10142 104 St NW, Edmonton
(Updated Post below with new menu item!)
Sorry for the recent hiatus! Last few weeks of summer have been keeping me really busy. Last week I went to Ono Poke again, I hadn’t been since their opening day. I was not too impressed on their opening day, but since then I’ve heard they made a lot of changes so I figured I would go and see for myself.
Being right on 104th street, there isn’t much for parking other than the street parking, but it’s very easily accessible by transit, and being right in front of the City Market during the summer months, you can kill two birds with one stone if you decide to grab some poke.
They have 7 set bowls on their menu that you can choose from. You pick your base, Furikake Rice, Quinoa, or their spring mix, and one of their feature bowls. You can check them out here. On my first visit, I got their name sake, the Ono Poke, and also because it is the most traditional. It consists of ahi tuna, shoyu sauce, sesame oil, ginger, seaweed, white onion, macadamia nuts, hawaiian salt, sea asparagus, green onion, asian slaw (red cabbage, daikon carrot, cilantro).
The Ono Poke was pretty good, but for the price, I found that the portion was quite small compared to splash poke. Since their opening day though, I was told that they changed their portions and it’s more consistent and a comparable size. The ahi tuna was fresh, and sufficiently seasoned, and everything worked well together. Still my favourite bowl!
On my returning visit, I got the Uncle Tom’s Surf Poke and the Twitch in Tuna. The Uncle Tom’s Surf Poke consists of Ahi tuna, spicy tobiko aioli, white onion, cucumber, edamame beans, green onion, micro greens, sea asparagus, wasabi crab chip. Yum! This was probably my second favourite bowl. The portion was a lot better than opening day, but even still, I prefer the flavours in the Ono Poke. The “spicy” tobiko aioli could have used a bit more heat, but still over all it was not bad. I just had to supplement it with their Chili water!
Additional to their set bowls, they also have featured bowls based on what fresh ingredients are available. This is one of their weekly special, the clam bowl. Good to try their featured bowls if you frequent the establishment enough and want to spice things up a bit!
Bowls come in two different sizes, regular and large. But don’t let that fool you! The large only increases your base, and not the amount of fish. If you want more protein, it’s an extra $4.50. And because this is removed from the popular build your own bowl style poke, there is much less customization for toppings. (They’ve since changed their sizes) On a side note, I’d also like to recommend adding a bit of chili water to your bowl! Popular in Hawaii and adds a bit of a kick to your bowl!
Overall, I enjoyed my experience at Ono Poke. I think I’d tend to lean a bit more towards Splash Poke, because I enjoy the customization that is available there. That being said though, it took me a few tries to really figure out the bowl that suited me best! Either way, both are welcomed addition to Edmonton’s Downtown and culinary scene! Give poke a try!
Updated post:
Last week (November 2017), I went to Ono Poke’s launch of their new menu. On top of their original poke, they also added some new ones. I opted to try the Torched Miso Salmon Poke, and the Wasabi Scallop Poke.
The Torched Miso Salmon Poke is Atlantic Salmon in Miso Mayo Marinade, Thai Slaw (Red Pepper, Red Onion, Red Cabbage, Carrot), Green Onion, Cilantro, Dry Seaweed and topped with a Miso Mayo Dressing. Yum! This was really good, and had a great smokey flavour from being torched. I think it’s my favourite from their new menu.
The Wasabi Scallops is Bay Scallops in Poke Marinade, Asian Slaw (Red Cabbage, Daikon, Carrot), Seaweed Salad, Shiitake Mushrooms, Green Onion, Cilantro dressed in a Wasabi Mayo Dressing. Another great option. I thought it was touch bland so I might ask them to top with a little bit of shoyu next time.
In addition to these new menu items, they also changed up their bowl size a little bit, and have small, medium, and large bowls, and they also do build your own poke, and have a lot of different toppings now! I think with these new pokes and marinades, and the build your own, I think Ono has shifted the tide compared to splash for me! Give their new menu a try!
Let's Eat YEG 