The best sushi in the North Shore. It may not be the most "authentic," but that's not what Zen is aiming for. The flavors are bold yet not overwhelming, and the combination of ingredients is often unique. I love the pressed rolls and the tuna salad, but I have yet to have a bite here that wasn't absolutely delicious. Give it a visit next time you're in West Van! read more

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We are continuing to support local businesses by ordering takeout. Zen is usually a treat for the adults in our family. Our regular server is Chris - he's a fantastic guy. After asking us a few questions about what we were looking for, he put together a wonderful mix of a Tails Up starter and also an order of the Lobster Roll, Seafood Buckwheat Soba, and Crunchy Beef Roll. All the times were fantastic. We actually couldn't finish the soba, and had left overs. The Crunchy Beef roll was our favourite item - and is something we would definitely order again If you are a regular here - keep supporting them. Great people and great food. They can use our support. read more

Zen Japanese Restaurant - Crunchy Beef Roll - Japanese Near Me - West Vancouver, British Columbia

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All four of us absolutely loved our food, from the rolls to the entrees. The seafood gratin I personally had was one of the most original and best things I've eaten in a long time. Service was great and it's a nice little spot in a cool area. I'd definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a good Japanese dinner spot. read more

Chef prime sashimi is must try, fresh and sweet, feel like eating in Japan. Very warm atmosphere and typical nice neighborhood restaurant good service reasonable price, need to make reservations beforehand read more

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Zen is located in West Vancouver. It's been ranked as one of the best sushi restaurants in the North Shore so we decided to try it out. It's a nice looking restaurant - not too fancy but not like your typical sushi place. The menu is quite large and rather intimidating. It was hard to know what to pick and if what we were picking would be enough to make us full. I started out with the Spicy Sashimi. The tuna and salmon sashimi was marinated in a spicy sauce and presented as an upside down cone. Underneath it was a circle of cucumbers. It was pretty decent. I then tried the Seaweed Bites. It was a trio of sushi rice topped with tuna, salmon and ebi. It looked like we were eating three small tacos. While the plate was quite tasty, the seaweed wasn't large enough to wrap all the food that was stacked on top of it so it was very messy to eat. For the main dish I decided to just have the Yam Roll and the California Roll. I received seven pieces each so 14 in total. They tasted like any other sushi restaurant in Vancouver. I was very disappointed that they don't offer brown rice. The worst part of the restaurant was our waitress. I try to give people the benefit of the doubt. People have bad days but despite my family and I being extremely courteous and friendly, our waitress was short and didn't bother to fully answer our questions. She asked if any of us wanted dessert while we were still finishing our main dishes, and when we said 'no,' she gave us the bill while we were still finishing up. I don't know why she was in a rush to get us out since the restaurant wasn't very busy and we were spending $300. We left after 90 minutes too. My portion of the bill was $65, so it's overpriced for what you get. I'd rather spend $100 and go to Masayoshi or Miku. Service was 0.5. Food was 2.5. Overall experience was 2.0. We won't come back. read more

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One of my girl friend told me that Zen have the best sushi and sashimi in town! Really? I decided to give it a try! I made the rsvn via Open table and found they're doing Groupon promotion $15 worth for $30. I made the trip all the way from Richmond to West Vancouver for dinner and my hubby went there with me reluctantly! We got seated by the window and view was great. We checked out the menu and most items were pretty common. We were not even interested in any signature roll. Toro Sashimi - It wasn't fresh enough and fatty at all! Sushi - Eel, saba, botan ebi, tobiko and tako were mediocre. Wagyu beef sushi - The worst wagyu beef I had in Vancouver. I suspected what grade of wagyu beef was it? Beef sashimi - Beef was tasteless. We didn't bother to order any dessert, we got the bill and paid to leave. read more

