During our trip to Richmond, BC, we bypassed our normal journey to the Shabusen Restaurant in Vancouver to try a new (or at least new to us) all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant in Richmond. Here’s the report.

We went with the Deluxe All-You-Can-Eat menu. For $22.95, one could order all kinds of pretty general nigiri sushi and sushi rolls, along with many kinds of sashimi. There were also typical Japanese staples such as udon, miso soup, goma ae, sunomono, and tonkatsu.

Service was nearly instant for foods that can be prepped beforehand, such as sushi and salads. Fried foods took a little longer. Here’s how they stack up, taste-wise:

Ama Ebi Nigiri: Mediocre
Salmon Nigiri: Good
Lobster Gunkan: Poor
Toro Sashimi: Bad (Was it even toro?!)
California Roll: Good
Alaska Roll: Good
Goma Ae: Great
Sunomono: OK
Yam Tempura: Good
Green Salad: Bad (It had carrot dressing!! Who DOES that?!)
Miso Soup: Bad (it was cold!)

Yeah, it was one of the better nigirizushis available.

This tasted about as good as it looks (which is not very).

All in all, Ninkazu was not the best sushi restaurant you’ll find, but if you are able to eat half your weight in food, it’s a good deal. Compared to our previous favorite, Shabusen, Ninkazu has a ways to go. Their fish quality is lower, as is their creativity and diversity. But kudos to them on their fast, attentive service and late hours; they’ve got Shabusen beat there.

This weekend, we took a SushiMonsters trip up to Vancouver, Canada. On the way back, we stopped by the informal Asian (or, should I say, Chinese?) capital of Canada: Richmond. Richmond is full of malls with food courts as elegant as you can imagine, and diverse restaurants flowing out of every every crevice and alley of the city.

The Aberdeen Shopping Center is a relatively new facility with a pretty exciting food court. One of the cool things the food court has was the first ever Beard Papa’s, which claims to have the world’s best creme puffs. Unfortunately for us, they were sold out of puffs the day we got there, but they sure seemed to be tasty.

Enough about real food, though. How about this store? Look So Real might not know correct grammar to name their store with, but they do have some very authentic looking plastic replica foods. Now, I’m sure this store is useful in a wholesale setting, but I’m not sure that your average mall-going consumer would really jump at the opportunity to buy fake plastic food. Perhaps the presence of the store — and its close proximity to the food court — is to get you hungry enough to buy some real food.

Look So Real in Richmond’s Aberdeen Center.

The back row looks pretty sick but the first row is extremely believable.

HOW MUCH IS THIS SET?
A whopping $199.00!

Sushi originated in Japan, so obviously, it classically started with only a few types of fish that are found around the island of Japan. Even the ever-popular-in-the-States (and particularly the Northwest) salmon was not a native Japanese sushi fish.

So what constitutes a sushi fish? I was watching Anthony Bourdain’s “No Reservations” last night and they were catching tropical fish in Saudi Arabia (tropical fish in Saudi Arabia? Sounds crazy, I know).

Parrotfish — these bright blue scary-looking yet slightly adorable mongrels — were amongst the tropical fish they caught. My local Chinese supermarket sells parrotfish. People obviously eat it.

Are all fish game for being eaten in sushi form? Or maybe all animals? Whales are fair game and whales aren’t even fish; they’re giant blubbery mammals. Horses, too, are giant mammals that are consumed in sushi form.

SO THIS I ASK YOU, DEAR SUSHIMONSTER:
Would you eat parrotfish sushi?
Why or why not?

Fruit sushi can be construed in two ways:
1) “Sushi” that looks like sushi but contains no raw fish or sushi rice; it instead has… fruit.
2) Traditional sushi with fruit as a complementary item.

This post — part one of the fruit sushi debate — will analyze some fruit sushi recipes. Absolutely perfect for vegetarians or those looking for a light, healthy summer snack.

Green Chefs offer “fruit sushi” with sushi rice made out of macadamia nuts and topped with fruits and dipping sauces. Can’t say for sure, but it sounds like macadamias are a nice touch. Sticky rice mixed with coconut milk is also a good replacement for those who can’t eat macadamias! (That’s from our own recipe.)

The DIY Network has a recipe for fruit sushi made out of sushi rice, but it is complemented with pudding, fruit, gelatin, and sweetened milk. This dish has all of the fixins’ of many Asian desserts, and the key here is balance. When the right balance is struck, it’s good. This does seem like a fairly complicated recipe, however.

