Here I include sushi restaurant reviews and book reviews, as well as anything else that doesn’t fit into any other category.

In the world of sushi, a big issue these days is sustainability. The way certain fish and other seafood are caught is harmful to the environment, and depleting the limited numbers of fish in the ocean.

One of the most widely-known endangered fish is bluefin tuna. More people who frequently eat sushi know that bluefin is endangered, and may be gone within a few years at the rate we consume them, than any other type of seafood.

Some people who feel strongly about this issue have decided to take action. To help broaden public awareness about the issues concerning bluefin tuna, they are bringing attention to the fact that popular, well-known sushi restaurant Nobu offers bluefin tuna on it’s menu. (Many top sushi restaurants no longer serve bluefin tune, opting for the more sustainable yellowfin tuna.)

In recent attempt, many celebrities signed a petition in an attempt to convince the Nobu restaurant in London to remove bluefin from it’s offerings, and have threatened to boycott. (See articles here, here, here, and here for more details regarding the petition and boycott.) Alton Brown (of Iron Chef fame) just announced live that he “won’t set foot in Nobu until it stops selling bluefin tuna.”

Just a week ago there was another such event at the Nobu in TriBeCa, New York, where Greenpeace organized a dine-in. Participants including Casson Trenor, the author of Sustainable Sushi, attempted to replace menus and business cards at Nobu with their own that pointed out Nobu’s practice of serving the endangered bluefin tuna, and tried to ask the waitstaff about the sustainability of the sushi they serve. (See articles here, here, and here for more details regarding the dine-in.) It is reported that the participants did tip the waiters that evening, because Nobu’s practices are not the responsibility of the waitstaff.

Another such event has been scheduled for tonight at the Nobu in West Hollywood, California.

So I want to know: what do you think about this? Do you think the tactics of Greenpeace were effective? Do you believe Nobu and other restaurants should be left alone to serve whatever they wish? How do you feel about the issue of sustainability as it applies to seafood?

Note: I have never used bluefin tuna on Sushi Day. When I use tuna, I always make a point to use the more sustainable, less endangered yellowfin tuna.

Another note: I really want to hear your opinions, everyone. But please keep it polite and civil – it helps no one if this degenerates into a flame war, and I really don’t want to have to butt in and moderate you guys.

Last note, I promise: Don’t worry, Sushi Day won’t turn into a news-centric site. I’ll be back with another sushi recipe within a couple of days, promise.

So. Much. Good. Food. More than anything, that is the thing that stands out the most about the Japanese Food and Sake Festival presented by the Japanese Food Culture Association and the Japan America Society of Southern California. The festival was held yesterday afternoon at the Hyatt Regency in Orange County, and because we have some awesome friends, we were able to get into the invite-only section of the festival for a couple of hours before it opened to the general public.

We were happy to find Todd from the White on Rice Couple there, and hang out with him a little bit. (Diane wasn’t there… she ditched us to go party in the Bahamas. )

The moment we got there, we were overwhelmed by all the booths serving a wide variety of Japanese food and sake. We wandered around a little bit, trying to get our bearings, but it didn’t take long to get used to all the food being given to us from the different booths.

First we tried some miso soup. Of course I love miso soup, and this was delicious, but not really anything special. Soon after we were each given a little Japanese pancake (or Japanese “Pizza” as they were calling it) which was a delicious little pancake of cabbage, egg, and something else. We were also given a little brochure with a recipe for the pancakes, so I just might try making them sometime soon so the rest of you can try it.

Next we tried a bowl of ramen, which was good and had some delicious, tender pork in it, but there would be better ramen in our future.

We tried a tea-flavored rice ball wrapped in a piece of nori. This was interesting – not something I would go out of my way for, but still something that I enjoyed.

There was also a stand handing out bento boxes with a piece of melon, edamame, green beans, and pickled Japanese vegetables. These were alright, but not really anything special.

Next we tried some sushi – scallops, and a couple of other types of fish that I didn’t quite catch the names of. (I’m a bad sushi blogger, I know.) I had these as sashimi, while Son had them as nigiri. We both enjoyed the fish quite a bit.

Yakult (the yogurt drink) had a booth at the festival, where they were handing out their product (I didn’t have any, because I don’t particularly like the taste, but Son enjoyed his) and big blue Yakult tote bags, like you might use for groceries. Of course I grabbed a bag… one can never have too many tote bags.

