Mikado Sushi

Review

Mikado Sushi is inside Renhua Evening Market at No. 567 Renhua Road in Taichung's Dali District, near the Taichung Fiber Craft Museum and the Dali industrial zone, and is a budget sushi stall where nearby workers and residents pick up dinner. Supertaste has featured it in both a Dali food roundup and a nationwide piece on good-value seafood bowls, and a food blogger has written a full review, so it is well known around Dali.

There are about a hundred kinds of sushi to choose from, including flower sushi, nigiri, gunkan, sashimi and inari. Supertaste records two pieces of inari sushi at NT$40, recommending the sakura shrimp, double roe and tuna salad toppings, which are piled so high the rice barely shows. The mixed sashimi bowl is NT$100, with sashimi, sakura shrimp, wakame, egg ribbons and scallop skirt, while the NT$120 surf-and-turf bowl pairs kabayaki saury with smoked chicken that has a strong smoky aroma.

Fans praise the low prices and wide choice, saying the flower sushi pieces are big and the seared range is popular, and even the vegetarian sushi gets compliments. Critics include regulars who feel portions have shrunk in recent years, with only a few small slices on the sashimi bowl compared with before, and some advise that the pricier items are not always good value, so the signature budget picks are the safer bet.

Sources differ on hours: Supertaste says 11:30 a.m. until sold out, a blogger recorded closing at 7 p.m., and online maps show 6:30 p.m., so check before you go; it is closed on Mondays. Popular flavours may sell out by late afternoon, so come between noon and mid-afternoon for the best selection. Scooters can park at the entrance, and cars can use the free car park on the second floor of the evening market.

Good for anyone wanting a varied sushi spread for NT$100 to NT$200, or grabbing dinner while browsing the evening market. First-timers can pick a few pieces of sakura shrimp and double roe inari, then add a mixed sashimi bowl or the surf-and-turf bowl; for gatherings, consider the large round platter.