We had some previous thoughts about Rachel Ray’s knowledge of sushi, but the world famous chef now has a spin on fruit sushi. I guess you don’t really need to know what fruit sushi is to make fruit sushi, right?

Recipezaar’s recipe has the fewest ingredients, but it sounds like the easiest and most delicious recipe of all. Fruits mixed with honey? Sign me up. This particular recipe takes care of the pesky little wrap problem by replacing nori with melon. Smart thinking.

And now, for the scariest sounding recipe of them all:

VegetarianTeen has a fruit sushi recipe involving raisins, nori, peanut butter, rice, and sliced apples. Maybe it’s just me, but that sounds a little sick. Which means I’ll need to go try it for myself ASAP… just to be sure.

***

So, now that you’ve seen all of these recipes, the question is: do you vote yay or nay on fruit sushi?

TokiDoki might be a sellout company in the urban art world (leSportSac much?) but the truth is, people love its cutsy little characters. Why not get two of TokiDoki’s most popular characters on a sushi shirt?!

Click here to view more TokiDoki products!

Benihana is a name that comes up at SushiMonsters is not. Through the years since its inception, Benihana has managed to open just about everywhere. When Benihana’s teppanyaki grills were originally brought to the United States by Rocky Aoki, it was long before the current popularity of sushi. The restaurants have since grown to offer sushi as well as other dinner options, now running or licensing about ninety restaurants around the world. Hiraoki Aoki (later renamed Rocky Aoki) died after complications from cancer, at the age of 69.

Visit Benihana in:
Concord, California - San Francisco, California - Seattle, Washington

These t-shirts are ideal for dirty boys and girls who want to pull some AdultFriendFinder business at a sushi restaurant? Apparently they actually sell well, too, as they are available in about a million colors…

What are your thoughts on these?

FOR WOMEN:
Melange Ringer T-Shirt ($20) - Purple on White Long-Sleeved Tee ($26)

FOR MEN:
Black T-Shirt ($20) - Black on White Long-Sleeved Tee ($27)

Alright, seeing as it’s mid-June and sushi-eating is in full swing, it’s a good time of year to go through the King County Health Inspection Records to see which restaurants have committed gross injustice to the people within the past six months. Happy eating. Mmmm. We are including only serious offenses in this list — there are most likely others for each restaurant that are less serious.

Aoki Japanese Restaurant (Seattle)
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 02/14/2008
- Raw meats, poultry, aquatic foods not stored away from ready-to-eat foods
- Room temperature storage, improper use of time as a control, procedures not available

Benihana (Seattle)
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/19/2008
- Inadequate hand washing facilities
- Food in poor condition, not safe and adulterated; unapproved additives

Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/11/2008
- Room temperature storage, improper use of time as a control, procedures not available
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)

Bento Sushi
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/10/2008
- Food contact surfaces used for raw meat, poultry, aquatic foods, or ready-to-eat foods not thoroughly cleaned and sanitized
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)

Bites
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 01/25/2008
- Raw meats, poultry, aquatic foods not stored away from ready-to-eat foods

Blue C
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 01/11/2008
- Room temperature storage, improper use of time as a control, procedures not available
- Proper Consumer Advisory not posted for raw or undercooked foods

Chinoise Cafe
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 04/07/2008
- Improper cooling procedures
- Room temperature storage, improper use of time as a control, procedures not available

Chiso
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 01/16/2008
- Hands not washed as required
- Noncompliance with risk control plans, variances, or mobile food unit plan of operation

Fuji Sushi
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 06/11/2008
- Improper methods used to prevent bare hand contact with ready-to-eat foods

Hana Japanese Restaurant
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/04/2008
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained
- Proper Consumer Advisory not posted for raw or undercooked foods

Haroo Japanese Restaurant
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/04/2008
- Food contact surfaces used for raw meat, poultry, aquatic foods, or ready-to-eat foods not thoroughly cleaned and sanitized
- Raw meats, poultry, aquatic foods not stored away from ready-to-eat foods

Hiroshi’s
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/26/2008
- Improper methods used to prevent bare hand contact with ready-to-eat foods
- Raw meats, poultry, aquatic foods not stored away from ready-to-eat foods

I Love Sushi Main
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 01/16/2008
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained
- Hands not washed as required
- Proper Consumer Advisory not posted for raw or undercooked foods
- Noncompliance with risk control plans, variances, or mobile food unit plan of operation

