{"id":21342,"date":"2025-08-20T16:16:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-20T23:16:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/?p=21342"},"modified":"2025-08-22T18:19:08","modified_gmt":"2025-08-23T01:19:08","slug":"revisiting-artisan-sake-maker-on-granville-island-new-tasting-room-and-izakaya-bites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/revisiting-artisan-sake-maker-on-granville-island-new-tasting-room-and-izakaya-bites\/","title":{"rendered":"Revisiting Artisan Sake Maker on Granville Island: New Tasting Room and Izakaya Bites"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Last Thursday, I returned to Artisan Sake Maker<\/strong> on Granville Island \u2014 a place I\u2019ve visited before for their sake ice cream and locally brewed sake. This time, I was excited to check out their new sake tasting room<\/strong> and izakaya-inspired menu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many locals know that their sake is brewed right here in Vancouver, but fewer realize some of the rice for brewing sake comes from BC\u2019s Fraser Valley<\/strong>, home to the northernmost rice cultivation in the world<\/strong>. Combined with Vancouver\u2019s naturally soft water, this local rice produces sake that is rather light and sweet compared to many Japanese varieties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Owner Masa<\/strong> greeted us warmly, and we happened to run into Akkiko<\/strong>, the owner of vegan sushi restaurant COFU<\/strong>, picking up some sake for her restaurant with locations near Granville Island and in Chinatown. Artisan Sake Maker\u2019s products are featured in many Japanese restaurants around town, and their sake kasu<\/strong> (fermented rice lees) is also used as a pickling ingredient or seasoning by many chefs in the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Bright New Tasting Room<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The new tasting room is bright and elegant, anchored by a large central island that can seat over ten guests. A unique feature of the island is its glass tabletop, under which sits premium Koshihikari rice<\/strong>, giving the table a special, original touch. Soft lighting highlights the design, creating a welcoming atmosphere for enjoying sake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Sake Flights <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Artisan Sake Maker offers three main tasting flights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Traditional sake<\/strong> or sparkling sake<\/strong> series \u2014 $15 for three samples<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Imported Japanese sake<\/strong> (curated by Masa) \u2014 $20 for three samples<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is hard not to try everything<\/em>! Each flight is only the price of a glass of wine or sake at most restaurants – such a deal. A knowledgeable sake specialist usually attends the tasting and explains each sake\u2019s flavour notes and ideal food pairings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Tapas-Style Menu<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The kitchen team has crafted a tapas-inspired menu<\/strong> to complement the sake menu and the flights. We tried:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Shishito Peppers<\/strong> \u2013 lightly blistered, mildly spicy, perfect for opening your palate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Octopus Carpaccio<\/strong> \u2013 fresh, tender, and topped with delicate herbs and a touch of citrus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both pair well with the red-label <\/em>Osake Junmai Nama<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next was pan-seared chicken<\/strong> \u2014 a clever alternative since deep-frying isn\u2019t allowed in the building. Surprisingly juicy, it paired nicely with the blue-label Osake Junmai Nama Nigori<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We also sampled:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Wagyu Taco<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Prawn Taco<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Unagi Cabbage Roll<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The prawn taco stood out for its rich flavor and texture, while the wagyu and unagi paired perfectly with the bold, black-label Osake Junmai Nama Genshu<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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top-left clockwise: pan-fried chicken, shishito peppers, unagi cabbage roll, new tasting room, wagyu taco, prawn taco<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Bottles to Take Home<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We had to head to a Singaporean-Malaysian dinner afterward, so we couldn\u2019t try the full menu, but it\u2019s worth noting that locally brewed sakes range from $20\u2013$40 per bottle<\/strong>, more affordable than many imports. Half-bottle (375 ml) options are available for tasting, and imported sakes are available in 1.5 L bottles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Final Thoughts:<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Returning to Artisan Sake Maker was a treat. Between the new tasting room, the thoughtfully paired tapas menu, and sake made from locally sourced rice, it\u2019s a spot worth revisiting \u2014 whether you\u2019re a longtime sake lover or just curious to explore something uniquely Vancouver.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last Thursday, I returned to Artisan Sake Maker on Granville Island \u2014 a place I\u2019ve visited before for their sake ice cream and locally brewed sake. This time, I was excited to check out their new sake tasting room and izakaya-inspired menu. Many locals know that their sake is brewed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21343,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[287,54,667,187,489],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_6130.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21342"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21342"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21342\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21359,"href":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21342\/revisions\/21359"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21343"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21342"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21342"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21342"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}