Raw Fish Romance
May 9th, 2008 by Marilyn
What’s so romantic about sushi?
In one of those odd tweaks of life – you know, where suddenly you hear it everywhere, I’ve heard several people name sushi as their top food for romance, including Jean at Renovation Therapy – but she makes sno-cone margaritas, so whatever.
That’s a California Tuna Roll up there. We ate it recently at Yokohama, one of the many good sushi places here in Lawrence. I like sushi – I could watch the chefs roll it up all night. Still, I’m a lousy sushi eater – I can never get past the mental hmm of raw eel and other slithers from the deep.
I’ll take a few pieces of pure tuna and salmon, swimmers I have known, yes, but I move on fast to the warmth of tempura and donburi, oh the donburi – steaming little red pots of eggs and savory chicken and onions simmered over rice. Just one sticky-sweet bite makes me think that after 15 years of marriage, maybe comfort food is romantic. Sushi lives on the edge, and frankly, other than a quickie with hot pickled ginger, the edge makes me tired.
I’m not sure if that’s pathetic or perfect, but I’m fairly certain that if Jane Austen ate at Yokohama, she’d order the donburi. Whoops – now we all know I’m pathetic, so what the hell, I’ll also say that if Colin Firth fed me sushi by a brook, now that would be romantic.
Okay! So tell me why sushi turns you on. Is it beauty and heat, or just one too many sake bombs? Tell me what you like and how you like it.
But maybe not all of it, eh?
mmmm…shrimp tempura roll for me and spicy tuna roll for cooper and then we share–now that’s romantic!
In Sydney, sushi bars are nearly as common as sidewalk cafes! And it’s a family affair. Kids are bringing sushi rolls to school for lunch and it’s even offered at the school canteen as Friday’s special. The options are endless– not just raw fish, but vegetarian, cooked tuna and avocado, even chicken schnitzel sushi! Not hard to feed my addiction while I’m here, but what happens when we move?????
[Obligatory "sushi doesn't have to be raw fish" disclaimer here.]
Sushi started out being our anniversary dinner of choice chiefly because we didn’t, at first, know anybody else who liked it. Now that the kiddo has developed a taste for it, we hit Bamboo Stix every couple of weeks or so.
I’ve actually never encountered raw eel before. Invariably it’s unagi-no-kabayaki, grilled/smoked teriyaki-ish, and one of my favorites. If we’re splurging for a fancier sushi place, the Dragon Roll at Sumo/Nambara, a caliroll with avocado and unagi on top definitely ranks up there (the Kansas Roll, seared beef tenderloin with wasabi aioli and… daikon sprouts and avocado? or something? inside, might be tied for favorite).
Okay, now I’m hungry. And a Friday that is also Riverfest opening night is *not* the time to go to Hana Cafe (our favorite middle-range sushi place) in Old Town, I’m sure…
I love sushi but I don’t really need the rice. I’m all about sashimi, the taste and the texture. I prefer hirame and hamachi over toro but I’ll eat any fish or shellfish. Raw fish is so pure, it’s pretty perfect on its own but a little soya sauce and wasabi add sparkle and the pickled ginger cleanses the palette. It’s only really improved with an ice cold gin martini on the side.
I wish wish wish I could eat sashimi and the like. I have heard such wonderful things about it, but the texture of raw fish is one my palate simply rejects.
That being said: sashimi and raw sushi rolls, like the one you pictured, are some of the most aesthetically pleasing foods I’ve ever seen. The artistry simply astounds. A leisurely meal at a sushi restaurant is one of the most luxurious, and yes, romantic ways to spend an evening.
As for favorite sushi, I’m partial to two things:
1) anything with tempura in it (especially shrimp, like the Sean Connery roll at Wa)
2) a simple veggie roll with spicy sauce AND some sriracha, which approximates my long-lost love, vegetarian kim bab with kimchi.
I’ve not had donburi, but that sounds like heaven.
Okay, my sushi-rabid friends, I hear you. Remember that I loves the spicy tuna (especially with the hot crunchy stuff), and the non-fish options too, and we are fortunate to have many good sushi places. I love the vinegar seaweed salad. And while I’m a bit of a wuss about exotica, I’m curious why people find it romantic.
Though certainly a Sean Connery Roll with an ice-cold martini would do it for me! And yes, the donburi is like heaven. Steamy chicken heaven.
