Saturday, November 14, 2009

New Japanese place in San Rafael

I Love Sushi

Dad and I went out for lunch to check out the new I Love Sushi in San Rafael. The owners of the previous place there, Jason's Burger Joint, decided to recreate the spot into a sushi oasis. They've nicely redone the interior with Japanese theme.

Miso Soup

The miso soup that accompanied each of our lunches was great. These days some restaurants leave out the wakame (seaweed) that is traditional to this soup, however this had a full complement of it.

California Roll

We started with a California Roll, it was fine, but nothing special. It was made with the imitation crab sticks so common these days.

Bento Box

I chose a two item bento box for my main course. The fry cook needs a bit of training on how to make tempura. The vegetable tempura that was one of the item choices was so limp as to be floppy! There were browned edges and spots where the batter didn't cover. However, whoever created the items knew their Japanese food. There was the grated daikon radish for the tempura sauce. This is missing in many US Japanese restaurants these days, and it is an important piece as it helps cut the grease. The teriyaki salmon that came was perfect. It was grilled nicely and the teriyaki sauce was good. The green salad section was overflowing with lovely fresh spring greens. That was a definite plus. The rice was slightly skimpy, but good nonetheless. The edamame pieces in the middle was also a nice touch.

Green Salad

Dad's salad came separately, and he said it was better than the usual.

Chicken Satsu Donburi

Dad's main course was the Chicken Satsu Donburi. It was basically a deep fried Chicken Cutlet sliced and placed over a simmered egg and onion base, all topping rice. He said that he liked the green onion tops that not only added a bit of flavor, but put some color in the otherwise brown/yellow dish. He liked the flavor and insisted on taking the small bit he couldn't finish home. I Love Sushi has not been open long, and I anticipate that as they keep going things will gel in the kitchen for more consistency.

Restaurant Inspection Results

I Love Sushi has not yet been inspected.

Find address/phone number/directions on Anna's Map.

No comments: