Name: Dosanko
Price range: $$
Rating: 4.5

Dosanko

Japanese · Vancouver, BC · $$

CozyGreat for groups

It began with a single dish: nikujaga, a hearty stew comprised of meat, potatoes, and vegetables simmered in a sweetened soy sauce. Closely associated with Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost prefecture, and considered yōshoku, a “Japanized” interpretation of Western cooking, the meal was what Akiyo Tani first prepared chef Nathan Lowey when the couple met in Edmonton over 10 years ago. “Her food tasted like it was made by the Japanese grandmother I never had,” recalls Nathan. Delicious, comforting, and authentically Japanese—yet accessible for West Coast palates—the cuisine struck a chord with Nathan. The duo set out to share the food with the world. Dosanko, then, is both a reflection of the Loweys’ mixed-family traditions and an ode to Akiyo’s native Hokkaido. Pairing recipes passed down from Akiyo’s kin and Nathan’s formal culinary training and experience cooking in some of Canada’s most highly regarded restaurants, Dosanko serves a selection of home-style, seasonally inspired yōshoku and classic Hokkaido plates with an emphasis on fresh housemade ingredients and a mottainai or “no waste” philosophy. We employ organic, locally sourced, and non-GMO foods whenever possible, and are dedicated to purchasing whole products and using every part. Ingredients like miso, shoyu, and dashi are all crafted from scratch in-house, helping to impart an incredible depth and richness to our dishes. Situated in Vancouver’s historic Japantown, our cozy 45-seat dining room offers a gathering place for the city’s Japanese community, many of whom attend Canada’s oldest Japanese language school just blocks away. We chose the name “Dosanko” because it refers to a breed of horse that foraged the Hokkaido terrain when the Japanese settled on the island in the late 19th century. (The word is also a term of endearment for residents of the prefecture.) As foragers ourselves, we want to introduce Vancouverites to a new category of Japanese cuisine. Itadakimasu and we hope to see you soon!

What diners say

“The omurice and tonkatsu sandwich were absolutely delicious. We've never noticed this restaurant in the area but have since told all of our friends about it.”

5.0 · Google — Thanh To

“My partner and I tried this restaurant for the first time yesterday. We treated my aunt to some fun Japanese fusion. Our favourite dish was the beef katsu sandwich. Perfectly seasoned and melt-in-your-mouth. Not chewy at all. It brought us back to the train station in Japan. We even thought it was tastier than the wagyu sandwich we had then. Not pictured is the omurice with a side of beef stew. It was cooked perfectly and the rice was also very tasty, however I don’t know that it was worth the extra $6. If there was more meat it may have felt more worth it. We also had an order of karaage which was tasty but nothing special. The last two dishes we had were prosciutto with cured fruits and shiso leaf (I love shiso leaf) and the uni pasta which was on special. Everything was very tasty and well-balanced in flavour. We just felt the pricing was a bit high for what we received. The “cured pork” dish was exactly that, prosciutto on a plank. And the pasta featuring uni we felt could have been a bit more generous with the uni. Only a small portion on top did not fill our uni craving. The ikura was a nice touch for colour and pop of flavour but uni should have been the star. That being said, the service was amazing. All the servers greet you with a smile and are all very kind. They check on us often and were quick to bring us fresh water. The restaurant itself was clean and had a warm vibe. I liked all their little decorations and found it very thoughtful of them to have a little kids play area (not pictured). The food was VERY TASTY!! We just felt it was a bit high for what was advertised versus received. It’s unfortunate the neighbourhood the restaurant is located in. This likely affects the pricing of the menu as well as we all know rent is very high in Vancouver. They also offered a dine out menu which we did not try. Your choice of three dishes for $49. Thank you so much for your service and tasty food.”

4.0 · Google — melanie c

“Ordered take out of their Beef Belly Katsu and Pork Katsu sandwiches and they are just phenomenal. Their homemade milk bread is delicious and thin unlike banh mi so the filling shines through. You gotta eat here!🔥”

4.0 · Google — Chato Faliao

“So sad, I ordered delivery and would get the cheese onigri and omurice in the past and was always fantastic. First time ordering it since they reopened and the crispy onigiri was SOOOOO salty. I'm not even exaggerating how bad it was.. I even tried to defend it when my boyfriend ate it until I had a bite. Uber won't do anything about it either. So salty that our fingers were crusted with salt and even rubbing against the onigiri, so much salt fell off..”

3.0 · Google — Em Cee

“I ordered the omurice with hayashi sauce and the oyako sando. The sando was not bad. The bread seemed to be cooked in butter, which made it a bit richer and greasier than other sandos I’ve tried, but the fried chicken and egg salad filling was quite good. The main issue was the omurice. The omelette on top was very soft and the sauce was tasty, but the rice was extremely cold, and the dish was served less than five minutes after ordering, which made it seem like the rice had been prepared in advance. The rice was also extremely salty, so salty that it was difficult to finish. The cold temperature may have made the saltiness more noticeable. I had high expectations, so this was a bit disappointing overall.”

3.0 · Google — JW HAN