Nori Japanese Restaurant in Nanaimo

Hands down one of my favorite experiences while visiting the island! The chef at the bar and staff were extremely friendly. Service-top notch. Food- incredible. Presentation-D.A.M. good! 👌🏼If we lived here, we would be regulars.Thank you Nori Team!

We tried the UK Fish&Chips, 911, and Island Fever - all of which were delicious. Service was fast and friendly and our drinks (water and tearemained full throughout our lunch without having to ask. Great experience.

The sushi has nice presentation and flavour, they didnt add too much rice which is good and they have some creative and special rolls.

had to try this place after seeing the reviews. place was so popular i couldn’t get a same day reservation! take out tasted great. flavours really melt on your tongue

Amazing sushi, amazing service , def will be coming back when I head back to the island , a birthday that was well spent

I am local and come here fairly often but last night I brought some family members visiting the island and the entire Nori team was a step above their usual 5 stars! My 11yr nephew’s first Japanese cuisine experience was a memorable one, my dad was thrilled with the flaming presentation of the steak and while the restaurant was busy as usual, the staff got our party of 5 seated in record time, service was amazing and we felt so well taken cared of. Everything we ordered was perfect. One of the best restaurant experiences my family has ever had and on the final night of our guests visit, could not have been any better. Thank you Nori, you made our family dinner one we will never forget.

Some of the best Japanese food Ive ever had! Well worth the trip up from Victoria the A4 wagyu beef Ramen was amazing. They also have real wasabi!

Food was excellent as ever. The best Japanese restaurant on the island. The rolls are fresh, tight and tasty. The only issue was with the takeout procedure. The bag was stapled shut so I didnt realize I didnt have napkins, soy or chop sticks. When visiting out of town for business I dont usually carry those items with me.Other than that it was great!

Food was excellent. Service was great. They recommended us some rolls and it was great. A bit pricy but it was quality sushi from beginning to end. Some rolls tasted normal but that was just personal preference. It was my daughters bday and they gave her a free slice of yummy matcha cheese cake and sang her a song. Bill came out to be $201 but worth it in my opinion. Make sure you book in advance. It’s busy here for obvious reasons. Will come back.

Lives up to its name! The sushi did not disappoint. Considerable size of fish in each sushi roll and sashimi. The number of choices are amazing. We tried the so many different sushi and they were all amazing. Highly recommend. Get the mango roll if you are a mango fan. So delicious!

Excellent food, large portions and great presentation. I really enjoyed my time here, even if the restaurant was loud and busy. The food it so good, and catered to my groups needs very well. Thank you so much for the great food and customer service!

Been here twice and both times, were good! Reservations recommended on weekends!

Best Japanese Ive ever had. Delicious fresh food, knowledgeable server, passionate chef, beautiful presentation.The only way I could possibly think of improving my experience is with the addition of Japanese bidet toilets, but I understand that many people wouldnt agree with me!

One of the best Japanese restaurants outside of Japan out there! The sushi’s were delicious with beautiful plating! Very creative and original, yet super tasty food! The service was also excellent, super friendly and helpful staff, offering us great recommendations since it was our first time visiting the area! We didn’t get to sit at the bar, but we saw the chef interacting a lot with the customers and he was super welcoming and we loved his energy! The vibe in the restaurant is definitely pleasant, having a chill casual environment while enjoying delicious fine Japanese sushi and seafood! If you are in Nanaimo, definitely give this place a try!

Pretty hectic place. But at the end of the day the food is really good. My favorite is the tropical one. Really good. Tried this dessert for the first time. Deep fried ice cream. Would 1000% recommend. Staff are very nice at least the ones I encountered. Great place be sure to make a reservation before the day you want to go to ensure you will be able to eat there!

Pros:1. Quality and presentation are high-quality. 2. Amazingly affordable price (especially comparing to mainland BC3. Staffs are friendly as hell.Cons: 1. Theres a chance that you might have to wait, so reserved a table if you can.My recommendation: tako wasabi, tropical salad, Sake Kama, island fever roll.

Rolls are super tasty, we tried Island fever, Dino (our fav), red dragon, and dam good. Reasonably priced and packed with fish!

100% recommend! Staff was awesome. Food was to die for! Everything was just so good. We had hella leftovers and even after sitting in the fridge, it was really yummy still the next morning 🤣.

Amazing place to come if you love sushi! Youll need a reservation tho because it is packed from the minute it opens any day of the week. Staff are plentiful and check on you often. The food comes out quick even when they are busy! Their menu is full of original items - all of them tasty!!! If youve never had Aburi Oshi then you have to try it here. If you just cant decide what to order - they offer the Chefs Choice Omakase - where youll get to try what ever the chef picks - normally the freshest of whats on hand! Their special rolls are white different than what Ive seen elsewhere too - the Strawberry crunch roll was my favorite!!! Best sushi in Nanaimo! We come down from Parksville just to grab sushi here.

