Posts Tagged ‘ Japanese ’

Ikko

I want to start off by saying, “make reservations”, but if you don’t, fear n the wait for the sushi bar is still worth it. The entire restaurant is tiny. However, their smallness really help project an intimate environment, while their chef to patron ratio made it feel like we had his undivided attention. Furthermore, one of the refreshing things about Ikko is that when we ask the chef for omakase, he asked us how much we wanted to spend. I really liked this because we could enjoy our meal without having to worry about getting carried away and having our bill to balloon on us.

Now, when the chef brought out our first dish, crab meat soup and a potato chip topped wasabi mousse, I knew right away that this would be an interesting and fun night. The chef kept churning out one elegant dish after another. He took every measure to make sure each dish look as amazing as it tasted. After the third dish, it started to feel like I was a judge on the Iron Chef show. Another pleasant highlight of the night was the large cup of cool, smooth saké served in a wooden box.

Every dish was simply amazing. For the most part, every dish was an original new dish I never had before. We went to Ikko expecting just nigiri sushi, but ended up with a lot more. It would be impossible to name my favorite dish of the night, but some of the top plates were the Pork Chashu Arugula Salad, Baby Lobster, Beef Tongue with Foie gras, and seared Toro. I seriously think our chef could be a contender on the Iron Chef. So even though Ikko is a little bit pricier than we were use to, it was definitely worth every penny.

I am definitely looking forward to revisiting them soon.

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2011
05/15
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Kitayama – Sushi

The last time I was at Kitayama, I didn’t get to dine at the sushi bar, so I was really looking forward to my next visit there. Prior to returning there, I have heard a lot about their sushi chef Yama-san, short of Yamazuki, and on more than one count was referred as one of the best in California. Therefore, I wasn’t a bit least surprises to find out that it would be a 30 minute wait to sit with him at the sushi bar. However, with a fully stock bar and a knowledgeable bartender, those 30 minutes went by quick and soon enough, I was sitting down with Yama-san.

Yama-san style is best described as creative without straying far from the fundamentals. A lot of the dishes that he brought out look really familiar to us, but they all had a unique yet subtle twist to them. The best example of this would be the seared toro draped with seared uni. Another memorable dish was the toro hand roll, which was savory to the very last bite. The wrap up our dinner, the sushi chef present us with a completely new and original dish which appeared to be minced uni wrapped in seaweed and lightly deep fried. The individual pieces look like black wantons, but the taste and texture is simply indescribable. Without a doubt, it was amazing and completed made our wait worth it. And of course, we ended our night with the black sesame crème brûlée again.

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2011
05/06
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Sagami-Tei

I had teppan a few times before. One of the most memorable experiences was when we ate at Kobe Japanese Steak House in Hawaii. So it was only natural that I was cravings teppan after I had nogastic feelings of Hawaii. I’ve driven by Sagami-Tei several times before, but never ventured inside before. However, since I was reminiscing about teppan, I figured I should give Sagami-Tei a try and see if it would satisfy my cravings.

Well, I regretted that decision the moment I walked in. I know they say, you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but it was almost unbearable. Their only décor was a string of cheap paper lanterns in assorted colors and two TVs tuned to ESPN.  The lighting was uneven throughout the restaurant, but no matter how dimly lighted it was, you still could see yourself surrounded by grease and grime.

Since ambience was out the door, I was really hoping the food and chef would be spectacular since at this point it was going to require something short of a miracle for us to ever come back. Sadly, it wasn’t a surprise that Sagami-Tei left me feeling disappointed in both categories. Not only was the food subpar, the chef was extremely obnoxious, killing what little appetite I had left. His rude and crude jokes made us and the rest of the guest at the counter feeling awkward and speechless. We heard bad and inappropriate jokes before, but the chef was just relentless.

This place was one of the worst experiences we had to this day. We left feeling like we should have stayed home and ate cup noodles instead.