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DEF ONE OF MY TOP 5 SUSHI PLACES IN VANCOUVER! The service was great and the patio is so nice. We tried the premium hot sake and all the martinis (the asian pearl was really strong). We ordered a ton of things off the menu: Ebi sunomono - good, nothing special, wouldn't order again. Ebi blossoms - very different from what I expected, but very tasty. Prawn tacos - again very different because of the daikon, but I'm glad I tried it. Stuffed tomato - MUST TRY! I was confused by the name I didn't realize it was going to be tuna wrapped scallop, my favourite! Hamachi and tuna nigiri - the sashimi is SO buttery smooth and melts in your mouth. Torched scallop nigiri - MUST order Torched sablefish and crab - both good and different Salmon skin nigiri - pass We also got two rolls which I can't remember the names, but super interesting that the rolls are wrapped with soy and egg crepe instead of seaweed. They were really good too but the nigiri sushi definitely was my favourite! read more

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Amazing find! One of the best meals of my life (and I have had many!) found this gem on Yelp, almost never review, yet this place is so good, that I am compelled to share this review with anyone who really likes fine food. read more

Zen Japanese Restaurant - Japanese Near Me - West Vancouver, British Columbia

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Service and view at this place is 5 star. Food was quite good, it can improve. I will definitely come back. read more

Zen Japanese Restaurant - Salmon fire roll - Japanese Near Me - West Vancouver, British Columbia

I came prepared with my Groupon and read the Yelp reviews and menu, fully knowledgable about the $$$ price range I was about to encounter in this restaurant. Note: A little hidden from the main street, look for the green neon ZEN japanese sign for this restaurant and street parking is not too bad. It's always a pleasant treat when you enter a restaurant and you can already smell the delicious and wondrous aromas of food. We were seated in a nice, quiet corner of the restaurant by a window, it's too bad it was dark already but the building lights were nice. Our server brought us warm towels to wipe our hands (who's fancy now?), too bad they weren't a little steamier, I can take the heat. We started off with the Sockeye Salmon Yukke ($8.95). The sauce the red salmon was tossed in was sweet and saturated the salmon, so much so that I could not taste the raw, rich taste of the salmon too much. A little sad about that, but the salmon was still beautiful in taste and texture. The thinly shredded seaweed was crisp and the semi-salty preserved cucumber was a nice addition to the sweet salmon. After a good 10 minutes or next dish came. From the tapas menu, we ordered the Prawn Dumplings ($7). Piping hot, tender shrimp insides were surrounded by a thick, chewy goodness dumpling skin, which all sat in a dreamy puddle of japanese mayo, pesto, and sweet sauce. The greens in the middle went very well with the sauce as well - if all my salads had this sauce on it, I'd convert in a heartbeat. By the time our next two dishes came our bowl of rice became cold, our server offered to give us a new bowl of rice, which was really great. Zen Crab ($15.95) was our most expensive splurge. There were a good few pieces of soft crab mixed in a creamy melody of sauce with mushrooms, onions and green pepers all backed in the shell of a crab. It was a delicious combination to our rice. Finally our Oyster Motoyaki ($7.95) arrived. Extremely hot, the 2 oysters I counted were so yummy, I wish there were more. A pleasant surprise as I dug for more were the noodles, mushrooms, and onions I found dancing in the thick japanese mayo sauce. We were satisfied with the service and the food but stopped ourselves from ordering anymore because my wallet was feeling a little hungry after all we spent. Instead, we stopped to buy some fries for our long drive home. In the end, if I'm feeling a little heavy in the wallet and yearning for some really delicious food, you'll see me here again! read more

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5/5, for the second time. Delicious, reliable, fresh. My favourite is the spicy tuna or salmon. It comes with organic greens, which is unique and gives it a fresh, flavorful crunch. I don't think I've had a bad/subpar bite here. There are also Korean and Japanese entrees - I had the pork with kimchi on rice, which was super tasty and packed with flavour. The ambience is nice and quaint, and the patio has a beautiful and elegant feel. Overall, recommend highly, and will definitely keep coming back over and over! read more

The service was immaculate. All the staff are very well trained, knowledgable of the menu, and anticipate the needs of each guest in the restaurant. The service and ambiance alone were reason to return, but the food also was wonderful. Zen has quite a variety of dishes and rolls to choose from. We will return! read more

Love Zen sushi. The best sushi spot in West Vancouver hands down. Staff are wonderful, and the sushi is the freshest around. Love the variety of fresh fun sushi options. Very well executed, and the staff are always eager to recommend new dishes. read more

