This place is exceptional, the owner is the head chef so the quality of the food that leaves the kitchen is not only plated beautifully, it is also finished to the finest detail with wondering balance in flavor that makes every bite enjoyable which leave me wanting more. I had to stop myself from ordering seconds.
The restaurant isn't a big place and does get fairly busy, but it is a very trendy environment which is great for casual occasions, not a place for serious conversation nor quiet privacy.
For people who loves food, this place is a must visit :)
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We had the good fortune of experiencing the omakase dinner at Shokunin tonight. This was our second time here-the first was a slightly rocky BigTaste lunch, but after tonight, our image of this restaurant has completely changed, and for the better! We were treated to a vast array of delicious food, including super fresh sushi and sashimi, flavourful miso broth, tasty skewers, interesting hot dishes, and finishing with luscious desserts. The most memorable courses were the miso sablefish sushi (so buttery and melt in your mouth-I was thrilled to learn that this will be a regular sushi addition to the menu), the bone marrow and escargot (rich, but it was an interesting alternative to a more common escargot preparation), and the scallops-so beautifully presented on their shells on a small charcoal burner. A shout out and thank you to chef and owner, Darren, and his team for this memorable meal-we are delighted to consider Shokunin as one of our top go-to Japanese restaurants in town now. What a great introduction of the omakase experience to this city!
*Regretfully, we did not remember the name of our waitress, but she definitely contributed to our wonderful evening. She was fantastic-genuine, efficient, friendly, and so good with our one year old! Thank you!
L received good news and to celebrate, he told me to pick a restaurant. By the time L finished his sentence, I had already booked a table at Shokunin. For this post, let’s listen to “Love Like This” by Faith Evans. Aside from the new winter menu, I noticed the seating between the tables was more spacious than before. And to keep up with the fast pace of the restaurant, there’s an army of cheerful, happy looking staff. From what I could see and experience, customers are well taken care of throughout the meal.
We haven’t been since this placed opened 4ish years ago. The staff were on point and very professional. No hipster bs and they were accommodating for us and our small child. I brought my Chinese parents and my Japanese aunt who are all fairly particular. We got in and out within 90 minutes. We ordered some greens, Gyoza, and a lot of the chicken Yakitori. The meat was all nicely done. No sauces for the most part so the texture and meat flavour really comes out strong as there’s nothing to hide behind. I’m looking forward to buying my own Hibachi soon to grill meat sticks at home.
“Small” plates indeed! Food is good - I appreciate the sashimi is high quality and fresh but felt it was too small and there are no choices - you either order a large or small portion - can not choose the fish. Sushi is also extremely small - tasty but small. Yakatori is flavourful but in reality it’s just a bunch of chicken parts chopped, marinated and grilled. Squid is excellent! Good cocktails. Overall a pleasant experience but felt the dishes are all overpriced. Servers are attentive and friendly. A fun expensive night out - would I go back - not likely - I was still hungry. $$$$$
Shokunin has been named one of Canada’s top 50 restaurants for two years in a row. It’s pretty cool to have a place like this in Calgary, and it’s pretty cool to have been able to watch Executive Chef/Owner Darren MacLean compete on The Last Table on Netflix. My little stint on the Global News Sunday Morning Edition cooking an enchilada rice bake doesn’t have quite the same ring as a world-wide competition LOL. I’ll admit I was a little bit star-struck, seeing Chef Darren behind the counter the first time… The second time was even better because Chef Darren was close enough to explain the food as we ate at the grill bar. We even got to meet Chef Darren at the end of the night!
Defs a more trendy Japanese place. The food was presented nice and they have some interesting things on the menu. Taste was average, was not too fond on the grilled items but mostly because I don't really like innards but I gave it a try. I prefer more traditional places in general but this is a good place for late night hangouts. If you wanna try more trendy and upscale Japanese food, this place is a good place. The cocktails are also pretty cool looking but I have not tried them myself.
Simply one of the top restaurants in Calgary at the moment. Space is excellent, service is friendly, helpful and efficient. And the food, well, hard to find anything to complain about. Shokunin definitely delivers best when you simply ask them feed you but, then again, it's really not possible to go wrong with the wide ranging and thoughtful menu. Even better it's all delivered at a surprising value. One of the best meals I have had in Calgary. 5/5.
I live a block away, it is one of my goto's when I am on a day off to sit and have a nice cocktail
Great Cocktails. The food here is amazing. It is unique and has a quality that it hard to describe. Do not expect the usual, expect the spectacular.
I have been to a number of Asian influenced restaurants, but this is still the best, there is a reason John Gilchrist gave it a 9.5. My last review of this place was read 8848 times. Hope it helps. Go you will not be disappointed
Darren runs a great house, the service is above reproach. The presentation of the food speaks for itself.
Shokunin is my favourite restaurant in Calgary. You can tell a lot of thought and originality goes into each dish. Even the cocktails. Even the tea. The yakitori rivals anything I had in Japan. And although it's not a sushi restaurant (I think many people make this mistake), Shokunin's sushi is outstanding as well. While the food here draws up a ravenous hunger comparable to 1000 days in a North Korean prison camp, I must say that when I am able to focus on my surroundings, I've noticed the decor and music are also very inspired.
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Always good vibes coming here. Food comes out super fast too! When we first tried the potato salad we were blown away. How can something so simple be so delicious? Sadly, our second time getting it didn’t live up to our expectations.
Made reservations very last minute here since our friends haven’t tried shokunin before. While we were parking, I got a call stating that “due to us making reservations so last minute, they were unable to accommodate us”... then why was it available to reserve? Someone else came on the line and said if we came at 530, they would need the table back by 7 which was no problem for us as dining at shokunin has always been a fast service. Arrived at 5:35pm... I admit we were late but were greeted by three different staff who had to bring up the fact that “we were the group that made reservations so last minute” which was very annoying. 5:45pm some lady brings us waters. At this point we were ready to order food and drinks since they had stressed that they needed the table back by 7:00pm but she said “oh I’m not your server” and walked away. 6:05pm another lady walks by and asked “if everything was ok”. At this point my very annoyed friend explained to her that we would love to get this table back to them by 7... if only we could get some service! She apologized and explained that we came during a shift change hence the confusion on who our server was.
Although they did give us a discount and a lot of free stuff, it was extremely embarrassing to bring our friends to one of our “favorite” restaurants. Will make sure to never make last minute decisions to dine here and to avoid going when they have “shift change”.
Presentation is everything at this restaurant, the food is unbelievably appealing to all the senses. Some of the freshest and most top grade sushi I’ve ever had, in a great location, with a wonderful vibe. Can’t wait to go back!
This is our second visit in less than a week, we are here on vacation and giving up other reservations to come back. The food is excellent as are the cocktails. On both our visits so far we have taken our server’s suggestions and haven’t been disappointed. Tonight, the fish head was the highlight of the night, don’t be afraid to order it - delish!!! Chef/owner Darren runs a tight ship, we saw this first hand and that’s the reason the service and food are both excellent.
Beautiful, so beautiful, the presentation is only surpassed by the taste. The attentive and uniquely respectful food prep creates flavours you will literally never taste anywhere else.
A beautiful, unique, experience, 20+ visits in the family and never the same experience, never a complaint, always a joy.
We've wanted to come here for years and it is amazing. The skewers are delicious, the sake beer is amazing. Everything we ate was so good. Their special confit wings were the best wings we've ever had. Every chicken wing should taste like those. We're not from Calgary but this will be a place we come every time we come back for a visit. Also, amazing service!
5 stars all the way! Trendy little spot in downtown Calgary. Amazing service, delicious food and wonderful ambiance. The servers take the time to describe the dishes to you as they are brought to your table. Almost everything is made by the chef or sourced from his farm. Nice selection of wine and mixed beverages available as well!
Outstanding in every way. The staff were so kind and very friendly. The food is amazing!! Drinks were great. Prices are very reasonable for the quality.
Definitely feels authentic. Alcohol, and food are incredibly unique. Even though I wouldn't call it flavor-ful, the cooking technique gives it a unique experience. Definitely worth the try at least once! And the unique chicken part skewers make it a one of a kind place as well
The ambiance was nice and food was good with fresh clean ingredients and high attention to detail featuring smooth developed flavors that were restrained and not over the top. The best part were the staff as they were very accommodating, knowledgable, and expressed genuine interest in their guests enjoying their time. Try their amazing cocktails!
My partner and I were there for Keisukes last day and it was so good. The staff here work so well together they make sure all the customers are taken care of, exceptional service. The food and especially the shokunin ramen was truly amazing! It’s no wonder lots of Japanese people love coming here. The atmosphere was fantastic but sad seeing one of their beloved chefs go. It’s an end of an era for shokunin but we’re very excited for what’s next. Having lived in Japan, I Definitely recommend coming here if you’re looking for a great izakaya experience. We hope Keisuke the best, we’re going to miss you!
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