Ninjas Unite! Elite Party At Suika

Suika + Unilocal = Japanese Elite Awesomeness.
When I saw Miss Pikachu through the window, I knew this party was going to be crazy legit Tokyo fun times. When I saw Banana Man, Ladyboy, and Minny Mouse, I was super impressed. When I ate their food and drank their drinks, I was in love.
There’s something about Japanese hospitality that is infectious. I’ve been here before and the vibe is always uplifting. I swear even if a server severely screwed up my order here I still couldn’t get mad.
I was shocked at the wicked variety and sheer volume these guys pumped out all night. Nothing was less than stellar, but the green matcha brulee was brainfreezing greatness. Their house made ginger vodka concoction was addicting. Sapporo was solid as always.
Ninja gear, super nintendo, and fortune telling stations? Cyndi, I’ve run out of ways to describe your awesome party planning skills. Pure greatness. (Sad to know this will be your last or 2^nd last Elite party as CM :(
Mad props to Suika for donating all the tips (over $ 600) to Red Cross Japan.
More Ninja parties please.

I had so much enjoyment at the Elite Party at Suika. The atmosphere was truly Japanese ninja inspired. I felt like I was in a real life martial arts video game, comic book, or cartoon.
There were people dressed up as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The Ninja Turtles group did such an excellent job that I couldn’t recognize their real life names without asking.
A few looked like they were from the game Mortal Kombat — scary, because I was never good at the Mortal Kombat game. There were few dressed up in traditional Japanese costumes too. The people who ran Suika dressed up in some crazy lookin’ outfits. I would never have thought I would encounter someone dressed up as a banana — while cooking food — in a Japanese restaurant.
Cyndi’s ninja costume with her umbrella sword was stunning. I could see her jumping, kicking, and flying across the room.
Ainsley did an amazing job as a fortune teller with his Ken Watanabe accent. I was glad I didn’t miss it.
Garth’s fat Chuck Norris outfit was hilarious.
The food was very interesting and very delicious. I enjoyed all of the dishes. Some of the dishes were definately not traditional Japanese, but it was more of a fusion between Japanese, Chinese, or Korean.
First of all, I loved the deep fried shrimp dish with shrimp chips. It was the best tasting deep fried shrimp I’ve had at a Japanese restaurant. The tomato kimchi was hot and spicy. I had to down some drinks to cool down my throat.
The smoked tuna tataki was smooth, smokey and delicious. The sockeye salmon carppaccio was simple, yet very tasty. I didn’t even have to dip the stuff in soy sauce to enjoy it. Big thumbs up because the sockeye salmon are wild.
The green tea crème brûlée was so refreshingly delicious for dessert — much tastier than a green tea drink for sure.

«Behold the bold soldier, control the globe slowly /​Proceeds to blow swingin swords like Shinobi»
A few things I learned from this event:
— Suika is worthy of the high acclaim I’ve heard
— Apparently, sake doesn’t give me stomachaches — it’s just when I drink warm sake, cheapo Gekkeikan (in sake bomb form), too much sake (regardless of quality) or too much warm bottom-​shelf sake for the triple whammy. Some truly delicious stuff at the sake tasting booth.
— being shirtless in a crowded party, makes you the 1^st guy in any line you’re in
Okay — seriously now — no one mentioned the fact that there was a shirtless ninja at this party? (‘It wasn’t me’ for those that weren’t in attendance). In the scale of party goodness — it goes from 1 to 5 stars and then ‘take off all your clothes’ good. This scale system was popularized by distinguished professor of sociology, Dr. Nelly of the St. Lunatics.
But I’m seriously running low on my reserve of superlatives to describe the event — great times, food and people as usual — co-​sign on everything that’s been said already. Thumbs up to the Ginger Ninja (it’s better than a death touch.)
I’m just going to end this review with a clip vaguely related to ninjas:

This was a fantastic party! Thank you to the staff of Suika who made this such a great event! Special thanks to Banana Man for being an awesome host and the Harajuku Guy for being equally entertaining behind the bar in the kitchen.
I’m going to have to admit that my favourite part of this entire party was the kimchi tomatoes. I have fallen in love. I was more than surprised considering I don’t have much affinity for tomatoes. I really hope that I can come to Suika again just for those. The pork belly was out of this world delicious. The corn fritters, salmon carpaccio, and tuna tataki were also on the top of my list of things to eat again very soon. I have to say there was way more food than I could have expected. These people worked all day to make this happen! Cowabunga!
The Moscow Mules were delicious. The Bartender ‘Minnie Mouse’ was quite cheery considering the very consistent demand for her services. What a great attitude. I also want to give a big shout out to the people at Pemberton Distillery for their fantastic Schramms Vodka. It is my vodka of choice now!
Of course, a big shout out to our great Community Manager, Cyndi, for organizing such a Rad Event! You’re a super fly ninja indeed.

Talk about switching things up from the last Unilocal Elite Event. I have said it once, and I say it again, there is no way you can really compare one Elite event to another, cause if you are at any of these in your lifetime, there is something you always take from that one event that can never be replaced cause you lived it, and there will be somethings that stick to your mind and never leave, and there was a ton from this party.
Suika, the venue of the night, and how this staff was not just serving us and working their magic, but how they were just like all of us there, part of the party, and how they managed to work in the costume getups themselves is a feat in its own. They showed the passion of their own art of servicing everyone that was there, with their enthusiasm and smiles on each of their faces shows that not only us Unilocal’ers were having a good time, but they were as well.
This was probably the first time I have eaten prior to coming to the ‘show’ and I ate quite a bit at Suika, I do not remember all the food (and no, this is not due to the alcohol of past parties, for your information!) but there were a couple delights I can still remember from the taste from just writing up this review for all of you to read. The fried corn was just one of those delectable items that I had to pop a few more in my mouth, as it was just so good. The sweet balsamic pork was a saucy delight that was just different from the other food I had there. I wish I had some stomach for that piping hot udon coming from the kitchen, but from what I tasted, I will be stopping by this place to try out more on the menu.
How do you do it Cyndi? This is a question I still ask ever since you took the reigns of Vancouver, Miss Ginger Ninja?! You managed to find a place that was great, and also get the event outside of downtown! A big applause to you, and the creative ideas you and your band/​troop of minds think up has been amazing. To pull the twitter board up was another high point for this event, as it was another avenue to have everyone get there message across in a crazy fashion that is so new age! And to those crazy green turtles that stormed the party, I did not think anyone was going to do it, and Crystal and crew, with your busy schedule, to still bring what you bring, always awesome, and always love seeing you there!
¹⁄₃ of the year down, and so much more to go! And to all the people at Suika, for donating all the tip proceeds to the relief efforts of Japan, and seeing all the people there, chipping in more for a great cause is awesome.
Oh, and the alcohol was good too, especially the two bottles of cold sake, which I dipped into a bit. And thanks to all of you who called me out, based on the last events beverage fun, I was good this time, and still had a great time! A beautiful April night, with great people, great food, great atmosphere, and a hash tag that I kept tweeting: #YelpSuika!

What a great party!
Loved all the little extras at this event — like the «make your own ninja headband» station! Adorable.
The staff here is amazing. Serious props to Minnie Mouse at the bar who was working SO hard and firing those tasty gingery drinks out! I loved that they all dressed up for the event.
The drinks were tasty, the food looked amazing (didn’t have a lot due to the veggie train) and my pal Carly B raved about the chicken bite things… and the peeps were a lot of fun. The party became a little overwhelming due to the size, but it was still awesome to survey from the safety of the back!
Thanks Cyndi and the great staff at Suika!

I loved how the staff dressed up! That’s the spirit. Speaking of spirit, the Vodka Mule cocktails were delicious. I hope Suika keeps those on their drink list as I’ll be back to this restaurant. I also enjoyed trying the two premium sakes which were both very tasty.
All of the food that I tried was delicious. I especially liked the plump tempura prawn in a shrimp chip. I was surprised that there wasn’t much choice for my vegetarian friends and that should be considered for future events.
The swag was great! I grabbed a pair of fingerless Unilocal gloves. Perfect for spring hiking! I found the space a bit tight and would have been more conducive to passed food rather than line ups at the buffet setting. I loved the chandelier made from premium sake bottles. Super cool!
I’m looking forward to checking out Suika for dinner soon. Kampai!

