Lunch at Kaz Sushi

During a busy day of meetings with colleagues from NY, we stopped off for a brief lunch before heading out to our next engagement with USDA. Since Kaz Sushi is next door, we set off there.

 Vegetable Bento 

 Friday lunch special: Beef Teriyaki and Sushi.

Cold Ramen Special

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The nicest part about an early lunch at Kaz is their promotion to take off 10% of the bill for diners who pay before 12:30 pm. With lunch finished, we set out for more ethanol discussions. The fascinating part about the ethanol industry is, the more you learn, the more questions you have. 

Sushiko Bento

Helping out with interviews, we had a choice of bento lunches last week.  Every year the meat, fish and vegetarian bentos are ordered from different Japanese restaurants.  Sometimes they are gloriously transcendant, other times I'm left feeling like I should have chosen better. 

 Thursday's Fish Bento.  Nice, fresh, but paltry in size compared to the steak bento that came with rice, potato salad, spinach and mashed sweet potato.  Even the vegetarian bento was more substantial.

 Friday's Fish Bento.  Despite the organizer calling and pleading for something different, only the orientation of the maki changed. I should have jumped ship with the others to the Vegetarian option.

 Vegetarian Bento.  2 maki, vegetarian nigiri and inari-zushi.

Plus! a lovely seaweed salad.

Sushi Ko Glover Park

I've gotten burned by Groupon before.  Kayak lessons groupon was purchased but couldn't book because the company was sold out for months and then the weather turned too cold.  Grrr.  However, Groupons for restaurants, I'm a fan, although I like to wait a few weeks before I use mine so the mad rush subsides a bit.  Recently they offered one for Sushiko and I had to buy it.  I like the restaurant a lot, but it can quickly become pricey if I indulge in all my favorite rolls.  Surprisingly my Japanese boyfriend has never gone there despite living in the area since the 90s.  We started with some age-dofu and gyoza before the barrage of sushi.

 Spicy scallop maki; rockshrimp, jalapeno, and cilantro maki; salmon and avocado maki.

 Sashimi Moriawase with beautiful otoro, salmon, amaebi, maguro, with two white fish we couldn't decipher but loved nonetheless.  The fish was super fresh and the two tunas were meltingly tender.

 Tuna and jalapeno maki

Salmon skin maki, saba nigiri, otoro nigiri, engawa nigiri and uni nigiri.

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Our $40 Groupon barely put a dent into the final bill but the sushi and sashimi was super fresh and delicious.  Definitely a gluttonous splurge, but what a wonderful meal together with my favorite Japanese guy for Valentine's weekend.

Japanese at Home

My boyfriend and I are trying to be more economical with our food expenditures, cook more meals at home and eat less processed foods.  This means I need to think about what we're eating for dinner and lunch bentos for the week before we head to the store.  I planned to make meals that take less prep time during the week, and the more time-intensive ideas on the weekend.  Tonight's dinner was a return to Japanese meals and included leftover soon dubu and hamul pajeon from last night's Lighthouse dinner.

 I have fancy lacquerware bento boxes I picked up at Ching Ching Cha in Georgetown.  The boxes help set the mood and presentation.  I also have lacquerware covered soup bowls I received as a gift from my Board of Education Office colleagues in Japan.

 Leftover soon dubu (spicy tofu soup) from Lighthouse Tofu in Annandale.

Hamul pajeon (seafood pancake), tonkatsu (fried pork) on cabbage and bell pepper, brussel sprouts with bell pepper, umeboshi with kyuri, and Japanese potato salad.

Yasai Tappuri Miso Ramen

I love ramen.  Another freezer staple I like to keep on hand is a package of fresh ramen.  I'm a big fan of tonkotsu and miso since I lived in western Japan, and my boyfriend prefers shoyu because he's from Kanto.  Next time we head to Super H I'll have to pick up a bag of shoyu-flavored ramen. 

There have been so many changes lately in the ramen world, with tsukemen becoming popular, Tokyo ramen shops gaining cult status and novel fusion bowls like green curry and tom yum ramen.  Next trip to Japan I really want to visit the Ramen Museum in Yokohama to try some different styles.

Yasai-tappuri miso ramen.  Pretty much an "everything but the kitchen sink" bowl.  I included sauteed onion, mushroom, carrot, celery, green beans and arugula to a boiled egg and the noodles.  The arugula was unexpectedly good.  It's nice to find a way to use up all the odds and ends of our vegetables for the week.

Kaz Sushi

Some restaurants you like for a while, but they fall out of the regular rotation.  I used to love Kaz Sushi Bistro in early 2003.  The Asian short ribs in the bento box were meltingly tender and flavorful, and the sushi combinations were inventive.  But then price point and atmosphere seemed so much livier and relaxed at Sushi Taro so I stopped going to Kaz.  Fast forward a few years past Sushi Taro's major renovation, concept change and price increase.  It's birthday time for my sushi-loving friend and we needed a good place to celebrate.  Sushi Ko in Glover Park is just inconveniently located, especially on bitterly cold winter evenings.   Since we were going after work, I made a reservation at Kaz. http://www.kazsushi.com/  

 Age-dashi Tofu ($5).  Good but I like

the dashi to be hotter.