A little while after we arrived, there was a cooking demonstration on the stage by Chef Hiroshi Shima from Sushi Roku. The sushi he made on stage looked delicious, however the anchovy hand rolls and shrimp shooters that were offered at the Sushi Roku booth? Not so much.

The Japanese restaurant Gyu Kaku (which I’ve been to and enjoyed) had a booth at the festival, where they were handing out bowls of beef and rice. These were good, just what you might expect if you visited their restaurant.

There was a booth serving wagyu shabu shabu – wagyu beef cooked in boiling water, served with shrimp, green onion, and your choice of sauces. This was very delicious, although my palate isn’t quite sophisticated enough to discern the difference between wagyu beef and regular beef.

From the same company (Cool Japan) there was also a tea ceremony presentation.

Although we didn’t get to participate (all the seats were full by the time we got there) it was very interesting to watch several Japanese women perform a full traditional tea ceremony.

Now normally I’m not a huge fan of green tea, or any kind of tea for that matter. I’ll generally take hot chocolate or coffee over tea any day. But the YamaMotoYama sweetened iced green tea was right up my alley… I loved it so much that not only did I go back for seconds, I’m also planning to see if I can find somewhere that sells it. It’s good stuff.

However the soy wrappers from the same company… yeah, not so much. I’ve seen these in the store, and thought they might be interesting for sushi, but they’re always ridiculously overpriced so I never actually bought them. They served chicken and lettuce hand rolls using them, which were incredibly bland. Although colorful, they don’t add much else to the rolls. However they did let me take a package of the soy wrappers, so it’s possible that I might use them for some of my own sushi, and see how they come out.

Of course, we already knew I love mochi ice cream, especially considering I love darn near anything mochi-related. I tried the vanilla and Son tried the green tea mochi ice cream, and of course they were delicious. Yum.

There was a booth handing out little cups of udon, which was… meh. I’ve had better.

We also got to try some gyoza. It was good, but nothing special. Really no better than the bag of gyoza that you can get from Costco or any regular grocery store.

One table was handing out little cups of “Japanese-style Ceviche”. Oh man, was this stuff good! It really wasn’t anything that exotic – just shrimp, avocado, tomato, cilantro, and maybe some miso (and wasabi?) but something about it was just amazing. This was among our favorite dishes of the festival.

The soft tofu with maple syrup was another of our favorites. Now, I was not a big tofu fan growing up. I couldn’t stand the stuff. These days I’ve found some tofu recipes that I actually enjoy, but never did I think that I’d fall for plain, soft tofu. With maple syrup. Handed to us by the president of the company, who is really the most adorable little Japanese man ever. Not to mention, the little flyer he handed us explaining the company included a cartoon explaining why he named the company “Otokomae”, which means “Handsome”! Yep, I could go for some more of that handsome tofu right about now. Did I mention the tofu was delicious?

There were also some delicious little tuna “tapas” from Ronin Izakaya Bistro. These were delicious – seared sashimi-grade tuna, avocado, and shiitake mushroom relish on a cajun-flavored tortilla chip, topped with wasabi mayonnaise.

There were also some salmon and avocado rolls at a booth promoting pre-made sushi vinegar, that you just mix into rice. While it tasted like normal sushi rice, I personally wouldn’t buy the pre-made sushi vinegar when I can make my own quite easily.

We got to try some shrimp from Oki Doki… which tasted very familiar. It was delicious, but actually tasted more like the Shrimp with Mayonnaise and Walnuts that you find at many Chinese restaurants, than any Japanese dish.

Another booth was handing out Tofu Shirataki noodles. These were alright, something I’d enjoy if given to me, but nothing to call home about. I probably won’t ever be buying these to make them for myself.

One of the last booths we visited was one from Musha Izakaya. Wait… doesn’t that sound familiar? If you’ve been reading Sushi Day for more than a few months, then it should – Son took me there for my birthday last year. They were offering some sort of vegetarian “meat” that looked and tasted like chicken, and the kakuni pork belly that Son and I ate when we visited the restaurant last year. Yum.

We also got to try some yakitori chicken skewers. I didn’t particularly like these, but Son seemed to enjoy them.