My original intention was to go for sushi in North Van, but the reviews were pretty dismal, so I expanded my search west. Reviews for Zen Sushi were good and when I saw that they were the 1st sushi restaurant in Vancouver to go "Ocean Wise," I was sold. We started with the Salmon Yuke from the $7 tapas menu. It was fantastic. My expectations were super high at this point. Next up came spicy agedashi. Not bad, but not spicy. Then we had a negi hamachi roll. It was just okay. The thing I was really excited about was the specialty roll we'd ordered. We had an East Meets West roll which had scallops, salmon, asparagus, and was almost $19. It wasn't worth $19. In fact, the roll was too wet and the rice was too vinegary. Hmm, I've never thought that about sushi rice before. We ended the meal with tuna pops from the tapas menu, which was grilled albacore tuna skewers. It was decent. I'd say the $7 tapas menu is the way to go. There are lots of creative rolls on the menu, but I was pretty disappointed by the product, especially at that price. As a side note, I didn't see any nigiri on the menu. So my friends in North and West Vancouver, please point me to your favourite sushi joints. I am still looking for that North Shore gem. read more

Way overpriced for the food served. Me and my wife don't eat a lot but for the price we paid we usually stuff ourselves elsewhere. You would expect the food to be superb at this portion and price, but we couldn't figure out how a single roll's seaweed could get soggy so quick. I gave it an extra star because the service was great. Btw when we left we went to another restaurant about 10 blocks down. Oh I also liked how they folded their napkins. read more

My boyfriend and I got a groupon for this restaurant so we decided to try it out! The service was ok. Our waitress was nice enough but not interested in us one bit. She also made fun of other customers while in earshot/view of us which we thought was very rude! Left me wondering what she would say about us when we left? The food was ok. Had the prawn dumplings which were amazing but the rest was mediocre for the price. We tried the west coast roll, and it wasn't that special. My spicey salmon roll was too spicey and the sauce was not good. I am comparing to other sushi I've had before, and I get the spicey salmon roll everywhere I go and never been disappointed. I would never return to this sushi restaurant. read more

So I was a bit skeptical to come here because of the 3.5 star rating. Totally unfair. I can't say its a 5 star but for sure 4.5. The food is very good. Service is great. Nice place. I would give them 4-4.5 The reason I give it 5 is to help offset the rating and bring it to where it needs to be. I have had better sushi in other cities but a very good place in West Vancouver. read more

Zen is our go-to place when we both want sushi and are feeling extra fancy (ie, willing to spend WAY more than we normally would on sushi, especially on the north shore). I really and truly love it here. Yes, the food is expensive, but it's also extremely well prepared, inventive and fresh. The service is always excellent and the restaurant itself beautiful - if you can, sit outside on their patio overlooking the seawall. Speaking of servers, Laura (who, I'm not even sure works there anymore) is EXCELLENT. She knows her stuff and is extremely helpful in recommending dishes that you will absolutely love. She even comped us a popcorn shrimp roll because she believed so absolutely that we would love it (and she was right!). Other standouts on the menu would be the San Francisco roll and the warm winter salad - both SO GOOD. They don't really have a nigiri sushi menu, but I was lucky enough last time we were there to mention to Laura that I wished I could have tai nigiri and she was able to recommend a seasonal special that included 3 pieces of various white fish nigiri that was seriously so good I'm not sure how I've been able to go back to basic tai. Zen Sushi definitely isn't where I would go for a cheap, low-key sushi evening but special occasions? Or wanting to show out of town sushi lovers just what Vancouver can do with a sushi menu? Most definitely. The restaurant is set a little back from the street and can be somewhat hard to spot, so watch for that. Parking is either on the street or there is a small parking lot in the back accessed by an alley. Enjoy! read more