I Love Sushi Lake Bellevue
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 04/14/2008
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained
- Improper methods used to prevent bare hand contact with ready-to-eat foods
- Inadequate hand washing facilities
- Room temperature storage, improper use of time as a control, procedures not available
- Improper cold holding temperatures (between 42° F to 45° F)

Kozue
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 05/21/2008
- Improper shellfish identification; improper parasite destruction procedures for fish

Marinepolis Sushiland Bellevue
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 04/17/2008
- No certified PIC by accredited program, nor compliance with Code, nor correct answers
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained
- Food contact surfaces used for raw meat, poultry, aquatic foods, or ready-to-eat foods not thoroughly cleaned and sanitized
- Room temperature storage, improper use of time as a control, procedures not available
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)
- Noncompliance with risk control plans, variances, or mobile food unit plan of operation

Marinepolis Sushiland Redmond
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/05/2008
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)

Marinepolis Sushiland Tukwila
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 05/21/2008
- Inadequate hand washing facilities
- Raw meats, poultry, aquatic foods not stored away from ready-to-eat foods
- Thermometers not available or used as required to evaluate temperature of potentially hazardous foods

Mori Japanese Restaurant
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/21/2008
- Inadequate hand washing facilities
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)

Nara Japanese Restaurant
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/04/2008
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained
- Improper shellfish identification; improper parasite destruction procedures for fish
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)
- Thermometers not available or used as required to evaluate temperature of potentially hazardous foods

Oasis Cafe
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 04/16/2008
- Inadequate hand washing facilities
- Raw meats, poultry, aquatic foods not stored away from ready-to-eat foods

Osaka Japanese Restaurant
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 06/042008
- Proper Consumer Advisory not posted for raw or undercooked foods

Rice N Roll Bellevue
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 01/18/2008
- Hands not washed as required
- Raw meats, poultry, aquatic foods not stored away from ready-to-eat foods
- Improper cooling procedures
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)
- Noncompliance with risk control plans, variances, or mobile food unit plan of operation

Saito’s Japanese Cafe & Bar
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 02/29/2008
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained
- Inadequate hand washing facilities

Sam’s Sushi
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 06/09/2008
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)
- Proper Consumer Advisory not posted for raw or undercooked foods

Sumo Sushi
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 05/20/2008
- Improper methods used to prevent bare hand contact with ready-to-eat foods

Sushi & Rolls Express
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 01/15/2008
- Food contact surfaces used for raw meat, poultry, aquatic foods, or ready-to-eat foods not thoroughly cleaned and sanitized
- Inadequate hand washing facilities
- Raw meats, poultry, aquatic foods not stored away from ready-to-eat foods

Sushi Bay
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 04/22/2008
- Proper Consumer Advisory not posted for raw or undercooked foods

Sushi Kudasai
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 05/14/2008
- Inadequate hand washing facilities

Sushi Kyo
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/19/2008
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)
- Toxic substances improperly identified, stored and used

Sushi Ten
Return Inspection - 05/22/2008
- Inadequate hand washing facilities
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained

Routine Inspection/Field Review - 05/08/2008
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained
- Hands not washed as required
- Improper methods used to prevent bare hand contact with ready-to-eat foods
- Inadequate hand washing facilities
- Improper handling of pooled eggs
- Toxic substances improperly identified, stored and used

Sushiman
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/27/2008
- Inadequate hand washing facilities
- Improper handling of pooled eggs
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)

Sushi Wave
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/18/2008
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained
- Improper methods used to prevent bare hand contact with ready-to-eat foods
- Inadequate hand washing facilities

Sushi Ya
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 04/11/2008
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)
- Noncompliance with risk control plans, variances, or mobile food unit plan of operation
- Warewashing facilities not properly installed, maintained, used; no test strips available and used

Sushi Yama
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 04/01/2008
- Noncompliance with risk control plans, variances, or mobile food unit plan of operation

Todai Redmond
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 03/31/2008
- Inadequate hand washing facilities
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained

Todai Seattle
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 04/08/2008
- Inadequate hand washing facilities
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)

Toyoda Sushi
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 05/21/2008
- Inadequate hand washing facilities
- Toxic substances improperly identified, stored and used

Umi Sake House
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 04/08/2008
- Food worker card not available or current, new food workers not trained
- Inadequate hand washing facilities

Warabi Japanese Restaurant
Routine Inspection/Field Review - 05/06/2008
- Improper cold holding temperatures (>45° F)