It was a Sunday evening and we decided to stop by an AYCE sushi restaurant.
Initially, we were going to go back to Matsuda (one of our favorite sushi places in Toronto), but we’ve been there a lot of times in the past. You can even check out our honest Matsuda review to see how it compares to the others.
So, to try something different, we decided to drop by AI Sushi for their all you can eat menu in the Markham location.
AI Sushi All You Can Eat Review
Since Rui and I usually eat dinner around 5:30 pm, we checked in at this time. As usual, it’s not as busy compared to 6 to 7 pm. We noticed that when we left around 6:30 pm, more people were starting to come in, but not full yet.
As we sat down at our table, we scanned the code using our phones so that we can take a look at their menu and order our items.
Here’s what we ordered today.
Signature Maki
Every time when I’m at an AYCE place, I’m always excited to try their signature items. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as good as I expected, but it wasn’t bad either. I would say it’s decent but compared to other AYCE sushi restaurants, something was missing.
1. AI Roll
Their AI Roll is their most highly ordered, but it was just lacking something. The maki looks pretty special but even with all the sauce and mix of other ingredients, I personally didn’t like it that much.
2. Alaska Roll
The Alaska roll was better than the signature AI Roll. It was topped with spicy mayo and a dash of crispy tempura bits, which made the sushi crunchy and pleasant to munch on.
3. Honey Mustard Roll
We enjoyed the honey mustard roll with tempura shrimp, slices of cucumbers, and a dice of avocado. What made this roll even was the salmon sashimi on top with the light dash of honey mustard sauce.
4. Dynamite Roll
The dynamite roll had tempura shrimp, cucumber, and avocado just like the honey mustard roll. The difference was the sauce eel sauce and the missing salmon sashimi on top. I personally prefer the honey mustard roll over this because it’s something that’s a little different from the classic. Either way, both options are just as good.
5. Green Dragon Roll
Another one of my favorite special rolls is the green dragon. It’s topped with avocado slices making the sushi smooth and creamy.
Avocado is literally one of my favorite foods and I cannot go a day without this delicious and healthy fat.
What I like about AI’s green dragon roll is the more natural flavors from the actual wholesome foods without the overuse of sauce and artificial flavor. It’s lighter and gives you just the right amount without overdoing it. If you want something a little lighter and “blander”, the green dragon roll is for you!
6. Rainbow Roll
The rainbow roll is another great item to order. I like that packed with cucumbers and topped with sushi sashimi along with the good ol’ slices of avocado.
Torched Sushi and Maki
AI’s special rolls weren’t that great. Other sushi restaurants offer better specialized and signature rolls. But I have to say the items under AI’s “Torched Sushi and Maki” were pretty good and a lot better than their special rolls. I recommend ordering more from this section in addition to their classic rolls (AKA non-special rolls).
7. AI Fire Roll
This maki was on fire! It was tasty, crispy, and slightly “torched” taste. The torched sushi wasn’t overpowering, which made this roll enjoyable. I highly recommend it!
8. Torched Salmon Sushi
This is another good order! I would definitely order this over their typical sake sushi because the torched version just makes everything better tasting. But of course, if you don’t like all that “smokey” jazz, then just go for the classic salmon sushi.
9. Torched Spicy Salmon Pressed Sushi
Pressed sushi is all the rave today and for good reason! You can’t miss out on their pressed sushi topped with torched salmon drizzled in spicy mayo sauce – delicious!
10. Torched Smoke Salmon Pressed Sushi
I’m not sure if I could tell the difference between this and the torched spicy salmon version. Neither was spicy but just as good. It’s all you can eat, so just order both!
Sashimi
If you’re a sashimi lover, then I recommend trying the following.
11. Salmon Carpaccio
This was thinly sliced and topped with onion, which I didn’t like as much, especially when it’s cool. Still, it wasn’t bad, but I still prefer the chunky classic salmon sashimi.
12. Beef Tataki
You can never go wrong with these very thinly sliced beef tataki. We don’t eat a lot of beef or red meat. But today was a special treat, so we ordered 3 of these. It tasted great with a slight hint of sweetness from the sauce.
13. Salmon Sashimi
All I can say is “good”.
Very similar to any other salmon sashimi you have at sushi restaurants. Other than it being farmed fish, I have no other complaints.
14. Sake (Salmon) Sushi
If you want some rice with sashimi, then this a good call. Mix it with some wasabi, a tiny drip of soy sauce, and you’re good to go.