Now this ramen was the good stuff. It had a juicy little strip of tender pork, the noodles were cooked just right, and the broth was nice and hot. Unfortunately, we were pretty full by the time we got to this booth, so I couldn’t quite manage to finish the ramen. *sigh*

There were also some yakisoba noodles, possibly by the same company that served up the fresh ramen. The contrast was day and night. While the ramen was hot and made right in front of you, the yakisoba was lukewarm and seemed like it might have been sitting out for a while. While the ramen was incredibly delicious, the yakisoba was… not. Ick. We definitely could have done without it.

And then, there was the sake/alcohol part of the festival.

Some of the sake booths had some pretty amusing mascots.

As you may know, neither Son nor I drink alcohol, so we can’t really comment on this part of the festival.

But what we can say is that there were some really beautiful sake bottles.

Even though I have no desire whatsoever to start drinking alcohol, sometimes I wish I did just to have a good excuse to collect all these gorgeous bottles!

But then, I’ve already got a sushi habit to fund. No sense in adding a sake habit on top of that…

Since we got in during the invite-only section of the festival, we had seen all the booths and were about to leave by the time the festival opened up to the general public. Just then, the taiko drummers began their performance, so we stayed a little while longer to watch them. It was incredible how much energy these people had, especially the older man who seemed to be the main focus much of the time. I really enjoyed seeing them play.

We got some little Japanese donuts that we ate when we got home after the festival. These were very dense, and very… Japanese. I don’t really know how to describe it, but the taste of the bread was a taste that I associate with Japanese pastries, like the little bird-shaped mochi, or the bean filled an-pan that you can get at Japanese supermarkets or bakeries.

The very last booth we visited was one giving away packets Japanese sea salt and cups of Shikawasa juice. The juice was pretty tasty – like lemonade, but not so tart.

Overall, we really enjoyed the Japanese Food Festival. Although it was unfortunately only held on one day, and a Thursday at that, if you’re in the area next year (and like sake, because I’m not sure the $50 entrance fee is worth it if you don’t want to try any of the alcohol) then check it out!

Don’t forget to enter our contest for a chance to win a copy of the book, Sustainable Sushi, by Casson Trenor! The contest ends on March 7th at 11:59pm, so get your entries in!

These days, everyone is doing what they can to go green and be better for the environment. We use energy-saving light bulbs and appliances, drive cars that waste less gas, and recycle or reuse more of our resources. Going green has become the latest fad, the coolest thing to do. Just like everyone else, I do my part – but as a sushi lover, there’s a heck of a lot more that I can do.

For those of you like me who love sushi, the most well-known way to save the environment is to stop eating bluefin tuna. Everyone knows the beloved fish is slowly nearing extinction, mostly because it has become so popular with us sushi fanatics. I do have to admit eating bluefin tuna, though only one or two times, but I do try to choose a different type of tuna whenever I make sushi at home. But did you know that there are many more types of fish and seafood that are just as unsustainable as bluefin tuna?

Recently, I was given a copy of Sustainable Sushi by Casson Trenor to review. I was shocked to see just how many different types of fish and other seafood were included in the book, and it was fascinating to see how my favorites stacked up in terms of sustainability.

For each type of seafood, Trenor gives a full description of the seafood and how it is caught. There are beautiful colorful drawings and photographs of the seafood and how it’s often eaten on every page. He gives the English name, Japanese name, and Japanese symbols for each type of seafood. Finally, not only does he give separate ratings of sustainability for the different ways and locations in which the seafood is caught or farmed, he also gives a rating for the danger of the mercury level that can be found in the seafood. It really is a great book, quite helpful for those of us who love seafood but want to minimize our negative impact on the environment.

Win the Book!

Curious about whether your favorite fish or seafood is sustainable or not? Well, you’re in luck! I’ve also been given five extra copies of the book, to be given away to five lucky Sushi Day readers. All you have to do to win is comment on this post and tell me what your favorite sashimi or seafood is. (Vegetarian? Tell me what your favorite sushi consists of!) Make sure you enter a valid email address in the email field so I can contact you if you win.

The contest ends on Saturday, March 7th, at 11:59pm PST. Five lucky winners will be announced on Monday, March 9th.

Bonus Entry: Write about this contest on Twitter! Just leave another comment here with a link to your tweet to get a second entry into the contest!

