Great food! Really pricey but worth it. About 9-20 for just a piece of nigiri to give an idea.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Grilled Shoyu Koji Local Duck Breast, Green Tea Soba Crab Roll, Wagyu Kabocha Croquette
Colum Jing
Food is just ok. Their service is not worth their price
Jack Hsu
First off, I want to start by saying this was one of my favourite Japanese restaurants in the area and I have recommended it to others many times.I made reservations a couple weeks ahead of time and got a reservation for 8:15pm for Valentine's Day. We arrived for our reservation right on time and our table was not ready. It took about 5mins to get us seated but that's not a big deal.As we were seated I noticed that we were given the regular a la carte menu and we were not offered the Valentine's set menu. We ordered some Sake to start and my girlfriend ordered a cocktail as well. The server came to take our order and I asked about the "6 course Mini Omakase" and he apologized that it was sold out for the night so I ordered a bunch of other items from the a la menu including the Chef's choice 8pc Nigiri Omakase. Sadly, the Uni shooters were not available either.After a few minutes he returned to our table to apologize again because he stated that they had no more rice (NO MORE RICE?!) for any sushi at all so I changed to 3 kinds of sashimi instead. The Sake arrived shortly after and along came some of the food. A few dishes arrived and still no sight of the cocktail so we asked the server and he had forgotten about the cocktail altogether.All of the food we ordered was elegantly presented and everything tasted very good but the service was almost non existent. It's Valentine's Day and if you need to know ahead of time if we preferred the special Valentine's Day menu, why not offer or ask when I made the reservation over the phone 2 weeks prior? If you have a reservation coming in and you are running out of sushi rice already wouldn't you try to make some more before they arrived or at the very least, let the guests know upon arrival that there is no more rice in house to be cooked if that's the case.I don't like making bad google reviews but on a special day like Valentine's Day and paying $440 after tip for 2 people, I'm definitely not a happy customer and don't know when I'll be dining here again.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 4
Service: 1
G Reich
This is the best Japanese food in Burnaby hands down. Probably the best I’ve had in Canada period. Exceptional service, food, atmosphere, and drinks. Awesome sake menu. Exciting features and special events. Very pricey but worth it. Make it a special date. I adore this place.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Munchica
Delicious above average sushi. Everything was beautifully plated. The texture of the noodles for the duck tsukemen was firm and chewy in a good way and just like in Japan but the portion of the noodles could have been a bit more.The Ozoumi Mochi soup was delicious with nice smoky flavour and chewy, stretchy mochi. The 8 piece Chef’s Omakase flight of Nigiri was a great way to sample different fish .The desserts were delicious. We tried the miso caramel cheesecake which tasted exactly as described like salted caramel only with miso. The sake ice cream had lots of sake flavour and was very unique.Everything was very tasty but I would just say the food overall had less finesse than other similar establishments for the same price point.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Duck Tsukemen
Emily Wong
Came here for dinner after it was recommended by a coworker, and ordered the grilled sablefish, duck tsukemen, obanzai appetizer platter, nigiri and temaki. The food was amazing and beautifully presented as expected - however, it was on the pricey side for 2 people. Still a great dining experience overall, make sure to make a reservation in advance!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
MONG SIL & E
I went to STEM Japanese Eatery December 27, 2023. I couldn’t find the Japanese food I was dreaming of in Vancouver, so I was thinking of going to Japan someday. Today, I got my wish.Thank you for giving me a great experience thanks to all of STEM Japanese Eatery staff.I also asked wife to express her gratitude for letting me experience a place I wouldn’t be embarrassed to introduce to my clients.Happy New Year ???
