Sushi Bar Ren

I avoided Sushi Bar Ren for a number of years, despite it’s location which is conveniently close to me. After one visit recently, I realized I wasn’t missing anything, and wouldn’t return. Although their website says they are located in Signal Hill, they’re actually in the Richmond Plaza shopping centre near Canadian Tire and the Gym.

Conveyor belt sushi & service

Sushi Bar Ren interior

In Sushi Bar Ren, sushi is delivered by train to stools around one of two counters. (While we were there only one was running, but there are two set up for when it’s busy.) The novelty of conveyor belt sushi has worn off for me, though it’s sure to amuse those who haven’t tried it before. However, there are many other places in and near Calgary that keep the novelty without sacrificing service or taste. Conveyor belt sushi is certainly less formal than table service, but I still anticipate a friendly hostess who keeps an eye on my drinks (and refills as needed), offers to explain the ordering system if needed, offers to take any orders of items not on the train, and pays attention to completion to bring the bill. Unfortunately, the hostess/waitress was not able to accomplish these tasks swiftly and without prompting. I suppose they rely on a black dry erase board behind the chef to communicate the ordering system with customers, rather than the personal touch.

I also like to think of sushi chefs as half chef, and half entertainer/host. Perhaps this isn’t why all chefs took up their trade, but I think that when you stand in the middle of the room crafting your dishes, you should come to the job with a smile and a desire to see your customers happy. Perhaps it was a bad day, but the chef seemed grumpy and unhelpful. After letting him know that we wanted to order a few things that weren’t on the train after he was done preparing a take-out order, he walked away into the back of the kitchen. I presume he had things he needed to do, but it would have at least been nice to give us a “be right back” nod or something. My companion assumed he was ignoring us and was done his shift or was taking a smoke break… When he returned and took our order, he didn’t give us everything we’d asked for, but with such an unapproachable demeanor, I wasn’t terribly interested in giving it another go.