We Made Sushi!

I have been dying to start rolling my own sushi for months.  I've watched videos, read articles, studied recipes.  Even Vivian has watched a tutorial on the Food Network.  Today I decided was the day, quite by accident.

As I was passing by the sushi department at Publix, I just happened to glance over at the rack of products there and nori caught my eye. As I was looking at the package, the sushi lady approached me to ask if I was going to make my own.  I said "yes" but I wish Publix sold sushi rice. She began to explain that they do, but the container on the shelf is pretty pricey, but she can sell the rice she uses to me by the pound from the sushi dept.  Whatchoo talkin' 'bout Willis? 

So, I bought rice from her, got some pickled ginger, wasabi powder and the nori, of course.  Viv is a big fan of California roll, so I knew that would be my first endeavor.  I prefer the sushi rolls with the rice on the outside, so that's what I was creating. Honestly, my first attempt was a flop.Too much rice, not enough filling.  So, I tried again and this time the proportions were better but I discovered that despite the awesome Global knife collection I have, they aren't currently sharp enough.  Time for a sharpening. I took this first batch with me as I picked Viv up from golf camp.  She snacked in the car and gave me not just a thumbs up, but told me this was the best California roll she'd ever tasted.  I'm 100% sure she was flattering me.

Patting the rice out onto the plastic wrap and sushi mat

 

The roll

 

Viv's After-Golf Snack

 

My favorite sign

 When we returned home, we got back to work together this time.  First, we put together a roll with avocado, cucumber (from our garden) and Alaskan snow crab.  We included a smear of cream cheese and a bit of wasabi.  Again, I rolled the rice on the outside and did a much better job this time on the tightness and on the slicing.  Vivian assembled, rolled and sliced a California roll with nori outside ALL BY HERSELF.  I was extremely impressed and very proud!

Patting out the rice like a boss!

She added carrot, cucumber & avocado

My baby's first California roll; proud Mama!

I did this one...crab, cream cheese, avocado and cucumber roll

Our results

 We had all of this ready and in the fridge before Neil came home for dinner.  So, we surprised him with a dinner of sushi, Teriyaki salmon, the Ina Garten corn salad (thanks to my friend Heather for introducing me to this recipe!) and some steamed pea pods. 

Teriyaki salmon, corn salad, sushi and steamed pea pods

As for rolling one's own sushi, let me say:  it's harder than it looks, but it's really not that hard.  Just today, I made 3 attempts and got better each time.  Like anything, practice makes perfect.  The fact that Viv watched one tutorial and rolled like a pro was remarkable.  She's got one heck of a future as a pro-golfer, architect, sushi-rolling, piano playing model. But, all kidding aside, I've been interested in tackling this task for a while and I'm so glad that I just jumped in today and did it.  More attempts and it will become like 2nd nature!  If you want homemade sushi, you're welcome to come here...just bring the sake.  Lots and lots of sake.

Excellent Service

Going out with friends is always high on my list.  As I've said before, going out to a restaurant is a really good time in my book.  Last night we were able to combine the two.  Our friend Aaron is serving in Afghanistan right now, but just got home for a visit.  So, to celebrate his being home, a bunch of us planned to meet at Saki Tumi.

I've blogged before about how much I like Saki Tumi.  But, today, the purpose of this post is to tell you about our waiter.  But before I get started, I'll tell you the Fire Island roll that I ordered is my new favorite and was outstanding.  My friend Laurin had the Giant Spider roll which was also terrific.  Neil went with the Samurai roll.  I didn't get a taste of his, but he was quite pleased with his selection. Jason went with seared tuna while Aaron hit up the crabcakes.  I just can't remember what Robin ordered...my mind has gone blank.  But, suffice it to say, that no one had any complaints about their food. (Here's the menu.)

Escolar (butterfish) sample

Fire Island roll

Our new favorite waiter

On to the waiter.  His name is Russell.  If you find yourself heading over to Saki Tumi, I strongly recommend that you ask for this guy.  Wait for a table in his section if you have to.  Neil and I are very persnickety about service and when it's excellent, we get very excited.  That can make the entire experience for us.  We ordered a drink and just started chatting.  That led to talking about this blog, a new restaurant that just opened (more on that later) and Russell introducing us to the "Columbia Originals" card.  Let's start there...

