With only eight seats, Calgary’s newest spot for omakase-style dining delivers an exclusive dining experience where every detail has been considered.
Sushi Jun is a new concept from the team at Ryuko. Located above Ryuko’s south location, Sushi Jun’s minimalist space features one eight-seat bar top where the restaurant does two seatings per night Thursday to Sunday, as well as a lunchtime omakase menu on Saturdays and Sundays. While Ryuko has been experimenting with its own omakase dining experience for some time now, Sushi Jun is a new standalone restaurant strictly focused on omakase.
Created by Ryuko’s culinary art director Jun Young Park, Sushi Jun focuses on respect for seasonal and local ingredients and prioritizes the guest experience from the start. According to Park, the name “Jun” in Japanese kanji translates to something akin to “perfection” or “precision.” And that’s exactly what you can expect at Sushi Jun.
Omakase generally means “leave it up to the chef,” so you’ll never really know what’s on the menu in advance as the experience changes depending on seasonal ingredients and what the chef feels like making that day. But at Sushi Jun, you can always expect an 18-course menu that flows naturally, featuring dishes ranging from miso soup and fresh tempura to sushi made with the highest quality, sustainably sourced fish.
That care for ingredients even extends to the produce that Sushi Jun uses. “I have a lot of respect for nature, so I do my own gardening as well,” says Park. Most of the garnishes like edible flowers and herbs come straight from his own backyard garden, as well as some of the other vegetables and leafy greens used throughout the menu.
And the attention to detail extends beyond just the food. Park has thought out every aspect of the guest experience right down to the music playlist that’s timed specifically for each course.
“What you hear, what you see, what you smell, it changes the things in your mouth,” says Park. “We’re not just serving food, it’s the whole experience that you can enjoy with all of your five senses.”
Second floor of Ryuko South, 13200 Macleod Tr. S.E., @sushijun.yyc