Loved it here definitely my favourite Japanese restaurant! Food was amazing and aesthetically pleasing, amazing staff and good vibes! Reylen was the best! 10/10 ❤️

Best Japanese restaurant ever had! We live in Victoria and came all the way to nanaimo for Nori. Indeed not disappointed. 100% recommend! Staffs are super friendly and chefs are very knowledgeable. A very nice atmosphere there and we loved it!

Had take out here . Presentation is great , and each sushi is unique and full of flavour. I would recommend choosing wild salmon.

We had a dinner for 9 people. The foods including the island fever roll, strawberry crunch roll, dancing scallop roll, karai chirashi don, udon…..were delicious and in generous portions. Servers were very friendly too. We hope to come back soon!

Great food and great service. Very busy, expect wait time if don’t have reservation.

One of the best sushi I have tried, as vegetarian, there are counted options or most of the time is the same…But here, is not just the good service, is also the details, the presentation of the food is glamorous, the combination of the flavours 🤍🤍If you are a sea food lover… there plenty of optionsLoved it!! 🍣

The service was fine. It was quite busy. We found the sushi quite mediocre, and very expensive as well. Maybe it is just what we ordered? The roll we got was very yummy: super saucy if you’re into that. We actually really did not like the uni, and would not recommend.

Fantastic Japanese restaurant in Nanaimo. We had lunch teishoku specials and all were good; however, my unagi portion was smaller than expected, even though waitress said it was a good-sized portion, i.e. wouldn’t order again due to size. We watched the kitchen prepare some beautifully plated lunch and sushi/sashimi specials. Will definitely return!

Amazing food! Honestly Nanaimo is not where I would go for a culinary experiencebut Nori is a welcomed exception. Tucked in an unassuming strip mall the food is next level. Fast professional service and the best Japanese fusion Ive ever had. You have to go here if you are in Nanaimo.

Weve been here several times and have had consistently delicious food and great service--I love that theres always someone coming around to refill the tea, its my favorite! Really yummy and fresh sushi, definitely our go to spot!

Oh man, theres just too many great things to say about this place. The Head Chef John is the most welcoming person, treating everyone like an old friend. Their servers are friendly, attentive and professional.I have come here so many times and have never been disappointed by their unmatched quality and attention to detail.I highly recommend trying the Omakase menus, as there are items that are not on the regular menu that you get presented with, and a brief explanation with each dish.My personal favorite is their Kaisendon, as I love sashimi. My girlfriend loves their ramen, which is hard to find in high quality on the island.On the Omakase B menu, we were served a Hamachi Crudo with Yuzu Tobiko and that stuff was ADDICTING. 🤤Anyways, this isnt all the nice things I want to say but people probably would have stopped reading by now 😅

I heard here’s one of the best sushi in Nanaimo. It’s indeed not bad. Love the sashimi and lobster roll. Very nice service. But kinda disappointed in Uni Aburi lol, taste so weird.

Top notch Sushi. One of the best one the island. The other one is in Victoria. Highly recommend. Near Costco.Pro tip: strawberry 🍓 roles!!! Nuff said.

Honestly it was great, good food. We got the omakase (the $50/pp one), and were full. However it sounds like it’s just a standard set menu and does not change with the chef’s perspective. The food was good, but it didn’t really scratch that “sushi” itch we had, which we thought would be moreso on the omakase menu. We got a sake flight which was great. The servers were absolutely slammed so things were slow. I still recommend this place but more as a once in a while treat vs a regular sushi joint.

Amazing service! All the waitresses were so welcoming and attentive. The Aburi sushi and the Lobster Tail Miso was super delicious! 10/10!

Very impressive menu. We had the omakase and were very satisfied. I recommend the fruity sake flight if you enjoy sweet beverages.

Amazingly fresh food! Got the chefs choice sashimi set - B (for 2-3 peopleand Island fever roll takeout. Total was $75 shared between two people. The amount of food is more than enough for two. Very fresh sashimi and delicious food!

Some of the best food Ive ever had in my life and their Towkyo Mule is amazing! Also recommend getting the BBQ Tuna. The only downside is that it was extremely difficult to make a reservation because they do not pick up their phone. Otherwise the servers were timely, knowledgable, and very friendly!

