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Kyo
Categories: Restaurants Japanese Restaurants Korean Japanese, Korean [Edit]
2993 Granville StVancouver, BC V6H 3J6
Neighbourhoods: Fairview Slopes, South Granville
(604) 739-8868
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Garage
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Caters:
- No
13 reviews for Kyo
13 reviews in English
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Review from Eric W.
Richmond, BC
3/15/2012
Went to eat at Kyo after a recommendation for a friend. 29 Dollars net (after tax and 10% tip, by the way, their tip is before taxes! what an honest restaurant). Since it is expensive for a dinner AYCE, food better be good.
I have to say, they have the best aburi sushi for AYCE! Aburi sushi is a sushi whereby the fish is grilled half cooked using blow torch. Their salmon aburi with miso and tuna aburi with miso are to die for.
The honey garlic pork is good as well, and their mango pudding are soooooo GOOD!!!! Recommended!!! -
Review from Taylor K.
5/14/2012 1 Check-in Here
The decor is nice and the AYCE menu has pretty much all the stuff you can find at a regular Japanese restaurant and plus cook yourself Korean BBQ.
We made a reservation and good thing we did because it was pretty busy when we got there.
We were seated right away and given the order form to check off what we wanted off the menu. We got the rolls, sashimi, meat and assortment of other dishes.
The food was pretty decent, what you would expect from AYCE. The beef was little bit on the salty side but edible. Everything else was all right. It is a pretty good value at 23.99 for dinner where you can eat all you want.
We got plum tea pudding for dessert at the end and it was SO GOOD! I wish we had known about the dessert earlier because I would have definitely left more room for the pudding.
I have to mention that the service was little bit on a slow side tonight. It was pretty busy tonight so I am guessing that could be why.
Overall, pretty good AYCE Japanese restaurant. -
Review from Bob P.
Vancouver, BC
The modern decor of Kyo makes for a nice atmosphere while the AYCE food is better then other comparably priced competitors. The $12.99 AYCE lunch selection is pretty decent. There were a few dishes that you don't normally see in other places such as the lightly grilled salmon roll.
The only negative about this place was the lack of service. Although there were plenty of servers around, nobody ever came by to ask how the food was, if we needed refills, wanted more food, etc. We'd always have to hunt and flag someone down to get service. Kinda got a bit tiring especially for an AYCE restaurant. Fix the service and I'd give the place four stars.
Oh, don't forget this is a Korean BBQ place. That combined with a mediocre ventilation system (there's none of the typical large hood/vent over each BBQ stove) makes for clothes smelling like a huge BBQ after you eat there, However, that's no too unusual for places like these. -
Review from Josh G.
3/15/2012 2 Check-ins Here
Went to check out Kyo, where the old shabusen used to be. Went for AYCE lunch, and it was wicked! I don't see the point of coming here for anything other than AYCE, but the lunch is a meal fit for a king.
The sushi and sashimi was great, very fresh, the rolls were also fresh and very tasty. I kind of ditched the AYCE thing a few years ago for better quality sushi joints, but I will definitely be coming back for lunch here, quality and value are definitely on the menu at Kyo! -
Review from Kim L.
Vancouver, BC
12/7/2011 3 Check-ins Here
When you are hungry with a big group of people, your best option at Kyo is the AYCE lunch (be cautioned that there is an 8 piece limit per person for sashimi) for $13.99 and additional $1.99 for all you can drink beverage (not including tax and gratuity. I still don't understand the limit on AYCE on sashimi, but when in Vancouver.... If I look at it from a positive standpoint, I suppose their 8 piece sashimi limit is higher than the 6 I've seen at other places.
I do like that you can have a mix of grilled meats along with sushi/sashimi (for those who want a hot meal). You get a choice of chicken, beef or pork korean bbq, but I would suggest chicken and beef since the pork can be on the fattier side. For the sides and appetizers: miso soup, house salad, pork gyoza, yakisoba, agedashi tofu are good. Sushi notables: grilled salmon/tuna with miso sauce, tuna tataki, spicy chopped scallop. Alaska roll is also worth trying. I never get to dessert since I'm so full by the end, but I can get fruit jello at home.
Decor is trendy and modern, but can get drafty and cold if you're seated by the windows near the storefront (ask to go towards the back). There is free undergound parking in the back which is a plus--Granville Street parking is a nightmare. -
Review from Ninette C.
12/25/2011
Oh my...I've finally had bad sushi. Like really bad.
Let's go over the food first (end this review on a better note this way):
This is a Japanese and Korean bbq buffet. The menu for the sushi is not vast at all...mostly salmon and tuna. They don't even have ice cream...
Tuna: What...is this!? The tuna was pink, not red and I don't mean albacore tuna pink! The texture was soft and squishy and was definitely not fresh.
