Who’s behind it Chef-owner Tetsu Mori
What’s on the menu Homestyle Japanese dishes, including Sendai specialties
When it opened February 2025
Curtis Creek Japanese Cuisine isn’t your typical sushi joint. It’s chef and owner Tetsu Mori’s love letter to fly-fishing. With fly-fishing memorabilia adorning the walls, stepping inside feels like stumbling upon a hidden fishing hole in the heart of the Beltline.
The restaurant is Mori’s passion project, where he casts a line between his enduring love for fly-fishing and his nostalgia for the flavours of his childhood in Sendai, Japan. After spending decades refining his culinary skills, Mori finally reeled in his dream: a restaurant where he can combine his two passions. The restaurant is aptly named after his favourite fly-fishing book, Sheridan Anderson’s The Curtis Creek Manifesto.
Mori draws deeply from his upbringing in Sendai. “I want to introduce people to my hometown food,” he says.
That wish is especially evident in his rendition of Sendai’s iconic dish, gyu-tan shio yaki (grilled beef tongue). Sourcing premium cuts from Alberta’s Gemstone Grass Fed Beef, this dish is a study in simplicity and precision — the tender beef tongue is lightly salted, expertly seared and rich with umami flavours. Other menu highlights include nasu age-bitashi (an eggplant dish marinated in dashi and sweet soy) and grilled lamb chops.
Curtis Creek also stands out as Calgary’s only restaurant serving beers from Oldman River Brewing on tap, a Lundbreck Alta.-based brewery located near Mori’s favourite fishing spot. This collaboration was born from a serendipitous encounter between Mori and the brewery’s owner while they were both fly-fishing.
Curtis Creek is Mori’s way of inviting people into the world of fly-fishing and the tastes of his childhood.
1256 12 Ave. S.W., 587-353-4670, curtiscreekyyc.com, @curtiscreekyyc