Yay for ninja parties! From Unilocaler’s costumes, to those of the Suika staff, it’s always nice to know that you don’t have to wait until October to get dressed up!
The food was absolutely delicious! While we were warned to eat dinner beforehand (and I did), there was more than enough food to go around and a wide variety (except sadly for the vegetarians)! I loved all of the fish dishes and had just commented to friends last weekend that I missed shrimp chips. Low and behold, tempura shrimp on shrimp chips! Win!!!
Drinks were very good and though there was usually a wait at the bar, there were also plenty of people to talk to. I heart moscow mules and totally didn’t know that this is what they were until it was announced. They were very good though! I had my first sake experience and enjoyed that there were two types and the rep was able to answer our nerdy questions.
Overall, with all of the fabulous little extras, from packages of giant cheese flavoured something’s, and gloves and chapstick galore, this was a fabulous party! Thank you so much Cyndi and Suika for a wonderful night!

Five stars for:
— fantastic costumes: dude dressed like a harajuku girl, and TMNT
— meeting new Unilocal people (including dave & angela from the tdot!)
— amaaaaaaaaaazing food
— Mortal Kombat on the SNES!
— all tips going to the Japan earthquake and tsunami aid. HEART.
Am so in love with Cyndi for organizing such an amazing party! Everything was fantastic, and Suika pulled out all the stops for their amazing food. I even loved that they made some additional vegetarian dishes at Sarah O.‘s request! :) There was always something to do in every corner of the restaurant, and so many new faces between me and the food and the bar and the bathrooms!
Best dish of the night was the green time ice cream with a crispy little caramelized sugar topping. I put a whole square in my mouth and proceeded to stand in front of Johnson with tears almost coming out of my eyes from brain freeze while he laughed at me. Good times!
If I didn’t get to say hi, I promise I’ll make my way around! It was great meeting so many new people in such a wonderful restaurant. So much love to Suika for all their hard work and for their generosity in donating their tips!!! I can’t wait to come back to this restaurant over and over again!!! :)

Vancouver Unilocaler Ninjas are quite something! An incredible party thanks to the awesome Vancouver Unilocal Elite crew, and also Suika, who couldn’t have provided us with any better hospitality.
Loved how the friendly Suika staff all dressed up with full on costumes too! It was a very fun vibe from the start. Sapporo beers, Moscow Mule (ginger ale +Schramm’s vodka), and sake all being passed around!
The kitchen staff then provided us with some super delicious food. Tomato kimchi (very interesting flavor), Tuna tataki, sockeye salmon tartar, negitoro and salmon pressed sushi), ebi mayo, chicken karaage, sweet balsamic pork belly (so rich and flavourful), cod roe kimchi udon, and corn tempura (sweet and crispy!) The food kept on coming, with generous portions.
After all the savoury food was served, I found that there was green tea crème brulee!!! Could it be? One of my favourite foods!!! Then I saw it-​the bite sized pieces of green tea crème brulee, with a large dallop of whipped cream and a red bean sauce! Soo good. I’m coming back just for this!
Special mention goes to «Hattori Hanzo» for telling my fortune. It was just partially accurate though. To add to all the fun, there were Unilocal gloves, a make your own headband station, and a SNES station too!
Props to Suika for donating all their tips to the Japan Relief Red Cross fund. Such a fun night with a great group of people, as always!
Cyndi, thanks for another amazing party!

Such a great party. Such great food. Such great drinks. Such great people!
Suika went all out for our Elite party — the staff dressed up and the food kept coming. The sushi was lovely, but the salmon carpaccio, tuna tataki, pork belly and kimchi tomato were the standout fare. I was amazed by the amount of gluten-​free food (sometimes a rarity at Elite events).
Props to the bartender who kept making Moscow mules right till the end. The ginger-​lime taste was delightful and refreshing. My man was a big fan of the sake, though.
I thought we were all done for food until they brought out the green tea crème brûlée. Oh man. Add a blowtorch to any dessert and it’s automatically my favourite. Great way to end the night.
I live literally two blocks away from Suika, and after last night I know I’ll be back. Thanks to Suika and Cyndi for such a great party!
P. S. Did you see those bathrooms? They have everything you could possibly need, including mouthwash, toothpicks, and adjustable mirrors to fix your makeup!