We tried this place out because we were "touring" around West Vancouver and we saw that this was voted as one of the top restaurants to try in the North Shore. I went into the restaurant with high expectations, and maybe this was the reason why I did not find the food spectacular. The service was great though (I definitely have no complaints about this) - our server kept on coming back to check up on us during our meal. I liked how the restaurant has a nice little porch for us to dine (the view was not bad - could have been better if there weren't tall trees blocking the view of the water though). We had the San Francisco roll ($16.95), Hamachi Peak ($15.95) and the Tako Sunomono. The presentation and the taste of the sushi and the sunomono were simple/ plain - not exceptionally special for a restaurant of its status.The Zen Original Rolls (e.g. San Francisco Roll and the Hamachi Peak) were a bit pricey and they come in 6's. I haven't tried any of their Maki Selection yet, but the ones that the table beside us ordered looked good. Overall, I liked the ambience and the service. The food was mediocre (when I compare it with other sushi places - but good as it is). Maybe if I came here with no expectations, my perspective would have differed. read more

Had the omakase for lunch. First, it's great that they offer omakase for lunch. This doesn't seem to be common. The starter was amazing. Two rounds of crispy fish, dumpling, oyster, ... all incredible little morsels. Then there was their take on a fish taco made with rice paper and some weird salsa -- it was pretty terrible. Then the sushi main (you have the choice of nigiri, sashimi, or grilled fish) which was okay. I think most sushi I've had elsewhere was better, but my wife thought it was particularly fresh. The sashimi main was the first time in ages I've had octopus and it was quite nice (not too chewy), but I still don't like octopus. Same for the squid. I don't get sashimi much so maybe it was a mistake to order it (a sashimi lover may have loved the shrimp head presentation and tentacles but I just wanted simple fish). Overall, I think the sushi was a disappointingly weak part of the meal considering it was a sushi place, but wow those appetisers were great. They're running a promotion GlancePay to give you $10 off if you sign up to pay from your phone. (Nov 2016) I heard about this place from the BC Living's "Where Vancouver Chefs Go for Sushi," which I think set me up for lofty expectations that weren't met. read more

I'd love to give a huge shout out to the entire staff at Zen. I had a few of my girlfriends out for my birthday on Tuesday night and it was absolutely fantastic. This hidden gem is definitely worth saving up for! Our server Katie totally took care of us. All of us girls work in the hospitality industry, and she made sure that we had an amazing time, and that our drinks were topped up all night long. We totally recommend the lemon ginger martini, the zucchini flower appetizer, and you have to save room for their incredible gelato dessert. Who doesn't love a good old brownie and cookie in their gelato trio?? The entire staff deserves a round of applause for catering to such a loud group of ladies on a school night. I am extremely impressed and have complete faith in recommending Zen for your next celebration. I don't want to tell too many people about this place, because I want to ensure the next time I go for dinner, it is still considered a hidden gem. Can't wait to come back! read more

I can safely say this is one of the best sushi restaurants on the North Shore and arguably in Vancouver. Quality of the seafood is excellent and have they have a nice selection of Entrées like the Grilled Halibut. The Spicy Tuna is among my favorite rolls in the city. The setting in Dundarave is quiet and removed with a nice outdoor space lined with pine trees. I highly recommend Zen to anyone looking for sushi in West Van. read more

This is a hidden gem on the north shore. I would go so far as to say this is arguably the best sushi in Vancouver. The dishes are inventive and solid. There is no better udon soup anywhere for example. It's a bit pricey. So that's likely a reason people steer clear. If you want cheap sushi, then go to the mall. If you want great sushi come here. read more

The service here is so terrible. With a price point comparable to Minami/Miku, you would expect the service to be up to par. Honestly I have had better service in a Tim Hortons, which is just as unbearable as sitting through a meal here. The vibe is off, the food is half decent at best, but again with the price point comes the expectation of something amazing and worth it, and it isn't. I would never waste my time here again. Our waitress was all over the place and it was not busy, had to wait so long for our bill, it was ridiculous. This is one of the worst places I've been to in a while, with so many options for sushi in Vancouver you'd think they would step their game up. I don't wish this experience on my worst enemy. read more