It is certainly nice to look at but I would never get it past my lips. There are WORMS in fish, I do not eat raw worms.
Josie would like to note that she is a far more adventurous sushi eater than her mother – too true – and also that it would make a great date.
Greg would like to note that there will be no dates, ever.
Hmmmmmm. Wow. No offense……..I’ll stick with pizza rolls and a diet coke. I’m going to join Kathy’s “no worms” club……. Hey Kathy, do you like cheese pizza rolls?
I’ll join you in the pizza rolls. I don’t do fish of any variety. Give me a nice thick juicy steak instead…and a margarita.
I really, really like some sushi, but really, really don’t like other. I do like the tuna and avocado. yum……and the ginger…. yum…
I am conservative of which sushi I do eat. I let my eyes be the judge. I have never thought sushi to be romantic. Maybe because my husband would not step foot in a sushi place. Small portions, raw meat. He would never….. (He likes his steak well done???)
All this sushi talk reminds me of a cool place in Philly. Pod. The decor is unique and the cocktails and food artistic. They even had sushi with cream cheese. A Philly twist. Also wonderful hot tea blends served in cute little tea pots.
http://www.podrestaurant.com/ On the site make sure you check out the cocktail generator.
I love sushi. I could easily eat it 3 times a day. It’s beautifully prepared (with apologies to the French, the Japanese cornered the market in ‘plating’) and so healthy. Fresh Fresh Fresh. I’m guessing we have sushi 3 times a week. We try to only have tuna once a week due to the mercury but we often cheat on that.
In regards to Kathy’s worm comment…not that this couldn’t occur, but sushi-grade fish at a decent sushi restaurant (read: not a chain or a chinese restaurant trying to add to their menu) will almost never have that…and all meat (or grain or anything for that matter) can have vermin if not properly acquired/stored/inspected.
Sean Connery roll??? Is that shaken not stirred? Or vodka and haggis?
Ah yes, the Sean Connery Roll. Wa is another sushi place in Lawrence and they serve that yummy double-oh-seven roll, which, I believe, is tempura shrimp, avocado, spicy crab, maybe something else — anyway, it’s good.
Why Sean Connery? Let me share with you everyone’s favorite urban legend around here: a few years back, several people swore they saw Sean Connery cruising Mass Street (the main drag) in a limo on a Saturday night, rolling down the windows and inviting hot college girls out for drinks. Any number of people ‘confirmed’ it, and now it’s just plain old legend that Sean Connery cruises Lawrence on Saturday nights.
I’m not saying I buy it, I’m just saying – if he rolled down the window…and I wasn’t too busy…I might have a martini with him, shaken or stirred.
Yeah – I am kinda a very boring California roll type of girl. It’s gotta have the avocado and I do love wasabi
The Sean Connery roll is, to the best of my recollection, tempuri shrimp and mango (with some other ingredient… the crab? cucumber?), spicy sauce, and sliced mango on top (like the tuna in the illustration above).
So. Good.
I have no clue why it might be called the Sean Connery in particular, except for the 007 connection: spicy and smooth, maybe? Who knows. In any case, it’s possibly the best thing ever.
Oh, and Kathy, et al., who are worried about worms: vegetarian rolls are usually heavenly, and what I generally get (when I’m not splurging on shrimp tempura).
Yo Jo! Read my comment above regarding Sean Connery and the sushi roll. Oh my dear, have you not been in Lawrence long enough to be propositioned by 007 on a Saturday night?
Ha! No, I missed that particular episode in Lawrence history. I’ve only been here over the course of five years, and the second one in the series I was actually on another continent.
I got why there was a roll called the Sean Connery — just not how the ingredients were (or weren’t) specifically related to the name. What about this sushi roll makes it like Sean Connery?
This was my cause for speculation. I could really care less what it’s called — spicy shrimp + mango == HEAVEN.
Before we eat with our mouths, we eat with our eyes. Much of sushi (actually, that’s just the way the rice is prepared) is presented in visually appealing ways. . . there’s good use of color, plating, and presentation in general. From generic wasabi paste leaves and pickled-ginger roses to things a bit more exotic, the stuff just looks pretty. . . tuna nigiri, crazy roll, spicy tuna, Pensacola roll (local fav.), shrimp tempura, cowboy roll–all these things taste and look good, and it’s kind of a turn-on to eat (an act of friendship at the least) with a partner.
My $.02