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chawan Mushi, Sushi, Fish
Jensen Tam
It was excellent... Probably the top 3 Japanese restaurant in BC.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Miso Cheese Eggplant, Green Tea Tiramisu, Agedashi Tofu
Yan Jie Pan
We have been to Stem several times, and first time we have called in advance and preordered the omakase options, which we loved so much, I think based on what we get, it’s great value(in Vancouver).The most recent time we brought a Japanese friend with us to come give it a try, and she said it’s the most authentic Japanese food she has ever had in Vancouver. So food is definitely 10/10.However it’s very pricey. If you are coming for a regular dinner, to be full you will probably have to pay $100 after tips. I will recommend coming here for omakase.Food I recommend from their regular menu:The Soba crab roll: instead of rice, they fried a special kind of noodles and put it inside the roll. I love it, I can have 10 of these.Sashimi : wow their sashimi is so fresh. I really love Otoro, it melted inside my mouth.Duck noodle: if you want something not just fill your teeth gap, this is it!! It taste so good, I love the way they deal with the ducks.Dessert: all of their desserts are so worth trying, Matcha tiramisu is so special. Miso cheesecake is not for everyone. And the Sobet, loved it.Overall, if you want to impress someone and show you have good taste for food, you should bring them here.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Akash Gill
I have been to most of the highest rated and acclaimed restaurants in the Vancouver area and Stem is no contest my favourite. Everything on the menus is always great and service is always friendly.
I‘d been wanting to try Stem Japanese Eatery for ages so I was super excited when my husband and I got to join a group of people from Lower Mainland Eats for dinner at Stem Japanese Eatery. The dishes here were so elegantly presented. Presentation, flavors and service were all very impressive.Featured here:Soba Crab RollMiso Cheese EggplantSweet Potato TempuraLocal Duck ”Tsuke Men“Grilled Yuzu Soy Marinated Wild Sockeye SalmonChawan MushiObanzaiGrilled Shoyu Koji Local Duck BreastGrilled Miso BC Sablefish CollarRenkon Hotate Shinjo Hasami - AgeMatcha TiramisuOnly the first 5 dishes on this list belonged to us. The remaining dishes belonged to other people but everyone at the table was kind enough to allow us all to take photos of each other's food!My husband enjoyed his Duck "Tsuke Men." He said the meat was tender and flavorful. Miso Cheese Eggplant was amazing! We both loved this dish sooo much. Sweet Potato Tempura also blew us away. It was incredibly crispy, didn't feel greasy and was accompanied by an amazing truffle aioli. We have been disappointed a number of times in the past when we ordered or purchased truffle foods and didn't taste any truffle in it. The truffle flavor in this aioli was very prominent so we were very happy with it.The Sockeye Salmon dish was cooked and served in a Staub Cocotte which was a cast iron dish, slightly smaller than an average sized Dutch oven. I loved how piping hot this dish was. It was great for warming the belly plus the Ikura (salmon caviar) really added another dimension of texture and flavor to the dish. The sensation of the Ikura popping in my mouth was similar to the feeling I get when I bite down on boba poppers, and I love boba poppers!Soba Crab Roll was the one dish that was just OK for us. It was more impressive visually than it was when we popped it into our mouths. There was nothing wrong with it, but it just didn't really excite us either.When my cup was empty I asked for more hot water, so our server refilled my cup. I was impressed when she came around later in the evening and refilled it again, without me having to ask this time. Many other restaurants will only refill if/when I ask, or else...they don't even refill at all.Service: ExcellentParking: Free parking on the streetLocation: 5205 Rumble St., Burnaby, BC
Pooja R
This was such a treat. Place is on Rumble st. Loads of street parking. Japanese Hawaiian Fusion done right!We were 7 people, each dish and over service was high value and flavor.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Free Run Mizore Chicken Karaage
Jimmy Wong
Fresh ingredients and seasonal menu, what a beautiful place to enjoy the chef's creation. Do make reservations since this place is packed all the time.The omakase is the way to go, make sure to make your reservation early and enjoy the ride.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Sushi
Marisol Lau
Had omakase dinner. Yes.it was expensive but all omakases are expensive and they are actually less then most. The meal was super good! The dessert part was just so so.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Mariko Adams
Amazing fresh and seasonal ingredients. One of the best Japanese restaurants in the greater Vancouver area that is doing very interesting things with local ingredients.