Like I mentioned two weeks ago, it has been two wonderful years of sushi since I launched Sushi Day. However, in those two years I’ve rarely, except in passing, told you anything about my dear boyfriend, Son. Unfair, really, because without him Sushi Day would have never come into existence. I’ve mentioned many times that the amazing design and coding for Sushi Day were all done by Son. What you didn’t know is that the entire idea for Sushi Day was his as well.

Son and I met in January, 2005, when we both were accepted onto a ballroom dance team at our university. He was in his first year of grad school for his Master’s in Computer Science; I was a freshman dance major. Very handsome and obviously far too cool for dorky, nerdy little me, I always saw him as out of my league. Still, I made an effort to dance with him as much as I could – possibly as a subconscious effort to flirt with him, but mostly because he was the best male dancer there. I never imagined he would be interested in me – not until several months later, when we began chatting frequently both online and on the phone. On May 15, 2005, we went on our first date.

Now, exactly three and a half years later, we’re still as enamored with each other as we were when we first started dating. Sure, we’ve matured quite a bit and gotten to know each other incredibly well – he can predict my actions and reactions perfectly almost 100% of the time, and I can do the same for him. Though we no longer take dance lessons together, we’ve found we share other passions – we both love programming and food.

This led to the creation of Sushi Day. Back in 2006, Son decided we should create a blog for me. Of course, we didn’t want to be just another blog in a sea of sameness – we wanted to be unique. He came up with the idea to blog about sushi – at the time, there were several sushi websites, but no sushi blogs. Thanks to Son being the absolute best designer and programmer I know, (Me? Biased? Of course not!) I was lucky enough to get this beautiful blog you now read.

Almost everything I do nowadays, I do because of him. I cook because of him, I blog because of him, I code because of him. I’ve found you, all my wonderful friends all over the world, because of him. The best part is when I do something great, and he gives me that special smile – that smile that shows me just how proud of me he is, and how incredibly much he loves me. I’d do darn near anything for that smile.

So today, on the 15th day of November, 2008, my dearest turns 27 years old. Happy birthday, my love, and here’s to so many more.

Don’t worry, I got all the sappy love story out of my system for now. Sushi will be back tomorrow, I promise! Be sure to subscribe to the feed so you don’t miss a single sushi recipe.

A couple of weeks ago, Son and I decided we were in the mood for Japanese… but not sushi. (I know, blasphemy! Really, people. I eat many foods aside from sushi.) A quick search on Yelp found a cute little Japanese Izakaya called Musha.

The first dish that came out was the Spicy Tuna Dip. I had heard great things about the spicy tuna dip accompanied by rice crackers, but it failed to impress. The rice crackers were large and difficult to eat, and made the whole dish seem dry. I wouldn’t get this again if I revisited Musha.

The Cheese Tofu, on the other hand, was amazing. One of my favorite dishes of the night. Silky smooth tofu was mixed with some sort of cheese – perhaps a cream cheese, or something similar? Crackers and slices of bread come on the side – definitely go for the crackers. The bread… not so good. But the crackers, topped with a scoop of the cheese tofu and drizzled with a bit of honey… I could eat this all day. Indulgent, and my hips would not thank me if I did, but man this dip was good! My only complaint would be about the pink peppercorns sprinkled on top of the dip. They added an unpleasant sharpness to the otherwise amazing dip.

And then, the Scallop Dynamite. These were… amazing. If you’ve been a reader of the blog for a bit, you’ll know that I love scallops. These were incredibly fresh (probably sushi-grade) scallops, topped with a rich, spicy dynamite sauce. Of all the dishes we tried that evening, this was Son’s favorite. He even used this sauce to dip several of the other foods in.

The Kabocha (pumpkin) Croquettes may seem like a somewhat odd dish, until you try them. These hot, fried triangles of pumpkin puree covered in panko crumbs are perfect for a cold wintery night. The sauce that came with it was slightly spicy, but incredibly addictive. Sadly, there wasn’t quite enough sauce, although I blame that on Son – he was using it quite liberally. (Just kidding, Son!)

The last dish of the night was the Kakuni Pork Belly. The pork was amazing melt-in-your-mouth delicious. It reminded me of the chashu in the Kakuni Paitan Ramen we had in Hawaii. The potato and egg that came with it… nothing special. I just wish there had been more of the pork belly to go around.