Spicy tuna: They dumped some spicy sauce on top...I seriously think this was just chili oil. They didn't chop it up or anything. It was seriously the strangest spicy tuna I've ever seen. I'm uploading photos later because I am so confused. My brother says a lot of places do this now with their spicy sushi but I've never seen it.
Hamachi: Not fresh. Actually, none of this stuff was that fresh.
Miso soup: no miso flavor.
Tuna tatazki (sp?): overcooked to the texture of chicken.
Edamame: You'd think it'd be hard to screw up edamame, but they didn't put any salt on it. :(
Ok I'm going to stop with the sushi because I think you get the idea.
Things that were ok were the surf clam, salmon, tomago inari and scallop handrolls. BC rolls were decent but too much salmon, not enough skin. The Korean bbq portion fared a little better. I had salmon, mussels, shrimp and some vegetables. The mushrooms were delicious and my mom really liked the mussels. My mom thought the meats were a little too salty though. The mango pudding dessert was the best part of the meal.
Service was a mixed bag. The waiters and manager were really nice people, but the orders were allll wrong. Instead of 4 tuna and 4 salmon sashimi and 4 spicy tuna and 4 salmon, we got 8 tuna and 8 spicy tuna. They agreed not to charge us and we sent it away since it was horrible. They gave me a spicy tuna handroll isntead of spicy salmon and several orders of salmon and hamachi were left off. They were all sushi orders, hence why I think its the sushi chef. I feel kind of bad about the whole thing because the staff was really nice. If the service was bad too, this would have been a one star review.
The price of $23.99 for dinner on a Saturday is also pretty reasonable, but the thing is: if the food isn't good, it doesn't matter how cheap it is. I LOVE sushi, but after today, I'm kind of put off of it. I never thought this day would come. :( -
Review from Charly S.
2/7/2012
We brought a friend here from out of town who loves Korean BBQ places. We were not disappointed. She commented on the fact that it's much nicer than most Korean BBQ places, and we thought so too. The decor is modern and inviting, fantastic for groups of all sizes.
The service was good and friendly, slightly above average. There were lots of staff around, we had to flag them down when we wanted to order more items but our tea was always full.
The menu is quite diverse, and we tried a lot. The quality of some of the items was not great, but others were quite good. Some items we liked: tuna sashimi, pork and beef bbq meats, gyoza, edamame (contrary to other reviews they do salt it). Items we didn't like so much: chicken bbq meat (way to thick and sinewy for bbq), salmon bbq meat (one tiny piece that was mostly skin and fin, ewwww!).
The bbq pit was not great, it was more like one burner on a gas stove so only the stuff directly above the flame would cook properly, but oh well - that was part of the fun I suppose.
As another reviewer mentioned they do have free underground parking underneath at the back.
For what we wanted, a nice night out chatting over Korean BBQ this place was great. -
Review from Muimui P.
Vancouver, BC
9/26/2011
Like - def. better then the old Shabusen. better service, better food choices. love their bbq beef and shortrib. add $1.99 for all u can drink soda.
Dislike - bbq chicken taste bitter somehow... hamachi sushi was not fresh. -
Review from Crystal K.
9/23/2011
The decor was pretty impressive inside but the service and food was another story.
Don't expect the korean tofu soup to taste anything like the real thing. This is their own (chinese?) version of it, its watery and its a shame they put 'korean' in the name.
We had few different servers so that was confusing. a couple of them acted like they knew what I asked for and came back with something else! they obviously don't speak/understand english. They brought one of our orders to another table, and we had to repeatedly ask for things because they would forget or wouldn't understand or maybe just too busy. It was a frustrating experience and ruined the entire evening.
Would never come back. -
Review from Pepe G.
Vancouver, BC
10/30/2011
I was here couple of times, the first one we were impressed by the decor and the improvement over Shabusen however the food especially the sushi was awful the rice was over cooked and absolutely no flavor what so ever it was bad really bad.
We left disappointed but I decided to give them another chance and we got the same bad sushi. I will never go there again, I am aware that when we go all you can eat the quality is not great however the sushi and the rolls are somewhat OK. Well not at Kyo they should definitely change their sushi chef, bad bad bad.I advice to stay away and save your money. -
Review from David W.
Kyo Korean BBQ - Sushi House is the latest all you can eat fusion restaurant in town. Located at the former Shabusen Yakitorey House on Granville this new restaurant shares many superficial similarities.
Ironically, my partner and I were on our way to the last remaining Shabusen downtown and were discussing how much we missed the Granville Street location. I happened to look up as we passed by and saw a giant new sign saying Kyo! I hit the brakes and found a parking spot right away.
Kyo soft opened sometime in the second week of September and official opened Sept 16. The place was surprisingly full last week and had a steady stream of mainly asian families and groups coming and going.
While I hesitate to base the majority of my review on the comparison between it and its previous occupant Shabusen, you cannot help it when they share so many similarities including location and overall concept. Summarily, Kyo is the upscale big brother of Shabusen.