COWABUNGA DUDE… what an awesome party for my buddies Leo, Raph, and Don to hang out at yesterday!!!
The food was outrageously better than our normal love of pizza. I’d have to agree with Gina I. that the braised pork belly made my taste buds yell Banzai! I might have a new love of gingerale… I would definitely return to Suika to enjoy their delicious eats.
It is awesome to see familiar Unilocal faces and the kitchen staff at Suika kept a smile on my face all night. right on dudes!
Thank you Cyndi for another rad night!
PS. I won a prize of a cut n colour at Suki’s that I’d like to «auction» to raise money for Red Cross since the restaurant so graciously donated all their tips to tsunami relief. Contact me if you know anyone who may be interested!

LOVED. IT! Any time I get to hang out with the awesome Vancouver Unilocalers is a great time, but that and Japanese food… I was in heaven.
The best part of the night for me was how much the staff obviously wanted us to have a good time. The enthusiasm they showed in getting dressed up to me marked the sign of a restaurant that cares about its patrons enjoying themselves and having a great experience. We were told to eat beforehand but they put out an incredibly generous selection of amazing food that just seemed to keep coming. They smiled and posed for pictures and looked to be having as much fun as us. When a business really clicks with the community, that is what makes a great Elite party.
I loved the little sake station and the friendly lady working there, my first time trying sake and it was delicious. A shout-​out to Minnie Mouse making the Moscow Mules, you were AWESOME!
We are definitely coming back here for a UYE, those tempura prawns, corn fritters and sensational green tea ice cream have a special place in my heart (and hips).
Big hugs to Cyndi, this was a fantastic event and the theme and props were fabulous fun.

I knew the party was going to be great when I saw a man dressed as a banana through the window! Ooh yes. The staff at Suika really outdid themselves. From the amazing spread of food, to the costumes, to the generous gesture of putting all of their well deserved tips toward the earthquake relief in Japan. Kudos to them!
Now let’s get to the food. Wow. Although we were told to eat beforehand, they really outdid themselves with both quality and quantity. There were a few standouts for me: the ebi, salmon, deep fried corn (you heard me), and of course the green tea crème brûlée. I’ll definitely be back.
Thanks Cyndi for putting on yet another great event! You rocked it!

TMNT unite! Word on the street is Pennylane created those awesome ninja turtles costumes — major props!
Loved how the staff participated in the dress-​up fun too! Banana-​man, Harajuku lady boy, Minnie, Pikachu — thanks for joining in the wackiness of a Unilocal party!
Lots of fun little touches added to the party too — an old school Nintendo (was that TV from the 90’s too??), bandana station, fortune telling, sake tasting… so much going on you couldn’t help be entertained!
The drinks were so refreshing — Schramms + lemon + soda + ginger? Those baby-​sized glasses are cute and all, but I could’ve had a whole tray of them!
The pork belly was so tasty and I liked the Mentaiko udon as well, but the winner of the night was the frozen green tea brulee with red bean sauce!
Thanks for another fabulous party, I’ll be back soon to Suika to try out the rest of their menu!

Amazing party! Love the people (The Unilocalers), love the food (Suika), and love the drinks!
One of the best night ever! I had such a great time seeing all the Vancouver Unilocalers again, and top it all off it had to be a Japanese themed party! I still regret that I didn’t cos-​play, but I couldn’t because I just got right off of school: P
Love the restaurant as it was amazing, love the decorations they have, and the walls are specially crafted! I love the Mortal Kombat, on the side, wished it was Street Fighter though: P
I didn’t eat a lot of the food, but I drank a lot for sure. The food wasn’t to my style but I did enjoy each and every piece they gave out. I had a lot of the Vodka Ginger Ale they handed out, and the Sake.
My favourite dish of the night has to be the Spicy Salmon with tomatoes in the beginning of the night. I also enjoyed the pork belly, but it was too fatty for my taste, only if I lost some weight, then I can indulge into it: P
But overall I enjoyed the food, and it was fantastic!
Loved the costumes of the chefs, bartender, and the Unilocalers! Congrats to the NINJA TURTLES! When they entered, everyone’s head literally turned and they had the most attention of the night, literally!
The after party was amazing at the Academic! We had an amazing time playing pool and drinking and just chatting! I was fantastic! I hope to see everyone at the next event!

