Jun-I Sushi Restaurant - Montreal, Quebec: Jun-I is the most happening spot in Montreal for sushi. This restaurant was opened in 2005 by owner and chef Junichi Ikematsu. Located in the trendy Mile-End district, this restaurant serves Japanese and sushi dishes.

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The décor of this Montreal sushi restaurant is subdued, intimate and warm with wood floors, non-descript tables and chairs. Designer Jean-Pierre Viau has mixed warm colors with Japanese minimalism to make you feel at home. This 50 seat restaurant has a sushi bar with seating for about 8 people.

My partner and I dined at Jun-I Montreal sushi restaurant on a weekday and to our surprise, the place was full. Diners were dressed in everything from shorts and t-shirt to dress shirts and even a blazer. This Montreal sushi restaurant had an interesting and varied menu. Tasting menus were also available. The sashimi appetizer, Jun-I’s signature dish, consists of five different seafood offerings and was served with an equal number of dipping sauces and garnishes. The only minus point we could find in the menu was the small selection of rolls. Also, almost all the rolls had avocado in them.

We decided to go all out and ordered Tuna, Salmon, Yellow Tail, Isaki (striped pigfish), Aji (Japanese jack mackerel) and Unagi sushi and sashimi. The pieces were nice sized and it was obvious they were extremely fresh and of superior quality. In fact, it was nice to finally have some really good and fresh sushi after trying out some very mediocre sushi restaurants in Montreal and Toronto. We also ordered Funny Maki, Dancing Unagi, B-52 and Ebi Age Maki to check out whether these were as good as the names suggested.

The Funny Maki was made of fried red tuna, green onion, avocado, white fish and spicy salmon. A fried roll, the Funny Maki was full of flavor and a great roll to get us started. The Dancing Unagi was served next and was made of red tuna, eel, tobiko, cucumber and avocado. While this sushi proved to be too gushy for me, my partner enjoyed it very much.

The B-52 made of red tuna, rice crispies, spicy mayonnaise and avocado was perfectly executed and innovative as the crispies added a twist like I haven’t had before. The Ebi Age Maki was served last and consisted of eel, rice crispies and avocado and was fresh and delicious. The fish was fresh, perfectly sliced and presented flawlessly every time.

The wine menu was pretty decent for this rather small Montreal sushi restaurant. The menu featured Swiss, Austrian, Italian and Canadian wines. We ordered a bottle of 2008 Meursault which proved to be a great addition to our dinner. The Sake list is varied and even includes exclusive bottles imported from Japan. The service is friendly and attentive.

It is quite obvious that one goes to Jun-I for its great sushi and not for the atmosphere. The quality and value of the food alone is enough to rate Jun-I Sushi Restaurant as one of the best sushi restaurants in Montreal. Reservations are highly recommended at this sushi hot spot.

Overall, our rating for Jun-I is bombastic.

What I liked: Everything, especially the fresh fish

What I didn’t like: Nothing much

Rating: Bombastic

Address and Telephone Number:
JUN-I
156 Laurier Av W
Montreal, QC H2T 2N7
Phone: (514) 276-5864

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