Overall, it was a nice meal. The place can get very crowded (luckily we went on a Monday, before the dinner rush) and the tables are very close together – so don’t expect a private romantic meal unless you go for one of the private rooms in the back. However, it was worth it. The entire meal came out to only about $50, including tax and tip (we both got water).

Two years ago today, Sushi Day was introduced to the world. On only our second day live, we got a very warm welcoming, and significantly more traffic than we had ever expected. From there, things only got better. A year ago, we began selling shirts, and just a month ago I introduced you to my new food blog.

In celebration of two years of fun, crazy, delicious sushi, I decided that I would highlight some of my favorite sushi I’ve made in the last couple of years. These are all must-try recipes that I’ve made and loved. Do you have a favorite roll on Sushi Day? Or maybe your own creation that you love to make at home? Tell me all about it in the comments!

Of all the rolls I have ever made on Sushi Day, the Crunchy Shrimp Roll is the most popular. Not only is it incredibly simple to make, it’s also quite difficult to find anyone who doesn’t like these ingredients! This roll has made an appearance at my family’s New Years celebration ever since I launched Sushi Day, and probably will for many years to come!

For me, Inari Sushi is a classic. This was the first sushi I ever ate, and I’ve loved it since I was a small child. It’s a little sweet and a little salty, and even picky kids will eat it – believe me, I was among the pickiest as a child!

The Caterpillar Roll was the first inside-out roll with some sort of topping that I ever made, and I was surprised at how nicely it turned out! Sure, sushi topped with avocado or other toppings seem intimidating to make, but they’re really not very difficult at all.

Dear Yvo, one of the first commenters on Sushi Day and definitely the one who has stuck around the longest, came up with the idea for Monkey Maki. This was my first time ever tempura-frying anything… who knew you could tempura-fry a banana? And who knew it would be so yummy?

Tuna Salad Sushi is another of my favorites. I had tried tuna salad sushi from Bristol Farms before, so I already knew it would be a winner. Making it at home – just as amazing. Plus, you can make the tuna salad however you like it.

Living with Son, it’s hard to completely avoid spicy foods, so it wasn’t long before spice began to make it’s way into my sushi. Hence the Spicy Tuna Salad Roll – so similar to the non-spicy one, but with the extra kick of Sriracha sauce.

The Crazy California Roll was a roll I had first tried on my eighteenth birthday, when Son took me to a local sushi restaurant. Ever since then I would always get this roll whenever we went back, and I was happily surprised when it tasted just as great when I made it at home.

Throughout college, I lived only a few minutes away from a banh mi (Vietnamese sandwiches) restaurant. Inspired by those sandwiches I love so much (and crave so often), the Banh Mi Sushi became another favorite of mine. It takes a lot of work, but oh my goodness is it worth it.

Oh, SPAM. What a poor, misunderstood product. So many people bash it just on principle, but if only they had one taste of Spam Musubi, I’m certain they would change their mind. Although my favorite way to eat SPAM is still scrambled in eggs, Spam Musubi comes in at a close second.

I know I have many vegetarian or vegan readers, who just can’t eat most of the sushi I post because, well, fish? Yeah, not so much. Lucky for them, I have made quite a few vegetarian and even completely vegan (I think) sushi. Take my “Beef” and Broccoli Maki, for example. It’s not really made with beef – the “beef” is actually fried tofu, marinated in a teriyaki sauce, then sauteéd with broccoli. Inspired by my favorite vegetarian Thai restaurant, this sushi is vegetarian-friendly, and amazingly delicious.

The Mango Salsa Sushi is, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful rolls on Sushi Day. The alternating yellow and green of the mango and avocado, not to mention the purple and pink from the red onion and shrimp, result in a very beautiful (and delicious) roll.

Stuffed Somen Salad is another beloved dish from my childhood. My great-aunts used to make stuffed somen salad every year for our family Christmas party, and my grandmother would sometimes stuff inari packets with the somen salad. Amazingly delicious. And, if you leave out the imitation crab (which we do because my mom is allergic), vegetarian!

My sister has been a great source of ideas for sushi. Every now and then she’ll message me with, “hey, I’m coming home… want to make me sushi? I think you should make me sushi with these ingredients…” Since she came up with this amazingly delicious (unorthodox, yes, but delicious nonetheless) roll, I thought it only fitting to name it after her. Thus, the Kristen Maki.