The service and staff were great. They all dressed as their favourite Japanese pop culture icons even the kitchen staff. One server guy had a whole Japanese schoolgirl outfit on, decked out to the nines. I sipped on the great drinks. I liked the cool mix of Japanese eats, drinks, and pop culture. ‘Twas a interesting vibe.
The food was delectable and so plentiful. The dishes kept coming out throughout the evening.
The crowd packed the small Japanese eatery and I appreciated the clearing of space and seats against the walls for a nice opening up of the place to mingle about.
I loaded up on deep fried chicken, corn, prawns, salmon, tuna sashimi, rolls, and everything they had to offer. I was so full. The matcha crème brûlée concoctions were also stellar.
There were some pretty ridiculous Japanese and ninja themed costumes including a token banana behind in the kitchen preparing our dessert and Minnie Mouse behind the bar.
The little touches including a Mortal Kombat SNES station setup and ninja decorations were funky and vibrant.

SOOOOO much fun! I loved everything about the Elite Party at Suika! The food, the people, the costumes, the drinks all were outstanding. I was determined to try all the delicious delights that came out of that kitchen staffed by harijuku girls and Pokemons! My favorites were the seared tuna and ebi mayo shrimp. I will likely have a food dream about them tonight!
Everyone from Suika was awesome and I could tell they were pumped to be hosting such a fun Unilocal party. I am also pretty sure everyone who was there will certainly be back sometime very soon.
Cyndi H did a fantastic job of organizing and I loved all the little touches like fortune telling, bandana decorating, and sake tasting. It was so hoping in Suika and I loved reconnecting with some of my favorite Unilocal peeps.
Great party and huge props to all who were involved. I hope a ton of $ was raised for Japan Red Cross. Party while raising funds is a winning combo! Woot woot!

I wish there was a ninja theme song so I could sing it while I write this review, however, if there was a ninja song then you would probably hear them coming which would defeat the purpose of the stealthy-​silent creeping skills.
I was super stoked to hear that we were doing a Unilocal event at an Izakaya, as I have actually visited Japan and spent many drunken nights at the Japanese pubs and karaōke lounges, and in fact missed last train once and had to stay in an all-​night lounge until the trains started up again in the morning.
Lucky for me there was no seating fee at Suika! There was also no vegetarian food, which wasn’t so much a bummer for me as it was for the BF, who hadn’t obeyed the Unilocal etiquette of eating prior to the elite party. However, after chatting with the amazing Ginger Ninja, she introduced me to the manager of Suika, who was more than happy to make me a salad and acocado roll! Both were pretty stellar for having no prep done and being made on the fly.
I filled up on the boozey gingerale and had some sake, the gingerale being dangerously my favourite. All of the tips at the bar were being donated to the Red Cross for the disaster in Japan, and although I already donated $ 50 online (for the tax receipt, j.k.) I threw down a few more dollars, because of all the countries I have visited, the people in Japan were by far the kindest, most generous I have ever met. Suika, I will be back for your vegetarian salad and its delicious dressing, that homemade gingerale and the cute harajuku girl in the kitchen… That was a girl right? :p

I am kind of in love right now… With Mikoto (aka banana man), with the man who dressed up in a bleached blonde wig and a hot pink shirt and a mini skirt, with minnie mouse, pikachu, and everyone else.
The interior is beautiful with the sake bottles as a light fixture, a large table with all the ninja fixings, an open kitchen overlooking sexy food and sexy staff, a nintendo station to get your game on, and an open space for people just to mingle and have a great time.
A sister restaurant to Kingyo, which I love, this place may be even better. not sure. The toro sushi was melt in your mouth deicious, while the tomato that looked like salmon sashimi was surprising flavourful with all the sauces. The chicken karage? was perfectly cooked, not too dry. The noodles were accompanied by kimchi, not salmon and not overly salty, with nori to flavour the dish. The pork belly was so saucy and so tender, while the corn cakes were not overly deep friend and still had a good crunch. The ebi mayo had a great kick to it, accompanied by a chip that acts as a staple to many Chinese dishes.
Last but not least, I cannot tell you how much I am in love with the Green tea crème brûlée… with RED BEAN SAUCE — you have got to be kidding me. Not wanting to waste one of my favourite foods, I just took a fork and scooped up all the leftover sauce. Sorry to be a pig, but I’d like to think I was being resourceful.
Great time hanging out with my new awesome friends, and a very happy birthday to Debbie.
Mikoto — aka banana man, you are so amazing!
Fabulous job Cyndi. i hope to see you soon.