Araya Sushi Japanese & Korean Restaurant is a new restaurant on Highway 7 and Markham Road.

It takes over the unit that was previously a Tim Hortons.  Araya Sushi has completely renovated the space and made it incredibly homey, spacious, and comfortable.  The festive decor for the holiday season provided the extra warmth as well.

I was impressed with the menu, both in how beautiful the photos were and how many choices of Japanese and Korean dishes there were.  Araya Sushi seemed to focus on udon and sushi, so we ordered those featured dishes to share.

There was a Dynamite Sushi and default vegetarian udon combo for only $17.99.  Both were tasty.  The Dynamite Sushi was plated nicely with a slice of radish and parsley on top.  The udon was not too soft or chewy in a clear broth.

We also ordered the Bokeum Jajang, a stir fried noodle with pork, seafood and vegetables in black bean sauce.  I was really impressed and satisifed with this dish.  It was a very big portion (true to its photo in the menu), and the black bean sauce wasn’t too salty or overpowering.  I liked that the noodles were just firm enough for my taste too.  It was a very “comfort food” kind of dish.

I had wanted to try their uni sushi but the server informed us that they didn’t have it at that time.

In the middle of our meal, we received a dish of Edamame that was on the house.  That was a nice perk.  The Edamame was good.

Araya Sushi Japanese & Korean Restaurant was a nice family restaurant and also suitable for small groups or dates.  They have so many choices to choose from.  I’d definitely return again to try more. :9  The service was exceptional as well.  We were provided with extra sharing plates and bowls for our food.

I’m so glad Betty told me about this restaurant so we could try it out! 🙂