When you walk in you immediately notice the place is significantly more high-end having undergone extensive renovations. The overall design and seating layout are nearly identical but it seems they've expanded the restaurant in the back. Several flat screen TV's are placed around the room and they've gone for the dark wood and cold colours design that has become increasingly popular with Japanese upstarts.
I was especially delighted to see the place swarming with servers, a complaint that made the previous notorious. Like Shabusen, they offer a dinner All You Can Eat menu for the same price of $23.00 as well as a regular menu that includes features such as hotpot. We naturally opted for the All You Can Eat that made the Japanese-Korean BBQ fusion idea incredibly popular.
They've taken all the same All You Can Eat menu items from Shabusen and improved / expanded the options. Most noticeable was the large increase in the number of seafood items available. Almost twice the selection.
Any business starting up encounters kinks and requires polishing. Kyo was no exception. Our server informed us that everything on the menu was a singular piece, but we noticed certain sushi rolls came singularly proportioned as described, but others came in multiples as a order. Having been a veteran of Shabusen items such as the meat plates I knew to be order sizes and not individuals. This distinction had been listed on the Shabusen menus and I pity the unbeknownst customer that orders 5 spicy pork and ends up with a few lbs of meat. Also their system of marking down which parts of the order had been processed needs some refinement. We penciled in our third order on the card and it was taken by our server. Then items from our second order that had already come and gone started reappearing on our table. Evidently the column in our second order hadn't been crossed off. They were quite apologetic about it. I was still relishing in how great and speedy the service was after mentally preparing myself for the battle that used to be Shabusen. "Who do you have to shag around here for a refill of my tea" used to be the common expression but not at the new Kyo.
On top of the expanded Japanese roll and seafood menu, I was happy to see a larger variety of Korean dishes as well.
I won't go into detail about each dish since the All You Can Eat menu is based on the tapas concept and would be far too numerous. The overall quality and preparation is much improved. I've definitely had better Japanese, and better Korean, but for All You Can You Japanese-Korean BBQ @ $23 this place is hard to beat! -
Review from Jackie S.
Vancouver, BC
9/25/2011
I came to this location once before when it was still Shabusen, just before they closed. I'm glad to say it isn't just the decor that's had a drastic improvement since the opening of Kyo.
In terms of food, Kyo's all-you-can-eat menu, while a little pricey at $23.99, is more extensive and better all-around quality than the old Shabusen. It's definitely worth the value. You'll find it easy to eat your way through $24 worth of food, especially when they offer several selections of more expensive sushi fare, such as prawns, cones, and a large selection of meats that often aren't available on AYCE menus.
Quality-wise, it's not the most amazing sushi you'll ever eat, but it's still a good value. The fish and veggies are fresh, the rice holds together without being sticky, and anything you order deep-fried will come out hot and crispy. You might find the sashimi pieces small, but what's the worry? Just order a whole bunch more for your second round of food! My only complaint is that the meats aren't as good quality and can be quite fatty. Here are some quick recommendations for some individual menu items:
1. The honey garlic BBQ pork, while a little fatty, is super. The marinade is light but flavorful.
2. The same goes for the beef teriyaki. The beef is fattier than I would have liked, but the teriyaki sauce they use is amazing. Light and salty, not sweet and syrupy like I'm used to getting at other places.
3. The rest of the BBQ meats are okay, but nothing spectacular.
4. Steer clear of the vegetable spring rolls. I don't know where they come from or what vegetables they stuff in there, but they have a distinct chemical taste that was extremely unpleasant. I had to choke my second one down.
5. The Alaskan rolls are to die for. The chef(s) add some kind of sweet sauce and mayo on top of the roll that just brings all its flavors together. Delish!
6. Surprisingly, a great spot for miso soup, yum!
7. Be wary of the beef sashimi. When prepared correctly it's very tasty, but one of our orders came out still frozen.
Finally, the biggest improvement by far is the quality of Kyo's service. In my previous experience at Shabusen, I had to literally, physically grab the wait staff to get their attention. When they eventually brought the food, nearly every single order was wrong in one way or another. At Kyo, not only are the staff polite and attentive, but they take the time to name every dish as they set it on the table so everyone can figure out what it is they ordered. They did forget one item off one of our orders and we had to ask for wasabi (which is surprisingly good quality and quite a bit spicier than most other run-of-the-mill sushi joints), but on both occasions they were very polite and prompt in correcting the mistake.
Overall, an awesome experience and I definitely will go back as soon my body is finished digesting the mountain of food I consumed this time 'round! -
Review from Marie H.
New Westminster, BC
12/22/2011 2 Check-ins Here
My new fave AYCE lunchtime sushi. The service was great, just the right amount of attentiveness. I enjoyed everything I ordered. Try the corn cakes, very tasty, best eaten warm. While the sashimi is limited to 8pcs per person at lunchtime, I found the portion to be very generous...I ordered 8 pcs because I thought the pieces would be small but they weren't small at all. I will definitely be back!