Nice place, surprised to see a lot of non- Asians working there, but very good service. Went there for Valentines, it was busy. Servers did a good job, kept our green tea topped up. We had a Flaming salmon roll (something like that) it was very good. We were recommended to try the seafood butteryaki, not bad but I had better. Oyster Motoyaki - different than other place that do it in the shell, this one was done in a small casserole dish but had noodles in it, not what we expected but pretty good. We ordered the Zen ahi tuna poke cause we loved poke when we were in Hawaii. It took forever and we were getting pretty unhappy cause it seems the chef's seem not able to keep up with the orders. When it finally came it was pretty good, not like Hawaiian poke but I seemed pretty good. This almost ruined our evening but to our surprise, the server told us he would delete the dish from our check because of how long we waited. Nice not to have to complain first. I'll have to go back sometime to try some other items, they have so many on their menu. I wanted to offer 4 stars, service was very good, but we we're hit and miss with the food although better than average. 3.5 stars is more appropriate until I try them again. read more

This was a restaurant a friend picked. First time going there so was a bit excited to check out a new spot. The resturant is beautifully set up. Intially I was suprised at the price point but thought the quality may justify it. The range for a sushi roll was from $9 to $20. We ordered a few rolls and a few appetizers. The sushi was good but not any better then your favorite local sushi joint. I would recommend this restaurant if its specail occassion or comfortable with their price point. read more

Best Sushi on the North Shore, bar none. The menu is extensive, a bit pricey, but quality is top notch. The restaurant is a bit set back from the street, so be sure to consult a map or your GPS in order to find it. Parking is street only, which sucks. read more

Zen is tucked away from the street, and surprisingly large once you walk down teh narrow glassed entry. Quite a large patio off the back, with a nice peakaboo view. Prices are definitely on the high side, with probably the most expensive chirashi ($30) we've ever encountered. Spicy tuna was excellent. Service and ambience were about average. Was a decent deal with the Groupon, but I've had great sushi elsewhere for much more reasonable prices. read more

Our group of four went last Saturday and sat on the patio. There was an East Indian couple eating inside and they seated another group of 3 people right beside them (not following guidelines of 6 feet per table). The woman looked very upset and they promptly left. We will not be going back there again as that is unacceptable. I felt bad for them! I hope the couple reported Zen for not following guidelines! read more

CAN YOU TRY AND STAY ZEN WITH THIS OVERPRICED SUSHI? ________________________________________________________ My girlfriend and I were looking for a North Shore sushi restaurant to hit up after a nice walk on the seawall and ended up at this restaurant right beside La Regalade. If I had to sum up my experience in one word, it would be "OVERPRICED". Or maybe that should be "DISAPPOINTING". Don't get me wrong, I love eating out and have no problem shelling out money for a great meal but the meal has to be worth it. I just don't feel that the product matches the exorbitant prices Zen is charging. We ordered tempura cherry blossoms stuffed with prawns and the stuffing was just so heavy that I was unable to taste anything but sauce. You get two small blossoms for $9. A chopped scallop hand cone arrived next (nothing special) at $7. An 11 piece assorted sashimi followed that ($27). While we found the fish good, it didn't seem to be as fresh as we would have liked. The restaurant was quite empty when we went and the question arose as to how a slow restaurant can keep fish fresh. We also ordered two rolls which were ok. The East Meets West roll was overpriced at $19 for 5 small pieces, and as another reviewer mentioned, the roll was too acidic. The Hamachi Peak roll was tasty, but not mind blowing. We had originally planned on ordering more but were disappointed with the food up to this point that we decided just to call it a night instead of spending more. I'd give the food a 3/5 but given the high prices am dropping that to a 2/5. In the end, this restaurant definitely didn't live up to the hype. There are better sushi restaurants in Vancouver and definitely ones that don't require a drive across a bridge to get to. read more

Horrible food and lacking service. Can't believe people think that their sushi is good? Horribly overpriced and not worth it. Gyoza was really bad and flavourless. We only saw our server to take our order and then again when we asked for the bill and it wasn't even busy. Won't be going back or recommending. read more