Great food! Really pricey but worth it. About 9-20 for just a piece of nigiri to give an idea.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Grilled Shoyu Koji Local Duck Breast, Green Tea Soba Crab Roll, Wagyu Kabocha Croquette
Food is just ok. Their service is not worth their price
First off, I want to start by saying this was one of my favourite Japanese restaurants in the area and I have recommended it to others many times.I made reservations a couple weeks ahead of time and got a reservation for 8:15pm for Valentine's Day. We arrived for our reservation right on time and our table was not ready. It took about 5mins to get us seated but that's not a big deal.As we were seated I noticed that we were given the regular a la carte menu and we were not offered the Valentine's set menu. We ordered some Sake to start and my girlfriend ordered a cocktail as well. The server came to take our order and I asked about the "6 course Mini Omakase" and he apologized that it was sold out for the night so I ordered a bunch of other items from the a la menu including the Chef's choice 8pc Nigiri Omakase. Sadly, the Uni shooters were not available either.After a few minutes he returned to our table to apologize again because he stated that they had no more rice (NO MORE RICE?!) for any sushi at all so I changed to 3 kinds of sashimi instead. The Sake arrived shortly after and along came some of the food. A few dishes arrived and still no sight of the cocktail so we asked the server and he had forgotten about the cocktail altogether.All of the food we ordered was elegantly presented and everything tasted very good but the service was almost non existent. It's Valentine's Day and if you need to know ahead of time if we preferred the special Valentine's Day menu, why not offer or ask when I made the reservation over the phone 2 weeks prior? If you have a reservation coming in and you are running out of sushi rice already wouldn't you try to make some more before they arrived or at the very least, let the guests know upon arrival that there is no more rice in house to be cooked if that's the case.I don't like making bad google reviews but on a special day like Valentine's Day and paying $440 after tip for 2 people, I'm definitely not a happy customer and don't know when I'll be dining here again.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 4
Service: 1
This is the best Japanese food in Burnaby hands down. Probably the best I’ve had in Canada period. Exceptional service, food, atmosphere, and drinks. Awesome sake menu. Exciting features and special events. Very pricey but worth it. Make it a special date. I adore this place.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Delicious above average sushi. Everything was beautifully plated. The texture of the noodles for the duck tsukemen was firm and chewy in a good way and just like in Japan but the portion of the noodles could have been a bit more.The Ozoumi Mochi soup was delicious with nice smoky flavour and chewy, stretchy mochi. The 8 piece Chef’s Omakase flight of Nigiri was a great way to sample different fish .The desserts were delicious. We tried the miso caramel cheesecake which tasted exactly as described like salted caramel only with miso. The sake ice cream had lots of sake flavour and was very unique.Everything was very tasty but I would just say the food overall had less finesse than other similar establishments for the same price point.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Duck Tsukemen
Came here for dinner after it was recommended by a coworker, and ordered the grilled sablefish, duck tsukemen, obanzai appetizer platter, nigiri and temaki. The food was amazing and beautifully presented as expected - however, it was on the pricey side for 2 people. Still a great dining experience overall, make sure to make a reservation in advance!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I went to STEM Japanese Eatery December 27, 2023. I couldn’t find the Japanese food I was dreaming of in Vancouver, so I was thinking of going to Japan someday. Today, I got my wish.Thank you for giving me a great experience thanks to all of STEM Japanese Eatery staff.I also asked wife to express her gratitude for letting me experience a place I wouldn’t be embarrassed to introduce to my clients.Happy New Year ???
