2024

Restaurant Awards 2024: The Best Upscale Japanese Restaurants in Vancouver

Impeccable sushi and artfully executed Japanese standards are the name of the game at Vancouver's highest-level Japanese restaurants.

By the Editors /

The Best Upscale Japanese Restaurants in Vancouver 2024

Gold: Okeya Kyujiro

“Magical.” “Immersive.” “Transported and transformed.” When you see these words on the Restaurant Awards scorecard, you’ve found a winner. Such was the case with the reviews for gold winner Okeya Kyujiro, where the omakase experience left our judges raving. The theatrical, over-the-top service is worth the visit in and of itself—recalling elements of kabuki—but dishes like freshly grilled unagi or delicately cross-hatched toro are what really steal the show.

1038 Mainland St.
okeya.ca

Okeya Kyujiro

Silver: Masayoshi

Nigiri is silver winner Masayoshi’s specialty, each exquisite creation a jewel of a bite. “So many wow moments,” said one judge. “The beautiful, pristine fish, exceptional knife skills, impeccable plating—this is high art.”

4376 Fraser St.
masayoshi.ca

Masayoshi. Photo: Leila Kwok.

Bronze: Tetsu Sushi Bar

Bronze winner Tetsu Sushi Bar offers an excellent omakase, too; if you’re lucky enough to snag one of the 12 seats in the restaurant, you’ll be treated to chef Satoshi Makise’s quiet elegance and superb craftmanship. 

775 Denman St.
tetsusushibar.com

Tetsu. Photo by Leila Kwok.

Honourable Mentions

Sushi Jin, 750 Nelson St., sushijinvancouver.ca
Sushi Mahana, 175 3rd St. W, North Vancouver, sushimahana.com

Find more of the best Vancouver restaurants on our list of 2024 Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Award winners.