Lighthouse Japanese Restaurant

My wife and I were in Lethbridge and we checked out the Lighthouse Akari sushi restaurant for lunch. It has a nice, clean, modern look to it, with authentic Japanese style food. The service by our server was friendly and fast and it was a clean and inviting inside with its modern style.

We had the miso soup, green tea, toro nigiri, sushi pizza, tofino roll, katsu roll and the signature roll. They were all skillfully made, and lovely to look at, but lacked the flavour that we were looking for. My wife and I have been to an awful lot of sushi restaurants and we used to go every Friday night to our favourite spot and always took home leftovers for the next night.

Unfortunately this sushi was a bit too traditional for us, as we like innovation, creativity, spice and flavour. To me it was a bit flat tasting and lacked the tang of vinegar and salt. The sushi pizza was different, but a bit gummy and not to our liking.

We have been to Japan and had sushi from Vancouver to Toronto and although carefully made and nice to look at, it was not memorable. I am not sure what other choices are available in Lethbridge, but the Lighthouse Akari in the end is still a nice sushi restaurant, just not the kind that we are big fans of.

Vegetarian options: Lots of options, ask staff.

Dietary restrictions: Lots of options, as staff.

Parking: Lots of parking.

Kid-friendliness: Depends if kids like sushi, but ours did.

Wheelchair accessibility: Accessible.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 3

Service: 4

Recommended dishes: Miso Soup

Ordered a dinner for two to go. Its a good value for what you pay. Very friendly staff. They do take pride in the presentation even in the to-go boxes. The Chicken Katsu was perfect. The Nigiri, Sashimi, and tempura, was good. The beef teriaki was ok

For the needs improvement category; salad dressing wasnt particulairly great, and the Nigiri and Sahimi being of the same two fish variety is repetitive with a family meal.

But all-in-all a good place.

Food: 4

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Chicken Katsu

Tried out Lighthouse Japanese Restaurant for the first time recently. I’m a big fan of sushi and I’m a bit particular when it comes to sushi and enjoy good quality over quantity. I ordered Ahi Tuna and scallop nigiri, miso soup and a Philly roll.

The quality and taste were excellent. The miso soup was one of the best I have had. The tuna was buttery and had a great taste. The Philly roll was excellent with the smoked salmon and cream cheese. The scallop nigiri was excellent as well. This was my first time trying raw scallops.

The price was on pair with what you would expect to pay for high quality sushi.

I will definitely go back again and I would highly recommend Lighthouse Japanese Restaurant to anyone.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Tuna Sashimi and Salmon Sashimi, Sushi and Sashimi, Miso Soup, Roll

We got sushi here based on reviews and were very disappointed, the worst we ate in

Food: 1

The unagi nigiri was hot fire! Loved the banana tempura.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Assorted 9 Piece Nigiri Sushi

Fantastic sushi and the patio in the summer is a nice addition. Service has always been friendly and helpful.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Miso Soup, Roll

great service and amazing food without over the top pricing. definitely a new favourite!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Beef Teriyaki Salad, Signature Roll Spicy Tuna Roll, Tuna Sashimi and Salmon Sashimi, Salmon Sushi 1, Assorted 9 Piece Nigiri Sushi, Sushi and Sashimi, Chicken Katsu, Rainbow Roll and Chicken Teriyaki, House Roll, Miso Soup, California Roll 8, California Roll & Rainbow Roll, Spider Roll, Chicken Katsu Salad and Sunomono, Calamari House Salad, Teriyaki Chicken

I've been to Lighthouse many times over the years and it has been both consistent and excellent every time.. until tonight.

The vegetable tempura was seriously undercooked, to the point of being crunchy and not edible, and the tempura batter seemed off - not its typical crispy flavourful consistency I have grown to love. The beef teriyaki has changed as well, consisting of less than half the vegetables it used to contain.

I am normally delighted to have Lighthouse for dinner, but this time around, not so much.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 2

Service: 5

Great food, friendly service. Somewhat limited lunch menu but still a great option for a quick bite.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 4

Service: 4

My Dad and I went here on his last night with me after dropping me off at my new home. The food was excellent, very fresh, and the service was amazing. I will definitely be going back in the future.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Sushi and Sashimi

The place was a mess, the server was all over the map and the food wasn't even that good. I'll never go back here again, super disappointed.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 2

Service: 1

Absolutely incredible food. Their lighthouse roll alone would be enough to brine me back to lethbridge. Thank you!

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Sushi and Sashimi, House Roll

I have been a regular customer at Lighthouse for the last 3-4 years or so. I always choose Lighthouse over the other sushi places in the city because of its more authentic and higher quality sushi. The sushi has always been consistent quality, flavour, and texture- the best in the city. Over the last few years there have been several price hikes that raised the cost of the entire menu and I still continued to support Lighthouse because their sushi quality and authenticity cannot be matched.However, I have started to notice in the last few months that the quality has started to go down... and I mean waaaaayy down. It is fine to ask a premium price for a premium product, but when the product is the same as the all-you-can-eat sushi places – why would I pay more for the same thing? Specifically, the rice hasn't been properly crafted for sushi (wet, slippery, no adhesion) and a lot of the rolls seem like they are just pressed together out of desperation rather than carefully and skillfully crafted. The rolls may look okay when they are sitting on a plate, but once you go to eat them they just fall apart.I am always sure to test out my theories prior to posting a review – I know the best chefs can have a bad day and produce an irregular product. However, I have visited Lighthouse numerous times in the last 4 months or so and each and every time the quality has been very disappointing.. considering what used to come out of the Lighthouse kitchen. I am not sure if there was a change in staff or ingredients, but something has noticeably changed in the kitchen and it reflects directly in the quality of the food.Lighthouse – please reduce your prices to reflect your product, or up your product quality to reflect your asking price.Until I can confirm that the price has come down or the quality has gone back up, I will source my sushi elsewhere. Preferably, the quality gets restored to its original standard.... as it was by FAR the best sushi in the city... and I miss my quality sushi.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 1

Service: 5

Delicious, rare Japanese restaurant.As for the rolled materials...you can roll them more firmly.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

Poke bowls are amazing!! Owners are so generous and kind, 10/10 recommend!