Teriyaki Corner

Do you have a go-to spot for late dinners? CJ and I certainly do! We always find ourselves heading to Teriyaki Corner (http://www.teriyakicorner.com/), a Japanese bistro serving gourmet food in a casual setting. There are 4 locations in Edmonton that are easy to get to from the Anthony Henday, but the one we usually frequent is their newest Southwest location in Windermere Crossing. 

The interior.

My favourite thing about Teriyaki Corner are the swing seats! The photo above doesn't do a good job at showing the swings, but it is essentially sturdy ropes that hold a long wooden seat in place. So much fun to sit on, even though you can't swing too much on these seats. CJ and I always go for a table with swing seats whenever we can!

Our food.

On our very first visit here, CJ and I just couldn't decide what to get! Teriyaki Corner offers a variety of Japanese appetizers, rice and noodle bowls, and a huge selection of rolls. They also have several bubble tea options and a few desserts. There is definitely something for everyone here. 

Dragon Roll.

When in doubt, go for Dragon Rolls ($9.67)! A fried spicy salmon roll with avocado, cucumber, and creamy dragon sauce, this dish will always be a favourite of mine. If you're not feeling too hungry, you can also order 4 pieces instead of 8 for $5.95. Sadly, these particular dragon rolls were just okay in my opinion. I was really hoping for a slightly thicker fried exterior rather than the thin one I got. The salmon inside also had a weird mushy texture. I also wish there was just a bit more spice! 

Japanese Curry Rice Bowl with Chicken.

Instead of a roll, CJ opted for their Japanese Curry Rice Bowl with Chicken ($8.24). Bean sprouts are served alongside the chicken and rice, but you could also get this bowl with beef or pork tenderloin. CJ enjoyed this simple yet tasty dish, finishing everything in his bowl. I didn't try any, but it sure smelled good next to me! 

Chocolate Strawberry (left) and Chocolate Banana (right).

For drinks, we both chose from their list of Real Fruit Bubble Favourites ($5.48): Chocolate Strawberry for CJ, and Chocolate Banana for myself. I asked for no tapioca balls in my drink. I thought my bubble tea tasted pretty good - the chocolate and banana flavours perfectly complemented each other, and none of the flavours would overpower the other. Unfortunately for CJ, he didn't like his drink too much. He asked me why it seemed like he'd always end up choosing the not-so-great bubble tea flavour, as was the case when we went to Qup Cafe a few weeks before. Perhaps he's not as lucky as I am with bubble tea! 

Crazy Roll.

We ended up visiting again the following week for another late dinner. Since this Teriyaki Corner is located fairly close to our neighbourhood, coming here is definitely no trouble at all. We decided to share 8 pieces of their Crazy Roll ($8.48) which consists of imitation crab meat, avocado, cucumber, and egg with a fried tempura exterior. While I did appreciate the extra crunch from the fried exterior, the Crazy Roll was overall a big miss for me. I didn't enjoy the sauce drizzled over the roll: it had an unpleasant egg taste that was way too overwhelming for me. CJ didn't seem to mind, but I couldn't eat the roll unless I had pushed the sauce away. Oh well, there will always be some dishes at food places I don't enjoy. 

Tempura Green Tea Ice Cream.

CJ surprised me with dessert that night: Tempura Green Tea Ice Cream ($4.95). This was our first time trying tempura ice cream together, so I was very excited. This particular tempura ice cream wasn't the best though... the tempura itself was somewhat soggy and chewy instead of crispy. The tempura layer was also too thick compared to the amount of green tea ice cream that was inside. This was just an okay dessert for me. 

Chocolate Banana (left) and Mint Chocolate (right).

More bubble tea of course! This time, CJ was sure to pick the bubble tea that he knew tasted good - Chocolate Banana! I decided I would try something new so I went for the Mint Chocolate ($4.76) bubble tea which is under their list of Milk Favourites. I asked to have no tapioca balls, but ended up getting them anyways. Bleh. In terms of the flavour, I really liked the refreshing combination of mint and chocolate, but I did feel that the mint was slightly overpowering the chocolate. Still a great drink though! 

Teriyaki Meaty Roll.

Finally, on our most recent trip here, we decided to get the Teriyaki Meaty Roll ($8.48), another one of the rolls listed in their Unique Uramaki Rolls. The roll contains fried teriyaki chicken and beef with cucumber, along with a fried tempura coating on the outside. This is my personal favourite of the unique rolls at Teriyaki Corner! The meat inside was tender and juicy, and the crunch from the cucumber and tempura exterior was perfect. So good! I highly recommend giving this one a try! 

Teriyaki Corner is an awesome place to go if you're craving Japanese food and want casual dining. The food isn't particularly fancy or the most high end of its kind, but it's great if you want something quick, simple, and inexpensive. During the times CJ and I have visited this place, it always ended up being around 8:00 in the evening so it wasn't too busy at that time. There were only a few other people dining in, but most got their food to go. The atmosphere of the Southwest location is quite nice as well. Instead of the usual fast food places, consider checking out Teriyaki Corner for your next lunch or dinner!