NewfouNd SuShi

http://newfoundsushi.com

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NewfouNd SuShiFresh sushi from the other “far-east”02

food & BeVeRAGe

NewfouNd SuShiFresh sushi from the other “far-east”

food & BeVeRAGe » Newfound Sushi4

5NoVeMBeR 2013 « The Canadian Business Journal

It is no stretch to associate fresh, delicious fish with Corner Brook, N.L. What comes less quickly to mind, when thinking of the eastern-most province, is sushi.

Kevin vincent is changing that. Vincent is the

owner and chief sushi-maker at Newfound Sushi,

the first and only sushi restaurant in western

Newfoundland.

food & BeVeRAGe » Newfound Sushi6

7NoVeMBeR 2013 « The Canadian Business Journal

Vincent first discovered his passion for sushi

while working on Vancouver island, where he

and his friends found themselves at his local

sushi restaurant three times a week, sitting at

the bar and watching the chefs’ mastery of the

trade, which he would later practise at home

and at sushi-making functions.

Vincent returned to his home province in 2001

for work in the outdoor and tourism industry, and

fed his appetite for sushi by making it at home,

then for family, then friends, then at parties, until he

realized he wasn’t alone in his love for sushi. it was

at a Christmas party in 2009 that Vincent’s love of

sushi turned into an entrepreneurial pursuit.

“Someone had given me some smoked trout

as a gift, and so i decided to return the favour

and make smoked trout sushi for the party,”

recalls Vincent. one of the fellow guests tried it,

and immediately contracted Vincent to making

sushi for his local Colemans grocery store.

“we realized after the first day when there was

a lineup of people waiting an hour and a half for

sushi in the grocery store that there was a demand,”

he says. Vincent worked full time for Colemans for

three more years, “honing my skills, building a mar-

ket and writing a business plan over two years” until

opening Newfound Sushi in March 14, 2012.

Award-winning Restaurantopened less than two years, Newfound Sushi

food & BeVeRAGe » Newfound Sushi8

has garnered national attention for its delicious,

quality food and the unique, with fish sourced

from local fisherman and the Newfoundland and

Labrador fishery wherever possible, guarantee-

ing the freshest north Atlantic cod, cold water

Atlantic shrimp, Atlantic Salmon, Snow Crab,

Mackerel, Capelin, and Smoked Arctic Char.

Newfound Sushi’s Twitter page keeps customers

a daily update on what is fresh that day. for instance,

on the day of writing, anyone fortunate enough to

be gracing the restaurant would be treated to the

Smokey dragon roll , featuring two tempura shrimp,

Avocado, cucumber, crab stick rolled up and topped

wild smoked Arctic Char from Labrador; the day

before it was fresh local halibut.

within its first year, Newfound Sushi was

recognized by vacay.com as one of the top 100

restaurants in the country, coming in at number 80

on the list. “opened in March 2012, this restaurant

in western Newfoundland is focused on providing

sushi sourced only from the province’s seafood

operations, including snow crab, cod, salmon and

Arctic char,” says the site. “it also offers teriyaki

options, grilled items, and bento box meals.”

Newfound Sushi was also recog-

nized as one of the Top 10 restaurants

in Newfoundland and Labrador by The

Telegram, the provincial newspaper.

“it’s nice to be able to provide fresh local sea-

food to people where you don’t have to ship it

all,” says Vincent. “whenever we can, the seafood

comes from local fisherman. our customers like

9NoVeMBeR 2013 « The Canadian Business Journal

that, and it is nice to provide it. My family is a fishing

family going back to 1760, and my uncle still fishers

crab lobster halibut. it’s nice to be somewhat in line

with that fishing industry.”

The restaurant’s atmosphere is welcoming,

with seating for 21 and a patio for 18. “Many of our

sushi rolls are named after local landmarks such as

the humber River Roll, Bay of islands Roll, Blow Me

down Roll, Snow west Roll, west Coast Roll, Atlantic

Roll and the dory Load of Sushi,” says Vincent.

As the only sushi restaurant outside of the

capital city of St. John’s, Newfound Sushi has filled

a niche for diversity in the local food and bever-

age industry, pleasing sushi fans new and old alike.

Newfound Sushi also offers the perfect gift for

sushi lovers with reloadable gift cards. Located

close to Corner Brook’s Marble Mountain Ski

Resort, and at the heart of the region’s population

of 60,000, Newfound Sushi is opening up the east

coast to the delights of sushi.

Next on the menu for Newfound Sushi

are plans for a higher end Japanese dining

experience in the same building as Newfound

Sushi. Vincent would also like to open up sev-

eral other locations across Newfoundland and

Labrador and create a franchise focusing on

Newfoundland Seafood, putting the Newfound

Sushi spin on the centuries old cuisine. CBJ

Photos by Paul Tizzard with Gonzo Photography

http://newfoundsushi.com/

AS SeeN iN The NoVeMBeR 2013 iSSue of The CANAdiAN BuSiNeSS JouRNAL

GEORGE MEDIANETWORK

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