The Bacon Crunchy Shrimp Roll. Because bacon makes everything better, and this was no exception.

Unagi = yum. California Roll = yum. Unagi + California Roll = Super California Roll = yum².

The Maguro Karakuchi Spicy Tuna is another favorite of mine. The sauce in this roll is nothing short of amazing. In fact, I use it not only for sushi, but also as a spread, mixed into tuna and egg salad, and to dip sashimi in. Seriously. Amazing.

What? I told you I love this sauce. Of course I had to use it for my Spicy Hamachi Gunkan.

Sometimes, simplicity can be amazing. Such was the case for the Mango Tuna Tango. Nothing more than tuna, mango, and a little Sriracha sauce go into this roll, but they all combine to create an explosion of flavor in your mouth.

When I first tried Spicy Shrimp Inari from Whole Foods, I knew I had to recreate it at home. I didn’t think anything could make my classic favorite any better, but man was I wrong. This is probably the sushi that Son and I eat the most – any time we feel like sushi I make this because heck, it’s so dang easy!

Hotate (scallop) has quickly become my favorite type of sashimi, as was in evidence on my Hawaii trip. My first attempt at using hotate in a roll was when I made the Santa Barbara Roll, and my goodness was this a success. Amazing, amazing, amazing all around.

My first encounter with hotate was in Sunnyvale, when I tried the Hotate Special. This was one of those rolls that I knew I would have to recreate at home, and it didn’t fail to live up to my expectations when I made it at home.

My last must-try recipe is not a sushi recipe, but it’s amazing just the same. Cheese Age are wontons filled with cheese and jalapeño, then deep fried until crispy. They are incredibly addictive, and although quite spicy, it’s hard to stop at just one.

So thank you for sharing two years of sushi with me, and here’s to many more!

Everyone loves getting packages. Especially when they’re somewhat unexpected packages with awesome goodies inside. And I got three! In the same week! How awesome is that?

First off, I received the bento box that I won in Yvo’s Does This Make My Lunch Look Phat? contest. Seriously, the cutest little bento box ever! It’s so little, and cute, and adorable, and even though I work from home I might just have to start packing myself lunches in it. It’s just that cute.

Then, cookies! I love cookies! Especially when they’re as yummy as these were! (Notice the use of past tense there – Son almost didn’t get any.) These were from Sam of Becks and Posh. She volunteered to send cookies (among other “prizes”) to anyone who donated to The Race for the Cure through her donation page.

As anyone who has read my blog for a while knows, I am a huge supporter of anything to help those with cancer (especially leukemia), so it was a no-brainer for me to donate. Besides, I got cookies! Yay! Cookies!

Finally, my BBM package arrived, all the way from Europe! Look at all the cool things I she sent me!

First up, sardines packed in tomato sauce. Huzzah! These were so good… Son and I just shared them for lunch today. Toast up a slice of bread, butter it and sprinkle garlic sauce on it, then top with the sardines… yum! Reminds me of when I was younger… every now and then, my dad would open a can of sardines and we would place each sardine on a saltine cracker. Delicious memories.

Next, rose scented soap. I haven’t used it yet (it’s too pretty to use!) but it smells beautiful! I think I shall save it for those days that I want to feel very beautiful and elegant.

She also packed me some salted caramel – delicious, but I only got one bite of it! Son stole it before I could have any more. This is the guy who salts anything and everything, and he loves salty sweets. This was no exception… he loved it.

Then, a La Source candle. I don’t burn candles very often, but this is as good an excuse as any to start. The candle smells fantastic – I can only imagine how wonderful my apartment would smell while burning the candle!

And then… lip balm. Oh, the lip balm. I’m one of those girls who don’t always wear make-up, but I always have to have some sort of lip balm or chapstick on. (Although Son hates it… he refuses to kiss me if I’ve just put on chapstick!) The stick I got in my BBM package now has a permanent place next to my bed – every night before I go to sleep, on goes the lip balm! I love it.

Moleskines! This was one of the things in the package that I was most excited about. I’ve always wanted a Moleskine, but never actually bought one. And she gave me two! And they’re mini ones… so cute!

Along with the Moleskines, the little package of saffron was the other thing that made me dance around my apartment excitedly. (Oh, who am I kidding? The entire package made me dance around my apartment excitedly!) I’ve always wanted to cook with saffron, but could never quite justify spending that much for the spice. (Son would have a heart attack if I bought some and he saw the price tag!) Now to decide… what to make with it?

