The Room
Shokunin opened in 2016 on 4th Street SW in Mission. Darren MacLean to Final Table finalist on Netflix, ex-Hawksworth, ex-Notable. Runs the kitchen as a yakitori-and-robata project with in-farm sourcing (MacLean operates his own produce farm outside Calgary) and a serious sake programme. The dining room is small (45 seats) with a chef's counter facing the open robata.
Service is small-team and counter-warm. MacLean is in the kitchen every service.
The Food
The yakitori programme is the kitchen's most-photographed work. The negima, the tsukune, the chicken liver. Alongside a serious robata-grilled meat programme and a small sushi side. The sake list is one of the deepest in Western Canada.
Best Occasion Fit
First Date: Shokunin's small dining room is the Mission first-date for the diner who wants the night to register as yakitori-knowledgeable.
Solo Dining: The chef's counter at Shokunin is one of Calgary's best solo dining seats. Order the chef's choice.
Birthday: Birthdays at Shokunin are warm-and-low-lit. The robata fire is the visual focus.