I have seen so many Instagram posts about this place and we decided to try it when we were in the area. We were lucky enough to get there as soon as they opened for dinner service to get a table. I love that they have real crab and wild salmon on the menu and decided to order items that featured these. We were blown away by how amazing everything tasted and made sure to visit this restaurant a second time to sample now of their food.The prices are reasonable considering what youre getting and The presentation for the dishes was top notch. I highly recommend anyone to visit this restaurant. I took so many pictures of their food and would go back in a heartbeat. Everything was fresh and delicious.

The sushi rolls were some of the best I’ve had in Canada. Prices were very reasonable and the quality was outstanding. We unfortunately didn’t book early enough to dine in, so we had to settle for takeout. If you are interested in dine in be sure to reserve early!

Nori was a pleasant surprise in Nanaimo. We initially hadnt intended to visit but got lucky with a walk-in! The food was stellar; it was delightful and beautifully presented. They had a large menu to navigate but the servers were helpful and always tended to our needs. For a group of five, we ordered a sushi moriawase, a couple shareable rolls, and our individual items and it worked out fantastically. The price was also reasonable for a party of five! If Im ever back in Nanaimo, you can sure bet that Im visiting Nori!

True story: Two months ago, my sweetheart showed me Instagram photos from my cousins food posts (I dont use that platform but my boyfriend and my cousins dowhen she came up island with her fiance. Since then, he is sold on making a trip with me to check it out.It was well worth the 2 hour drive in each direction for the meal. You definitely get what you pay for the value in taste & sizing portion. The server for our table and the rest of the restaurant staff were extremely attentive, making frequent refill and quality checks. For a place that claims best sushi in Nanaimo, it is definitely on par to knock out most joints in Victoria and Vancouver.There are plenty appealing items to choose from but with such a large menu variety & selection, its not possible for me in this review to discern and single out one entree to call my favorite on an initial visit. My usual top favorite list of restaurants will leave me with a positive impression of guaranteed return, but Nori had me walking out the door with a decided pre-planned order of different dishes to try for subsequent visits. 😋

My first time here. Not what I expected at all. Super busy place but very calm friendly staff that had everything under control despite the onslaught of hungry sushi customers. The busiest sushi restaurant I’ve been to in years. Food is excellent. I wish I could have tried the entire menu but will dabble more the next time I’m on the island. When traveling I visit as many sushi restaurants as possible. This was the last of four in three days while on the coast. Nori was easily the best and we just ate at the Miku in Vancouver the night before as reference.

Great food and wonderful service. Sashimi was fresh and beautifully presented. Our tea cups were constantly filled. They were really accommodating when we let them know on a busy night that we had to catch the last ferry back to Vancouver and only had an hour to finish our meal. Wish we had more time to savour our food but well definitely be back next time were in Nanaimo.

My wife and I visited Nori twice during our stay in Nanaimo. The menu has quite a few options that are more dressed up than traditional sushi rolls and nigiri. It was nice to see some Korean rice bowls as an option. We sat at the bar and watched as the chefs prepared many rolls and dishes. Philip was welcoming and helpful in making decisions on what to order. The waitresses were great at keeping our cups full of hot tea. We will be back next time we visit Nanaimo!

Place is vibin. Resos are recommended. Food is good and prices are in line with other similar joints. Everything we ordered was good except for the oyster motoyokai. For $7 I was expecting a whole oyster instead of chopped up bits of oyster. Would definitely come back to try other items on their menu.

We had a great experience here. This was recommended as a must-go and it didn’t disappoint! We had the Omakase and a handful of individual pieces along with a flight of fruit sake. It’s a very unique take on some more traditional dishes, the sauces were very good and fish was high quality. Given the heat wave currently they don’t have oysters available due to bacteria levels in the water. Good service, they checked on us often.

Fantastic food! Everything tasted great, service was friendly, and ordering online was a breeze. The quality ingredients and delicious flavours are well worth the slightly higher price tag. Great option for a special or celebratory meal, or just for high quality eats. 10/10

This place is highly recommended for anyone visiting/living in the Vancouver island. Awesome experience. The food and the vibe really lifts up ones mood. The sushi/sashimi served here are made from very fresh fish and have a touch of fusion which only elevates the experience. We tried the four course menu (appetizer, sashimi, and a main of bbq tuna (the chef comes to your table and bbqs the tuna on a hot plate), which was way more worth than its price. Recommended to have a reservation.

It’s the best sushi place that I have been in town. Super friendly staffs. Great atmosphere. The food is amazing. I love the salmon sashimi 💚If anyone wanna try great Japanese cuisine, I would highly recommend Nori❣️

Ordered for take out through their online system. It was simple, pick up was quick and well coordinated at the requested time. The food was great! The portion sizes were perfect, the flavours and presentation were better than expected. The prices were a bit more than average but the food was worth it. Will be returning.