By Sherman Chan,
Special to The Post

It is no secret that I am a big fan of Aburi Restaurants Canada and their high-end Japanese cuisine at Miku and Minami. The combination of style, unique dishes and careful execution justify the premium pricing.
Gyoza Bar and Ramen is their new venture on West Pender Street in Vancouver. I gathered my friends for this food adventure, including Gyoza King who is our resident expert on the dumpling.
The first item to arrive was the BC Wild Salmon Ceviche with Thai chilies, jalapeno, soy, and celery. There was no denying the quality of the salmon as it exhibited a buttery firm texture while sporting a noticeable natural sweetness. However, the promise of spice was really more of a sputter. We understood that it shouldn't overwhelm the delicate salmon, but this did not make an impact. Next was the Aburi Pork Char Sui with sous-vide egg and crostinis. If the last dish wasn't lively, then this just flat-lined. With diced, semi-firm, dry pork topped with a silky egg, this dish left us seeking more flavour.
Their signature dish is the Teppan Gyoza, and we ordered the small and large sizes. Both should have been very crispy and mind-blowing based on the pictures and description on the menu. They arrived looking very much like any other gyoza. There were little nuggets of crispiness here and there, but it didn't deliver on the promise and it certainly didn't look like the picture. The dumpling skin was thin, tender and appealing, although it was overdone. As for the filling, it was meaty with a good mix of cabbage. I liked dipping the gyoza into the Spicy Garlic Soy.
We also sampled their specialty gyoza including the Miso Short Rib with feta, pickled peppers, zucchini, and jalapeno soy glaze. It featured the same thin, delicate wrapper, and was actually better in texture than the teppan gyoza. Inside, it was filled with moist short rib that was mildly seasoned. As much as I liked this, the filling was a bit one-note in texture. Second, we tried the Chili Shrimp and Pickled Daikon with soy marinated ikura and wasabi chimichurri. It resembled a Chinese dumpling because the bits of shrimp were cold-water crunchy and sweet, but overall, there wasn't a lot of flavour.  
Next, I tried the Tomato-Saffron Seafood Ramen with mussels, clams, scallop, prawn, chicken and char siu. The initial sip of soup yielded a strong aromatic saffron taste that then gave way to the tang of tomato, but unfortunately ended extremely salty. We liked the seafood as it was well prepared and not overcooked, but we did not like the overly firm yellow noodle that lacked cohesion with the broth.
With the Free Range Chicken Broth with Awase Triple Miso, chicken char siu and tamago, there was no mistaking the chicken essence in the broth. The miso added a savoury sharpness to the broth that wasn't overly salty, but it ultimately ended off that way. Remarkably, the slices of chicken were succulent and tender.
We also tasted the Free Range Chicken Broth with Mediterranean Salt, which helped highlight the rich chicken flavour more without the distraction of miso. However, it also meant it was pretty salty from start to finish. As for the chicken, it was exactly like the other version. Another friend ordered the Pork Tonkotsu Broth, which was the least salty of the bunch. That didn't mean there wasn't any flavour though as it had pork flavour, but it was not silky. The char siu wasn't exactly chewy, but it wasn't melt-in-his mouth tender either.
For the prices they charge ($17.00 for the Saffron Broth), is decent or good enough to result in a repeat visit? For quite a few of us, the answer was no.

Sherman Chan is the #1 ranked food blogger on the Vancouver portal of Urbanspoon.com. Read more of his reviews at www.shermansfoodadventures.com.

Gyoza Bar and Ramen
622 West Pender Street, Vancouver
(604) 336-5563

The Good:
• Despite the overwhelmingly negative reviews, the food is actually decent
• Service was attentive
• Nice vibe

The Bad:
• Expensive
• Food is decent, but the prices are not