holy jeepers, could it have come any slower? At lunch?
Perhaps the secret to success at Hanabi is to visit their website and pre-order items off the online menu. It couldn't hurt, anyway. Or, just go in at supper hour when you have a couple of hours to kill.
www.hanabi.ca