She gave me a poncho! This one did make me giggle, but it certainly will be useful. It’s the perfect size to stash in the car, for any time I happen to get caught in the rain! Especially since the rainy season is coming up… *hides from everyone not in Southern CA throwing rocks at me*

Another one I was super excited about was the Scandinavian Feasts Cookbook. Obviously I cook Japanese all the time (sushi, anyone?) but I’ve really ignored the other side of my heritage. Sad, I know. So keep an eye on Fridgg… you might just see some Swedish recipes soon!

Lastly, a cheese slicer thingy! This is pretty cool, because I’ve been wanting to branch out and try more cheeses (I LOVE cheese, but have mostly limited myself to cheddar thus far), so this is a great way to force me to do so!

(Another package I got this week was this, which I purchased from this awesome woman. I’m super excited about it… and even using one of my Moleskines to document my journey! How cool is that?)

I love sushi. Duh, Allison, of course you do. Well yes, my adoration of sushi is just a wee bit obvious. After all, I wouldn’t have this sushi blog if I didn’t love it, now would I? As with any trip I take, my first thought is of what sort of good food can be found in the area, specifically great sushi bars. Hearing that Mitch’s Fish Market has the best sushi ever? Obviously, I had to try.

We arrived at Mitch’s after a day that included a yummy breakfast, a visit to the botanical gardens, and various beaches and tidepools as we drove the big loop around Oahu. We were tired and definitely hungry. When you walk into the sushi bar, it’s obvious that the primary business is the fish market – the sushi bar is almost an afterthought. The restaurant is very small… it could easily have been an office that was turned into a restaurant. There are two or three tables, and a sushi bar that might seat four, at most. You don’t go to Mitch’s for the ambiance… nope, you go there for the sashimi.

We had heard that Mitch’s was one of the few places you could get lobster sashimi, so of course we had to order that. We also decided to get the Chirashi Deluxe, so we could try their wide array of sashimi accompanied by a seasoned bowl of rice. As an afterthought, we also decided to get an extra order of hotate (scallop) sashimi… I’m a wee bit addicted to hotate.

The sashimi was undoubtedly the best sashimi I have tasted. Ever. Since you’re eating at a fish market, you know it’s fresh, but there’s just no way to describe how amazing the sashimi was. The shrimp were sweet, the chu toro (tuna, just one level below toro) melted in my mouth, the yellowtail not even close to how stringy it normally is. The hotate were a scallop-lover’s dream come true, and the sweet tamago almost fluffy. The salmon was amazingly soft, the uni incredibly smooth, the tako (octopus) slightly chewy, and the ikura incredibly fresh. As for the chirashi rice that came with the plate of sashimi, I enjoyed it immensely. Something about the mushroom pieces, nori strips, and other seasonings sprinkled on top made me think of New Year’s. I believe the flavor may have been something that I am used to tasting in the various dishes we used to enjoy at the New Year’s celebrations at my great aunt’s husband’s parents’ house. It was delicious.

And now, the lobster! After we ordered but before our meal, we were surprised to see them bring out a live lobster for us to approve of for our sashimi. Talk about fresh… you can’t get much fresher than that. The lobster sashimi was… interesting. We rather enjoyed it, although for the price ($52) I’m not sure we would purchase it again. The sushi chefs sliced up the lobster tail for us to eat, accompanying it with the typical wasabi (the real stuff!) and gari.

The flavor of the lobster was very clean, fresh, and although it was mostly flavorless, it was just a little sweet. The texture is crunchy which is a little odd at first, but easy to get used to. Overall we enjoyed the lobster sashimi… but wait, there’s more!

Once we finished the sashimi, the waitress came and took the shell of the lobster tail, “to put in the soup.” Huh? I hadn’t heard anything about any soup. What’s this? Not too long later, she came back with two bowls with the rest of the lobster parts sticking out of it. They sure know how to use a lobster… not a single part went to waste. The lobster miso soup was similar to regular miso soup, except that we got to pick the lobster meat out of the head and claws. Delicious! It was a very nice surprise to end our meal at Mitch’s.