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chawan Mushi, Sushi, Fish
It was excellent... Probably the top 3 Japanese restaurant in BC.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Miso Cheese Eggplant, Green Tea Tiramisu, Agedashi Tofu
We have been to Stem several times, and first time we have called in advance and preordered the omakase options, which we loved so much, I think based on what we get, it’s great value(in Vancouver).The most recent time we brought a Japanese friend with us to come give it a try, and she said it’s the most authentic Japanese food she has ever had in Vancouver. So food is definitely 10/10.However it’s very pricey. If you are coming for a regular dinner, to be full you will probably have to pay $100 after tips. I will recommend coming here for omakase.Food I recommend from their regular menu:The Soba crab roll: instead of rice, they fried a special kind of noodles and put it inside the roll. I love it, I can have 10 of these.Sashimi : wow their sashimi is so fresh. I really love Otoro, it melted inside my mouth.Duck noodle: if you want something not just fill your teeth gap, this is it!! It taste so good, I love the way they deal with the ducks.Dessert: all of their desserts are so worth trying, Matcha tiramisu is so special. Miso cheesecake is not for everyone. And the Sobet, loved it.Overall, if you want to impress someone and show you have good taste for food, you should bring them here.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I have been to most of the highest rated and acclaimed restaurants in the Vancouver area and Stem is no contest my favourite. Everything on the menus is always great and service is always friendly.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
I‘d been wanting to try Stem Japanese Eatery for ages so I was super excited when my husband and I got to join a group of people from Lower Mainland Eats for dinner at Stem Japanese Eatery. The dishes here were so elegantly presented. Presentation, flavors and service were all very impressive.Featured here:Soba Crab RollMiso Cheese EggplantSweet Potato TempuraLocal Duck ”Tsuke Men“Grilled Yuzu Soy Marinated Wild Sockeye SalmonChawan MushiObanzaiGrilled Shoyu Koji Local Duck BreastGrilled Miso BC Sablefish CollarRenkon Hotate Shinjo Hasami - AgeMatcha TiramisuOnly the first 5 dishes on this list belonged to us. The remaining dishes belonged to other people but everyone at the table was kind enough to allow us all to take photos of each other's food!My husband enjoyed his Duck "Tsuke Men." He said the meat was tender and flavorful. Miso Cheese Eggplant was amazing! We both loved this dish sooo much. Sweet Potato Tempura also blew us away. It was incredibly crispy, didn't feel greasy and was accompanied by an amazing truffle aioli. We have been disappointed a number of times in the past when we ordered or purchased truffle foods and didn't taste any truffle in it. The truffle flavor in this aioli was very prominent so we were very happy with it.The Sockeye Salmon dish was cooked and served in a Staub Cocotte which was a cast iron dish, slightly smaller than an average sized Dutch oven. I loved how piping hot this dish was. It was great for warming the belly plus the Ikura (salmon caviar) really added another dimension of texture and flavor to the dish. The sensation of the Ikura popping in my mouth was similar to the feeling I get when I bite down on boba poppers, and I love boba poppers!Soba Crab Roll was the one dish that was just OK for us. It was more impressive visually than it was when we popped it into our mouths. There was nothing wrong with it, but it just didn't really excite us either.When my cup was empty I asked for more hot water, so our server refilled my cup. I was impressed when she came around later in the evening and refilled it again, without me having to ask this time. Many other restaurants will only refill if/when I ask, or else...they don't even refill at all.Service: ExcellentParking: Free parking on the streetLocation: 5205 Rumble St., Burnaby, BC
This was such a treat. Place is on Rumble st. Loads of street parking. Japanese Hawaiian Fusion done right!We were 7 people, each dish and over service was high value and flavor.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Free Run Mizore Chicken Karaage
Fresh ingredients and seasonal menu, what a beautiful place to enjoy the chef's creation. Do make reservations since this place is packed all the time.The omakase is the way to go, make sure to make your reservation early and enjoy the ride.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Sushi
Had omakase dinner. Yes.it was expensive but all omakases are expensive and they are actually less then most. The meal was super good! The dessert part was just so so.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Amazing fresh and seasonal ingredients. One of the best Japanese restaurants in the greater Vancouver area that is doing very interesting things with local ingredients.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5