Thanks to Ipanemagirl, I finally got to dine at Sumibiyaki Arashi.  Reservations are hard to come-by since Pete Ho's yakitori omakase spot has become a Vancouver favourite since it opened in February of 2025.  The place has already earned a Michelin-star and places #17 on Canada's 100 Best Restaurants.  Make no mistake, Pete Ho's lineage might be Taiwanese, but his training has been under 2 renowned Japanese chefs in Yoshiteru Ikegawa and Kentaro Nakahara.  His restaurant is compact with only 12 bar seats, where one can see him in action.  The omakase course costs $175.00 per person before drinks, add-ons, tax and tip. The meal began with an Oyster on the half-shell.  It wasn't explained what type of oyster it was, but from my best guess, it appeared to be a type of Pacific oyster, possibly a kushi?  It was briny and sweet with a clean finish.  There was some ponzu, different cuts of blue fin tuna from Nova Scotia and a dollop of caviar.  Really nice refreshing bite leading up to our first yakitori.  However, we were also presented with House-made Pickles consisting of turnip, stems and cucumber.  These were used as palate-cleansers between courses. Our first yakitori was the Dakimi Chicken Breast with wasabi.  Watching Chef Ho tend to the live flame was akin to attending the ballet where each movement and motion was deliberate in expertly preparing each skewer.  The doneness of the chicken was on point where it was plump and juicy while barely being cooked through.  Seasoning was evenly distributed and we didn't need to add anything else. From the chicken breast, we moved onto the Chicken Thigh that was coated in tare.  Due to the use of kishu binchōtan, the heat was extremely hot and smoky.  Hence, the chicken thigh, with more fat and the skin-on, was charred with crispy edges.  Textural contrast between those edges and the succulent chicken provided excellent mouth-feel.  Definitely got the smokiness as well as the sweetness from the tare. I was hoping to have some Chicken Hearts as part of the Omakase and my prayers were answered.  Sporting three gigantic hearts with one smaller one, the skewer was my favourite of the meal.  The hearts were evenly charred with smoky caramelization along with the slight saltiness of the seasoning.  Plump with a juicy interior, the hearts were perfectly grilled.  They rode that fine line between being cooked through and being undercooked.   Moving away from Yakitori for our next course, we were presented with a beautiful slice of A5 Waygu accompanied by a deep-fried quail's egg.  Without sounding too clichéd, the beef literally melted in our mouths.  It was buttery, silky and super soft.  This was marinated in yuzu kosho ponzu with scallions on top, that was it.  With a bit of crispiness, the quail's egg popped with a completely runny yolk.  After this sinful and rich piece of beef, we were present a Palate Cleanser where the juicy tomato really stood out. We moved right back into yakitori with the Lower Thigh (which really is the drumstick).  This was even juicier than the thigh and had a bit of the usual tendons found in it.  They were not noticeable though.  Once again, the skin was juicy and flavourful and not flabby.  Smokiness was at the forefront as well with the scallions providing brightness and really went well with the meat. From here, we had an interlude of sorts with the 6-hour Chicken Paitan Broth that made use of the all the chicken carcasses after they broke down the meat.  This was highly-concentrated with intense sweetness and umami.  It was also silky with a slightly viscous consistency from the collagen.  This was simply seasoned with some salt and a touch of pepper.  Really clean and delicious. Our next course didn't even involve meat in the Crispy Tofu.  This was firmly crispy, yet gave way to airiness and fluffy tofu.  Really nice textural contrast.  There was the sweetness of nikiri soy as well which was balance off by the brightness of the Tokyo negi, daikon sprouts, myoga, and shiso on top.  Right after, we were served Shishito Peppers that were salted and blistered.  They were tender with just a touch of crispiness in spots on the outside.  Smoky of course with natural sweetness and a touch of bitterness.  No hot peppers this time around! Continuing on, we had the Chawanmushi with mushrooms.  It also appeared to be crab tomalley on top (?) which added some more creaminess and depth.  The mushroom really came through while there was a noted smokiness.  It was sweet as well with a bright and clean finish.  The egg custard was silky and smooth with very little residual moisture left.  Really good version. Back to the skewers, we had the beautiful Duck Breast.  Trying not to repeat myself, but really, the duck was prepared expertly where it was cooked to medium being succulent and juicy.  The seasoning was just right where the nikiri soy added just enough savoury sweetness to amp up the umami of the meat.  Skin rendered enough that it wasn't overly flabby. I knew we would get to the Tsukune eventually and it did not disappoint.  Wrapping around the whole skewer, the chicken meatball was juicy and moist with a delicate bounce texture.  Of course there was smokiness to go with the ever-so-light crispy exterior from the grill.  It sat atop egg yolk and tare which only added to the meatball with silkiness and sweetness. Finishing with one more yakitori, we had the Wing & Drummette.  As expected, this was also succulent and juicy.  For the flats, the meat was silky while the skin was crisped up and well seasoned.  For the drummette portion, the meat was predictably firmer, but it was still plenty plump and moist.  For this one, I added the tableside numbing spice and it was a nice compliment to the natural sweetness of the chicken and the smokiness from the grill. Our last item before dessert was the Nyumen Somen in chicken broth and charcoal oil with some ground chicken on the side.  Really nice finish to the savoury portion of the Omakase.  The soup was clean and sweet with rich smokiness.  I added the chicken to the broth and it provided a certain deep in terms of flavour and texture.  The noodles were slippery and still had a chew. Onto dessert, we were presented with a slice of Melon as well as the Pineapple & Passionfruit Sorbet with poached pineapple.  The melon was supremely ripe being soft and sweet.  As for the sorbet, it was a bit chunky, yet still easy to eat.  The sweetness was measured while the sweetness of the pineapple on top was a treat.  Overall, this was a fantastic meal with expert execution of the skewers and the rest of the dishes.  Really worth the money and deserving of all the accolades. The Good: - Expertly-prepared - Flavours were impactful - Excellent service The Bad: - Sometimes, there was limited descriptions of each item

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download 37:37 – A feedback episode, reading comments about the show from Adam, Alistair, and Abdullah. Discussing my favourite personal shows that are still going (Into Your Head, The Overnightscape Underground), task management (Getting Things Done™, the spark to get something started), 1980s British retrocomputers (Spectrums, Amstrads, Orics, and Acorns), coffee (my own snobbery, instant coffee, how supermarkets sell it), and what constitutes a mathematics coprocessor! Recorded late September 2026. Recorded in Sydney, Australia. Licence for this track: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0. Attribution: Ruben Schade. Released October 2026 on The Overnightscape Underground, an Internet talk radio channel focusing on a freeform monologue style, with diverse and fascinating hosts; this one notwithstanding. Hosted graciously by the Internet Archive. Subscribe with iTunes, Pocket Casts, Overcast or add this feed to your podcast client. By Ruben Schade in Sydney, 2026-10-01.

The third cohort of Foundations of Dyadic Unfolding begins October 8.