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2011
05/01
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Shin-Sen-Gumi Hakata Ramen

Shin-Sen-Gumi has been around for some time now, but in recent years, they have been allowing customers to customize every aspects of their ramen noodle soup. Want more toppings? Done. Want your noodles harder rather than soft? Done. Want more or less of anything? Consider it done. Every customer gets a small sheet to fill out as to how they want their ramen prepared. This allows everyone to try a new combination each time they come back in.

Furthermore, if you find a combination that you like, you can always get a second helping of noodles for $0.99. Also, everyone knows that the core essential of any good ramen is the broth, which is where Shen-Sen-Gumi has always been able to deliver well and consistently. Their broth is well balance each time regardless what kind of toppings you’ve decided to add. That’s probably one of the reasons I always go back to Shen-Sen-Gumi when I’m in the area. As a cautionary warning, don’t go overboard with the toppings since it will add up and easily double your bill.

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2011
04/24
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Anjin

The first time my friends told me about Anjin, I thought it was going to be another Korean BBQ but with a little Japanese spin to it. Up until that point, my only experience with BBQ involved either ribs and a bib or an all you can eat buffet. Both were usually good and fulfilling, but always left you feeling greasy and dirty. I remember the first time I walked into Anjin, I scoffed that they weren’t an all you can eat buffet. I had the notion that I would be throwing away my money without feeling full when I leave. All of that changed as soon I had my first bite. It was obvious the cuts of beef were beyond superior to any of the buffet style restaurant I previous dined at. It was a glorious feeling to have the slices of grilled meat melts in your mouth instead of having to chew it endlessly.

Anjn definitely raised the bar for me when it comes to grilled meat. Comparing Anjin to Korean BBQ is like comparing apples to oranges. They shouldn’t have any trouble satisfying any hungry patron.

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2011
04/21
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Kaisen Kaiten

Kaisen Kaiten has always been my long time favorite spot to get a quick fix of cheap and delicious sushi.  One of the novel things to point out about Kaisen is that they have a revolving sushi bar, which is great for those who are on time crunch and just want to sit down and grab a quick bite off the conveyor belt. For people who can spare the extra time, they can place the order down on the conveyor belt and the sushi chef can assemble them a fresh dish. While they may not be the best sushi joint in town, they are definitely better than a lot of the other “to-go” sushi places in the area and by far the best rotating sushi bar in Orange County. It is what it is, bang for bucks sushi.

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2011
04/15
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Murasaki

A few of my friends had some positive feedback for Murasaki, so I decided I should give it a try to see how it was for myself. It wasn’t hard to tell that Murasaki had all of the makings a of great sushi restaurant. The venue itself had an upscale appeal to it but without losing the small quaint restaurant feel. The staff was polite and the chefs were all knowledgeable. So when I found out that their sushi bar was reserve strictly for omakase, I was quite happy and optimistic.

However, even though all of their cuts were high quality, it felt like something was missing. I don’t know what it was exactly, but there was definitely a missing element that kept this great restaurant from being a really fantastic one. We even exhausted the menu trying to find that one dish that could have added the “wow” factor, but we gave up after our chef ran out of ideas.

By no means does this make the restaurant anything less than great. The steep bill was a little bit more than what we were accustom to, but that was only because we went through over 15 some odd items. Plus the quality and taste of each fish was more than enough to justify the cost. I only wish it was a more memorable first impression.

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2011
04/08
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Kitayama

We eaten at Kitayama on several different occasions, but never had the chance to indulge ourselves there enough to truly explore their menu. However, opportunity presented itself under the guise of a “celebration”. So since we were celebrating, my significant other went wild and ordered every other item from the menu.