How have I NEVER heard of this card? You present it whenever you eat at participating locally owned & operated restaurants.  They swipe the card and you accumulate points for every dollar you spend which then turn into money you can spend in the restaurants.  Brilliant!   I am now a card-carrying member.


Back to the service aspect.  Russell is a genuinely friendly guy.  He really knows the menu and offers meaningful suggestions.  As we waited for our friends to arrive, he brought us a sample of the butterfish sashimi.  See?  That's a small detail by a really good waiter that made a very big impression.  Our drinks arrived quickly and Russell not only puts a napkin under your glass, he replaces them after they get soaking wet!  This is a biggie for me.  I absolutely HATE it when I am served a drink without a bev-nap.  This is SC...our drinks sweat all over the table.  Bev-naps are a critical component that most servers seem to be unaware of.  It's a little tiny napkin that does a huge job.  Don't diss the bev-nap.  Don't pretend the bev-nap isn't important. Revere the bev-nap.

If you check out some of the reviews on Urbanspoon, you'll see some bellyaching about Saki Tumi's prices.  I actually compared three items from 3 different restaurant menus.  S.T. is pretty much right on with the competition's prices, with a couple of exceptions.  But, Neil and I both will tell you emphatically that we'll spend a couple extra bucks if we know we're going to get outstanding service as well as outstanding food.  

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Tsunami- Take 2-The Final Chapter

When I wrote about Tsunami recently, I told you that it was ok overall and that I'd go back.  Well, I did.  But, I won't again.


Neil and I went back yesterday to use another Groupon.  This time we sat at a table in the dining room.  We had a pleasant waiter and I must say that the food service was very quick and courteous.  Once again, the food was good and warranted pretty much no complaints.  We started with the shrimp shumai.  They were very tender and had a nice soy dipping sauce.  The dumpling filling could have used some salt though, in my opinion.  I ordered the "My, My, Mai" roll.  I loved it.  The one misstep was that when I read the menu, I overlooked the "krab" component. I would have told them to hold that...I just can't understand any sushi place serving fake crab.  Why friggin' bother?  Who really wants to eat that?  Anyway, the roll was quite good...tempura shrimp, spicy mayo, cucumber, cream cheese and topped with baked salmon flakes and caviar.  Nice.  Neil ordered the "Heartbreaker" roll...spicy tuna, avocado, cucumber.  It was billed as "hot" but as you can imagine, it didn't even register on the Neil Akre hotness scale.  Neil also ordered the beef spring roll.  We both agreed here...awesome.


So, what is it that will prevent me from going back?  Once again, I ran into trouble when it came time to pay.  This time our waiter wasn't intimidated by the Groupon.  He handled it without batting an eye.  BUT, we were charged for two vodka tonics but only actually had one.  AND I noticed that the two martinis that we ordered had a $1 "martini upcharge" tacked on.  Assuming they are actually using vermouth, it's only a  minimal splash necessary for a good martini.  I seriously doubt that any martini I've ever had in my life would have contained more than $.25 worth of vermouth.  And I don't believe that I need to compensate the establishment a dollar for shaking up some liquid and pouring it in a glass.  Frankly, "upcharging" your clientele is just plain bullshit.

You wouldn't like me when you "upcharge" me!

So, Neil and I left and decided that although we had a good meal and an overall pleasant experience, that we wouldn't be back.  Smooth service is particularly important to us and B.S. when it comes to the bill just makes me insane.  


I still have one more Groupon, so if anyone out there is a Tsunami fan and wants to use it, please let me know.  I'll be happy to let you have it and hopefully, your experience will be better than mine. 

Weekend of Food

This weekend has shaped up to be a few good days of feasting.  As you know, we hit Virtu on Friday.  Last night, we hooked up with friends at SakiTumi.  And, today was the church covered dish luncheon.  