We have been to Zen about 10 times before but will never be back and will tell everyone we know not to go either. Here's why: The night started off poorly. The manager was not around and the front-of-house staff took the opportunity to do s***-all. No hot towel like they normally give you. Our server, Chris, wasn't even going to serve our table until one of the other servers told him to. He had a rude, antagonistic, and sexist attitude the whole night. We had him once before and his attitude was bad back then too. When we decided on what we wanted to share and my wife ordered for the table, he commented "Yeah, SHE's ready to order." The rest of the meal he acted like we were beneath him and did not deserve any more than muttering comments under his breath. He and the other servers had awful attitudes. Throwing the food down on the table. Never asking how things are. It felt like service is border-line racist as we see some tables get much better service than others. We finished our food quickly so we could get out. He dropped off the bill before we asked for it. We checked that it was correct, then told him we had a Groupon. He lectured us about how we should have given the Groupon first. We ALWAYS check the bill first at every restaurant to make sure there are no mistakes and have never heard anyone complain. Plus, we never asked for the bill. That was the last straw. My wife explained how we wanted to make sure it was correct. He thought this was unacceptable and argued with her. He complained some more that he had to print another bill. We left fuming and called the restaurant to speak to the manager. The server, Chris, picked up the phone and pretended to be the manager. We knew the manager was a woman, so when we called him up on that he backtracked and told us he was "John" from the kitchen. He was trying to pretend to be someone else to save his own a**! Oh, but we're not done yet, folks. We got a hold of the actual manager, Christine, a few days later to tell her what had happened. Called at 6:45 to tell her that we were treated horribly 2 nights ago. She told me, " We are in the middle of our dinner rush. Call back in 1.5 hours". You think she would've been more concerned. I called back later. At first she was upset that we knew she was the manager. "How do you know I'm the manager?". Your employees told us and you told me on the phone 1.5 hours ago. She seemed uninterested and after explaining the situation. She said she will investigate and call me back on the weekend (it's Wednesday at this point). "Do you have my phone number?" I ask. "Uhhhh...no, I should get that". What bullsh**! She wants to call back but never asks for my phone number? Needless to say, it is now well past the weekend and no word. If she had made an attempt to make things better, maybe we would give Zen another shot sometime in the future (to be fair, the food is good but pricey and the chefs are friendly and professional) but after being treated this way by the server and manager, we will never return. Vancouver has way too many awesome sushi options to put up with this sh**! read more

Very unique sushi restaurant. Miso soup is better than average. Specialty rolls are quite good. Dessert was exceptional. Too high priced for what you get. Definitely worth another try. read more

Would not recommend eating here!! The waitress had a horrible attitude and the food did not live up to the high price. Service was very poor the staffs were all standing around like mall cops. Ambiance was poor and the lighting was very dark, and we had to call twice for tea. Friendly advice, don't waste your time here!!! read more

Zen Sushi is a gem of a restaurant located in restaurant row on Marine Drive between Regalade and Mangi e Bevi. Zen is not your usual sushi place as they have some very special offerings and a lot more then sushi. The wait staff are extremely helpful and the outdoor seating is especially nice in season. Unusual for a Japanese restaurant are the excellent home made desserts. The prices are higher then the usual sushi place....but so is the quality of the food. read more

For special occasions when you feel like Japanese food, but not the ordinary fare, Zen is great. You will leave spending $40-$50 per person, but the product and service is very good. The rolls are excellent and the uniqueness of the food makes Zen a good choice. The prices are definitely higher, but worth it. Location is also good being down in the Ambleside/Dundarave area - there is a seawall walk or good coffee shops nearby for apres meal. read more

I've been Zen occasionally past 12 years due to close to my house. The restaurant is dark inside its romantic .And sushi/ sashimi is always fresh but over price I guess its w van so. Same as other reviews, serves is bad ... She( she is always there lol) is choppy n rushing everything. We cant relax to eat....And tea is terrible taste . Ok ,tea is free thats why they use such a low quality tea or they don't care how brew tea properly? I prefer pay for good tea like some place dose. Ppl think its just tea but as a Japanese, good sushi need good tea xD Too bad this place fish are fresh n close to my house, but I wont go back any more read more

Beef udon and California rolls are amazing, everything is high quality and delicious.

Yum yum yum. Little more expensive then usual sushi but then again this isn't your regular sushi. Flavors are perfect. read more

The food here is delicious, my favourites are the Prawn Three way, and popcorn halibut. My only complaint is that our waitress, while she was very friendly, she had a lot of nervous energy, which made me feel like I was being rushed through my meal. read more