Tiny Bites Consulting

Gekkeikan Sake – $4 small; $7.50 large

served hot or cold

My favourite drink to accompany all the dishes below. I normally order the small size, served hot. When my sake buddy Jamie is in tow, we get the large =)

Strawberry Chi-Chi – $6.75

Vodka, pineapple, cream, strawberry, coconut

Best blended drink I’ve had in a long time. Drink was thoroughly chilled by the ice but the crystals were so fine that it seemed more milkshake than slurpee. And that’s more than okay with me.

Cherry Boy

Cherry brandy, southern comfort, oolong tea

I don’t like southern comfort, cherry flavoured liquids, or brandy, but something about this drink made it pleasant to imbibe. The tea, perhaps?  Delicate on the palate, if a little watery.

Tan Taka Tan Shiso Shochu – $6.50 single; $11.50 double; $72 bottle

Infused with Shiso herb

Slowly turning into my non-cocktail pick when I’m not in the mood for sake. The shiso is a lovely accent inside this mellow Japanese relative of vodka.

Takara Plum Wine – $4.50 single; $7.50 double

Plum wine has a dancing sweetness compared to sake and shochu.  I order it whenever I’m in Alpha just for drinks or dessert.

Edamame [eh-dah-MAH-meh] – $2.50

boiled and salted fresh green soybeans

Kurt adores Alpha’s edamame. He claims that they must marinate the soybeans before steaming, because he swears that they’re much more savory than usual.

Mini Potato Croquette – $4.50

deep-fried potato and beef croquette

Okay potato balls, but if you’re expecting beef, don’t hold your breath. I didn’t taste or see any beef in this dish. Perhaps it’s just fried in beef fat?

Calamari Salad – $7.50

deep-fried calamari on a spring mix salad with balsamic dressing

We almost always order this dish (regular menu). The calamari is made of baby squid very delicately breaded and fried. Not greasy in anyway. Light and refreshing when paired with the greens and balsamic vinaigrette.

Gyoza – $5.50

pan-fried pork and vegetable dumplings

Average gyoza fare. Similar to The Eatery, I wouldn’t recommend ordering this unless you are especially craving it. Everything else on the menu is so good that once you switch to eating this, the taste pales in comparison.

Tuna Garlic Pepper – $7.50

black pepper and garlic flavoured seared tuna with ponzu sauce

Andy ordered this dish the first time we visited Alpha. It’s very good for a tuna offering but there are many more memorable items on the menu.

Update, July 1, 2007: We’ve had the tuna garlic pepper several times now and I take back what I said above. The ponzu and onion salsa along with the pile of roasted garlic served with the toro make this dish a very refreshing summertime item. I guess it just tastes better when the weather is warmer and your belly is full of sake!

Salmon Carpaccio – $7.50

fresh salmon with caper dressing

Regular menu offering. Only had it once so far. The salmon is somehow marinated or prepped to be extra buttery. It’s almost as soft and supple as tuna. Disappointingly, only one caper per salmon slice. I was hoping for a mountain of capers! Those little things are gooooood.

Dynamite Roll – $5.50

prawn tempura, avocado, tobiko, cucumber, mayo

The tempura is freshly cooked just before rolling it up. Most places dig into their prawn “reserve” in comparison. The sushi rice was also freshly made, so this roll was warm and moist and oh-so-deliciously fresh. We just tried this last week and will definitely become part of our regular order.

Spicy Tuna Roll – $4

tuna, cucumber with spicy sauce

My favourite item on the regular menu. I usually hate spicy tuna rolls with a passion. These rolls are typically made with a sour type of red hot sauce akin to Korean spice, which I’m not a fan of. Alpha makes it differently and serves it with a generous slathering of spicy ponzu sauce. Be careful to pace yourself or the heat will build up on your tongue. Don’t add wasabi unless you want a spice overdose.

BBQ Shrimp Kushiyaki – $7.50

Four skewers of grilled shrimp (8pc) with our original Oriental sauce

I was expecting something more from this dish. It’s a plainly grilled set of shrimp with no discernable BBQ flavour to it. Probably wouldn’t order it again or recommend it to anyone but an extreme shrimp addict.

Chicken Bomb – $6.50

Chicken with spicy mayo sauce in deep fried spring-roll with sweet chili sauce

A recent addition to the seasonal menu. The bartender assured us it’d appeal to our spice craving. It was indeed spicy enough for our tastes and had a nice textural combo of crispy egg wrapper and tender breaded chicken.

Dill Salmon Cali Roll – $7.50

Mango, avocado, crab meat and mayo wrapped with dilled salmon

Our top pick overall, but unfortunately, it’s only available on the seasonal menu. So far, we’ve noticed that it pops up at least once a month. The dill really complements both the salmon and the crab well. The yellow mayo is a perfect dipping sauce–don’t dilute the yumminess of this dish by dipping it in soy.

Update, July 1, 2007: Yippee! This is now a regular menu item! We cannot get enough of this roll!

Miracle on Richards St. – $7.50

Creamy vanilla milk pudding

I order this seasonal dessert whenever available. It’s a tiny cupful, so don’t expect a lot. Topped with your typical asian jelly layer.

Seared Salmon Sashimi

Seasonal offering. Very large chunks of seared salmon smothered in a tangy, refreshing sauce. Very zingy and great in the springtime. Would order this one again and again.

“Go Canucks Go” Roll

Seasonal offering. Canucks just played that evening so we thought it was fitting. The prawn tempura was warm and tender and really makes this roll. It’s not too different from the dynamite roll, actually, so next time we’ll skip this more expensive item and go for the equally tasty but $5.50 dynamite roll.

Vancouver Roll – $5.50

smoked salmon, avocado, crab meat, cucumber, mayo

Regular menu item. I personally am not a fan of smoked salmon so this roll was only so-so. Having said that, compared with smoked salmon rolls of other restaurants, this one is far superior.

Spicy seafood Age-Dashi-Tofu – $7.50

calamari, prawn and deep-fried tofu with spicy sauce

Regular menu item. I’m not very big on XO sauce so when I first saw this dish drowning in it, I was turned off. Upon tasting the tofu, calamari, and octopus, I did a complete 180. The sauce is surprisingly subtle and each piece of seafood is perfectly cooked. No rubbery octopus, soggy tofu, or chewy squid in sight. This is absolutely worth ordering, and I’d most likely get this again the next time I go to Alpha. Word of warning: this is a large dish so if you’re eating on your own, it’s a meal in itself.

Grilled Toro-Pork

Seasonal offering. My, was this ever good. Small serving, unfortunately, so it didn’t last long with myself, Kurt, and Jamie wolfing it down. I just love a good pork belly dish!

Crispy Bacon Tofu Salad – $6.75

tofu and crispy bacon on organic spring mix with our original japanese style dressing

Regular menu item. I’m a huge fan of the dressing that Alpha uses, and the bacon did complement this, but the tofu could have been more interesting. It didn’t absorb the flavours quite as much as I had expected it to. The next time I order greens, I’d forgo this one and opt for the yummy calamari salad.

Alpha’s Taco Rice – $8.50

taco spice seasoned pork served on a bed of japanese rice, cheese and lettuce with our original tomato sauce

Regular menu item. Had this once when I was in the mood for a big rice bowl. Interesting take on a taco salad. It was decent for a Japanese interpretation of a Latin dish, and certainly a safe item I’d recommend to izakaya newbies that are still leery of things like beef tongue and octopus carpaccio.