The cost of the meal totaled $130, including tax and tip, for the two of us. Mitch’s only serves tea and ice water, so if you want alcohol or other drinks with your meal, you have to bring your own. They will, however, gladly provide glasses for you. If ever in Honolulu, I highly recommend visiting Mitch’s. Everyone who works there is incredibly friendly, and will make you feel like family. Heck, they’ll even let you take a picture of the lobster you’re going to eat! Besides, who can resist such amazing sashimi?

Ever since I was very young, mochi has been a special treat for me. My mother would take us to the Japanese part of town every once in a while to stock up on the Japanese foods that she liked, and we would always stop by the little bakery in the shopping center. We each were allowed to pick one piece of mochi to take home with us and eat later. I usually picked the striped mochi – a piece with white and pink stripes, but although sweet, it lacked any specific flavor.

As I grew older, I learned to love a wider range of mochi. As a young girl, I wouldn’t touch the pieces with azuki bean paste (red bean paste) in the middle. Now I’ll go out of my way to get sushi with azuki bean paste in the middle. (Although I haven’t gotten around to making any yet. I’m working on it, for sure.) I love flavored mochi – especially orange-flavored mochi, and I’ve even tried making my own. (That was a yummy experiment!) So of course, when I saw a mochi stand in the mall in Hawaii, and read about a mochi ice cream store online, I knew I had to visit both.

Kansai Yamamoto – Mochi

Kansai Yamamoto is a small stand in the food court of the Ala Moana center – the same food court where I ate at Coco Ichiban Curry House. We had been walking through the mall after dinner at the Curry House on Sunday, and like a magnet I was drawn to the stand.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen this many flavors of mochi in one place. We had quite a bit of trouble deciding which types we wanted to try. Never before had we seen mango or honeydew mochi, so it was easy to decide to buy those. On a whim, we also decided to try the chocolate peanut butter mochi, since the typical plain mochi with azuki bean paste in the center was nowhere to be found.

The chocolate peanut butter mochi was… interesting. It consisted of chocolate-flavored mochi, with a chunky peanut butter filling. By itself, the chocolate mochi wasn’t anything I would want to spend money on. But if you can get a bite of the chunky peanut butter with every bite… that’s what makes it special. The contrast of the sweet and the salty, the soft and the crunchy… it’s rather delicious.

Even more special were the honeydew and mango mochi. Never had I tasted mochi so flavorful. Neither of these flavors were very sweet, but the honeydew and mango flavors were very strong. Not overwhelmingly so, but just right – almost as if you were eating the fruit, except in soft mochi form. Perhaps these have a lot more extract or juice in them than the ones at home, or perhaps it’s just that everything seems to be more flavorful in Hawaii. I wonder if the Los Angeles smog has been dulling the flavors of foods all these years? No matter – these mochi were delicious.

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Bubbie’s – Mochi Ice Cream

This place is hell to find. After dinner at Yotteko-Ya on Monday, it must have taken us a good half-hour to find Bubbie’s, even though it wasn’t that far from Yotteko-Ya. As much of a pain in the butt this place is to find (it’s hidden from view from the street, and you have to take a little side-street to get there), it was entirely worth it.

Of course, I have had the mochi ice cream that you can find at Trader Joe’s or Japanese supermarkets before. The normal flavors – strawberry, chocolate, vanilla, etc. can all be found here. But what takes Bubbie’s above and beyond are the other flavors. After several minutes gawking at the menu, we decided on chocolate peanut butter, guava, sakura (cherry blossom), and azuki bean. The chocolate peanut butter mochi ice cream was alright, I liked the guava mochi ice cream, the sakura mochi ice cream was a new flavor I am very glad to have tried (and enjoyed)… and then there was the azuki bean. Oh my goodness, the azuki bean. Bits of bean were flecked throughout the ice cream, and the flavor was very prominent, unlike some of the other flavors of mochi ice cream. By far my favorite, I immensely enjoyed the azuki bean mochi ice cream. So yummy.

We enjoyed the mochi ice cream so much, we got four more pieces to go. We got almost the same order, except instead of the guava, we got green tea. Quite good choice… Son loved the green tea mochi ice cream. Although the mochi ice cream did melt a little in our hotel “freezer,” I actually enjoyed them better like this. The flavors are stronger when the ice cream is slightly melted, so the azuki bean mochi ice cream was that much more enjoyable for me. Yum.