It was quite a feast! We were in their tatami room thinking that the extra room would make it easier to maneuver around all of the dishes, but it wasn’t long before the large table started to become full. We were dining with some friends who never been to Kitayama before, so we ordered the Shabu Shabu Course on top of all of the other dishes. It’s always a safe bet for first timers. But the highlight of the night was the Shishito Peppers, Lobster Egg Custer, and Black Cod Teriyaki. We actually ordered the Shishito Pepers by mistake, but we were happy that we did. The peppers were sautéed and garnished with Katsuobushi and only produced a mild heat, so it was easy for everyone to eat. The Lobster Egg Custard was out of this world or at least for us anyways. Everything from taste to texture was new and different to us. There were even bits of uni inside of the custard. Then there was the Black Cod Teriyaki that I admire for its simplicity but exquisite taste. To wrap up the night, we tried the Black Sesame Crème Brule which was full flavor without being overly sweet.

We opted out of the sushi bar since our guests were a little skittish when it comes to sushi. With that said, all of their menu items were amazing, none of which failed to satisfy all of our friends. Furthermore, one of the most fascinating things about Kitayama is their ability to present their some of their most exotic dishes in a way where it still seems appealing to the most squeamish eaters. Our entire experience at Kitayama was so wonderful, that we are just intrigue to see what their sushi bar has to offer, but that will have to wait for another time.

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2011
04/04
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Shimura

Shimura is literally a hidden gem in Fountain Valley. You wouldn’t be able to tell that it was a Japanese sushi restaurant from the outside, but once inside, it apparent that Shimura didn’t have a hard time attracting customers. There was a unique vibe inside of Shimura, where it felt as if everyone seems to know each other, which made us believe that most of them were locals who regularly dine there.

We were lucky to get a seat at the sushi bar after a short wait and as always, we ordered our usual, masago and uni, before asking the chef for omakase. To our delight, nearly half the dishes they brought out were new to us. Most memorable was the deep fried lotus root and octopus. Everything was amazingly fresh. Even the sweet shrimp was still alive and moving before it was prepared for us.

Unfortunately, they were out of Sculpin, which was one of the main reasons we went there. From what they told us, it was a seasonal fish and summer was a better time to come back and try it. Overall, everything else was fresh and delightful but at the same time it was quite affordable. However, I didn’t get to try the Sculpin or any other their other live dishes, so it wouldn’t be fair to give Shimura a final verdict until revisiting them again in the summer.

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2011
03/19
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Zipangu

Zipangu is by far one of the most interesting places I dine at, but it also left me with a lot of mix feelings about the overall experience there. Upon walking in, the décor gave off a vibe that made us feel like we were at a fancy lounge instead of a Japanese restaurant. The sushi bar was in the corner of the restaurant and seems to be smaller than their drink bar. But behind the sushi bar was a familiar face of a sushi chef from Kitayama. We had a pleasure of dining with him before, a few months ago, while he was still at Kitayama. Since then, he informed us that he left his old post seeking growth but pointed out that the majority of the patrons at Zipangu only orders maki, or cut rolls, that is offended handle by his assistants in the back.

Our sushi chef was quite eager when we started to order nigiri. While the Toro and Amberjack that they had was good, we were disappointed to find out that they were out of Uni and only had enough sweet shrimp for one order. One of the shortcoming of specialized in cut rolls, is that they don’t stock up on other items that aren’t commonly ordered. So to compensate, we ordered a few tapas items and a few items off their robata grill menu. The chef was even nice enough to bring out a few off menu items such as his special baked crab cake and it was delicious. The baked crab cake was the best thing we had all night.  If we known about it sooner, we would just skipped all of the other fillers and gone straight for the crab cake. It was just that good. To end the night, he suggested the Green Tea Panna Cotta, which was the perfect follow up to the crab cake.

The overall experience was a positive one. Although, it did feel a bit strange to be only ones sitting at the sushi bar while everyone else flocked to the tables and lounge chairs. The tapas and grilled items were passing at best, but a bit overpriced. However, anything the sushi chef brought out was great, especially the baked crab cake. Zipangu definitely has a lot of potential, but just hasn’t realized it yet. It might be worthwhile to revisit them in six months.

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2011
03/06
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