Saki Tumi (for those of you who aren't here in the fair city of Columbia) is one of many sushi restaurants in the downtown area.  Neil and I particularly like this place because of the location, the atmosphere, and the owner's a nice guy.  We met one my my old friends (I mean, from way back, not old.  Um, nevermind) and her husband to quietly celebrate her 15th 29th birthday.  I won't mention any names, but if you're on Facebook today, you'll probably figure it out.  Neil, who I lovingly refer to as my B-A-C (ball and chain) and I arrived first.  I got a glass of wine and Neil ordered a Red Bull (1) and Sprite, separately.  (Yuck-a-Ducka with a capital Duck).  Once our friends arrived, Neil got another Red Bull (2). I don't know how people can drink that stuff.


Anyway, we shared some edamame & the Drunken Shrimp.  And Neil got a Red Bull (3). I've never really been clear on why they named it Drunken Shrimp.  I love it, but I'm not gettin' the drunken part.  They are nice, big shrimp fried in a very flavorful, seasoned batter and served with what I consider like a curried remoulade-type sauce.  Lots of great flavors, but still not understanding the drunken aspect.  Laurin  I mean, my anonymous birthday friend and I both ordered the shrimp tempura roll.  If you read my post before about sushi, you'll know this is what I always order.  Birthday girl's B-A-C ordered crab cakes and Neilio had the sashimi sampler plate and a Red Bull (4).  I believe it was two types of tuna and salmon.  The USC game was on the big screen, which normally would irritate the fool out of me, but I have to give them credit, it was a big game and a big win.  So, congrats.  There, I said it.  It was a great evening of good food, good friends and good wine and Red Bull.

Why am I keeping you up to speed on the Red Bull?  As I mentioned, I think it's the foulest of funk, but God help him, Neil likes it.  BUT,  once we got home, it caught up with him.  He was a little shaky & revved up and turns out that plate of raw fish wasn't going the distance. So, he ended the evening with a good fridge raid of macaroni and cheese topped with a healthy dose of homemade chili.  Most of you guys are probably nodding your heads about now. Come to think of it I'm betting, no, I'm sure Neil isn't the first guy to have another meal after leaving the sushi joint. 



Today, the church covered dish luncheon was complete with all the required elements:  fried chicken, casseroles a-plenty, deviled eggs (not my cup of tea though), macaroni and cheese & two tables packed with desserts.  The Vivver actually sat in a chair and ATE.  That's right, I saw chicken, macaroni,  and jello go down the hatch. Not sure if any vegetables made the trip, but that's ok every now and then, right? 

The Mouths of Babes

I haven't made any major culinary strides this week. So, I find myself just thinking about where I want to go soon, what I want to cook soon, what are favorites that need to be made soon? So, I went to the expert-Vivian.

I asked her this morning what her favorites foods are. Here's her list:

steak

asparagus

shrimp

onions (cooked only)

vegetable soup

Interesting...I knew about the steak and shrimp, but the asparagus surprised me. Don't get me wrong, I'm delighted to hear her say that! Just surprised. Now, onions I questioned. I said "you don't like onions" to which she quickly retorted, "yes I do, if they're cooked, like in Grandma's vegetable soup." Ok, I can buy that.

Any ideas on how I can get her interested in sushi? I'd love to see those little hands using chop sticks!

TakoSushi

I am no sushi expert. In fact, until recently, I didn't even participate in the whole sushi thing. You see, despite numerous attempts, I just simply don't like raw fish at all. BUT, then, I was enlightened. Now, thanks to Chef Larry from SakiTumi, I am addicted to the shrimp TEMPURA roll.

Now, I am loyal to SakiTumi, but my husband is a huge fan of the TakoSushi folks. He believes their fish tacos are rivaled only by the Taco Boy at Folly Beach. And, lucky for me, their shrimp tempura roll rocks as well. One nice little detail about theirs is that it has a light sprinkling of red caviar on the outside...nice little salty crunch.

If you're unfamiliar with TakoSushi, give it a whirl. Apparently, they first opened a restaurant in Aiken, SC. My husband became their most loyal of loyals at their 2nd place in Greenville, SC. Now, we have them in Columbia and all is right with the world! It's on Assembly across from the Statehouse, where Doc's Gumbo Grille used to be. (BTW, Doc's isn't gone, just moved to Rosewood) :-)