15. Escolar
I love its smooth and buttery texture. This is another one of my favorite sashimi to indulge in on cheat days.
16. Saba
This was too strong for me – the two pieces of fish at the bottom left of the image above. I couldn’t handle it. I will never order this again. But who knows, you may like it. The minimum order is 3 pcs, so don’t be afraid to try it out.
Asian Wok
Aside from Japanese cuisine, you can order different Asian-style dishes here. Here’s what we tried.
17. Thai Red Curry Chicken
“Lol” was my first impression.
Let’s just say we didn’t come to a sushi place to order Thai food. We can leave that to the best Thai restaurants if you’re interested.
18. Broccoli in Garlic Sauce
Similar to my love for avocado, I cannot go a day without eating a cruciferous veggie!
Surprisingly, their broccoli with garlic sauce was pretty good. Nice, simple, and tasteful.
We ordered 8 dishes of these to ensure we’re not lacking our daily veggie intake.
19. Thai Basil Spicy Stir-Fry Beef
Shockingly not bad. But too oily for me. You are better off ordering from their “Grill and Teppanyaki” menu if you really want to get your iron fix for the day. As I said, you’re better off saving this for a specialized Thai restaurant.
Grill and Teppanyaki
This is the best place to get your daily dose of iron from beef. Here’s what we ordered today.
20. Grilled Squid
I like it! Yes, you should order at least one!
21. Garlic Beef
Amazing! For an AYCE place, you honestly can’t complain. It was chewy and quite juicy.
22. AAA Steak
I skipped this, but Rui said it was good. He enjoyed it and couldn’t help be to order seconds.
23. Enoki Beef Roll
AI Sushi’s Enoki beef isn’t as good as Matsuda’s but it’s still edible. We love enoki mushrooms so much that we had to order 3 of these.
24. Beef Ribs
Good! We like the fact that it’s not pure fatty meat. To not overconsume red meat, we only ordered one of these.
Dessert
I love desserts and I would be ashamed to leave an AYCE sushi restaurant without ordering at least one dessert to complete your meal.
25. Black Sesame Ice Cream
I haven’t had ice cream in a long time, so I think this just made it more pleasant for me to eat. It was really good but if I can remember correctly, Kitaya had one of the best sesame ice creams.
26. Green Tea Ice Cream
Rui ordered a green tea ice cream and he told me that I wasn’t missing out on anything. It was just like any other green tea ice cream. Good and creamy.
27. Cheesecake
This was literally the worst cheesecake we’ve had. No joke.
It was stale, hard, and pretty disgusting if I’m being blunt and honest. Far from light, fluffy, and airy – don’t let this picture fool you.
After one tiny bite, I spat it out. I’m not wasting deadly caloric intake on something like this.
If you’re looking for Uncle Tetsu or Cheese Garden quality, you’re not going to get it here.
Food: 3.6/5
Overall, the sushi and teppanyaki are good at AI Sushi. I would not order their special signature rolls as much as they were lacking in quality and taste. However, their classic rolls, makis, sashimi, and torched selection are decent. Asian wok dishes such as Thai red curry chicken should be avoided at all costs.
Service: 3.5/5
Not friendly. Not rude. However, pretty speedy service I must say. But keep in mind, we were there from around 5:30 to 6:30 pm, so being there earlier helps too.
Ambiance: 3.3/5
Decor isn’t as nice as Matsuda’s restaurant. But it’s still a nicely renovated restaurant where you can enjoy an AYCE meal with your friends and family.
Price: $$
The price at AI sushi is a little cheaper compared to other AYCE sushi places, which makes it a pretty good value. The only downfall is they charge you $1 for tea. Compared to Sushi Legend, they don’t charge for any drinks. In fact, Sushi Legend offers all you can drink at the price tag as well.
Rui and I came on a weekend, so the bill at AI Sushi came out to be $89.50 after tax for two people. With 18% tips, that comes out to be $106. That’s around $53 per person in total.
We still prefer Matsuda over this place, but it’s not a bad restaurant to dine in if you’ve already tried most other best sushi places in Toronto.
Overall Rating of AI Sushi: 3.6/5
AI Sushi offers a lot of variety – too much if you ask me! You can’t sample literally every single thing on their menu, so it’s best to stick with the classics when you come here for their AYCE menu. Minus their “fluff”, the average score we give this place is 3.6 out of 5 stars.
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