 Coriander-Crusted Calamari Salad with a Ginger Dressing ($8).

Assortment of sushi. 

Yellowtail-scallion maki ($6.50), salmon-jalapeno maki ($5.25), spicy tuna maki ($5.25) and ume-shiso maki ($4).

Tuna tapenade nigiri ($6) and seared Albacore tuna w/ chili-daikon nigiri ($6). 

Kaz uses koshikari rice, which is cooked and seasoned well, and the portion size of both rice and fish is done correctly.  Definitely the best sushi I've had in awhile.

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The evening started out nicely.  We ordered some hot sake and caught up.  Everything on the menu sounded good to me, and we decided to share appetizers and sushi, which is one of my favorite ways to eat with friends.  Then a loud, inebriated couple sat down nearby.  It was like a car wreck in progress. You know you shouldn't look, but you're compelled to see what happens next.  A regular customer came in, gave the waitress a hug and put his fedora on her.  The gentleman next to us seemed to have a nice time surreptiously watching us watch the drunken antics across the room.  It was almost like dinner theatre.  If only there had been a mute button.

Ren's Ramen Return?

Gas, tolls and drive to NYC makes a bowl of ramen at Ippudo quite pricey.  Satisfying, but pricey.  NYC teems with ramen shops, but DC is sorely lacking.  When I want a good bowl of noodles in the area, I end up ordering pho, curry laksa or jjambbong.

Luckily the tiny ramen shop that was tucked away next to the now closed Daruma in Bethesda will be reopening this spring in Wheaton.  http://ren-ramen.com/ Despite the distance, my boss and I would make a lunch run every now and then. They had a nice ton-shio, a shoyu and a miso version with noodles sourced from Hokkaido.  They even had a yasai tappuri ramen with a vegetable broth.  Their hanjuku egg was worth the add-on fee, but the pork didn't hold a candle to the marbled chashu I've had throughout Japan.

(photo from http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/articles/39637/rens-ramen-and-remembering-the-dining-spots-dcs-lost

My favorite food board, http://www.donrockwell.com/, had a recent update that the Nakamuras found a location and are busy renovating.  Looking forward to checking them out this springtime at 11403 Amherst Avenue in Wheaton.

Sakana in Dupont

Post-office move, my boss and I headed out in our new neighborhood for lunch at Sakana.  We should have continued on down P Street to Uni, which has fresher sushi.  Everything was fine, very filling, but I'm still searching for an affordable and consistently good sushi-ya. 

Sushi bento lunch $15 with rice, tsukemono, tempura shrimp and vegetables, tamagoyaki, yakitori and breaded and fried fish. 

Pocky vs Peppero

 Side by side, they really do look nearly identical. 

 Pocky is a Japanese snack that Glico first sold in 1966.  http://pocky.jp/ Pocky are stick-shaped biscuits covered in chocolate cream.

 Pepero is a South Korean treat made by Lotte since 1983.  http://www.pepero.co.kr/ Pepero Day is 11/11, when South Koreans give Pepero to their friends and family.

Maybe I'm a traditionalist, but I prefer Pocky to it's imitator, Pepero.  Mmm. Almond Crush Pocky.

 eww..Strawberry cream covered Pocky.

 Mild Chocolate on Chocolate Pocky.

Chocolate on Chocolate Pocky.

Endo Sushi

Lyon Hall was unfortunately booked for the night, but right around the corner is a small sushi joint that fit the bill for a girls' night catch-up.  Endo Sushi is located at 3000 Washington Boulevard in the Clarendon neighborhood.  Clearly a date spot as well, we overheard what could only have been the first or second date at a nearby table.

We ordered a large variety of maki (yellowtail, spicy scallop, California roll, ume-shiso, avocado, shiitake mushroom, and a special house roll; as well as some salmon and yellowtail nigiri.  All of the fish was fresh.  

Nabe = Japanese hotpot

With the arrival of colder weather, we decided it was time for our first nabe of the season.  Nabe (or nabemono) refers to the Japanese one-pot dish where all of the ingredients are cooked together.  We used a clay pot called a "donabe" and a portable burner on a kotatsu table so we could sit and eat leisurely together. You can make your nabe with a variety of vegetables and proteins.  Different nabe varieties include yosenabe, chankonabe, yudofu, sukiyaki, shabu shabu, and there are many regional variations.  We made our nabe with vegetables and cod.

 Hakusai (napa cabbage) on the bottom, with ninjin (carrots), naganagi (leek), daikon (radish), shiitake (mushroom) and enoki (mushroom)

 The broth is made from heating water and a piece of dried kombu (seaweed) on the stovetop.

 Add all of the vegetables to the nabe.  We included pieces of tara (cod) on the bottom.

 Cover and cook.

 After 10-15 minutes, transfer the nabe to a portable stove.  The earthenware pot retains the heat well.

おいしそう!

 Add shirataki noodles (konnyaku noodles) and medium-firm tofu.

 We made the dipping sauce out of a mixture of soy sauce, rice vinegar, yuzu kosho (citrus-flavored pepper), shichimi togarashi (7 pepper spices) and raiyu (garlic sesame chili oil).

 Place some of the cooked nabe ingredients in the dipping sauce and enjoy.

At the end, we added cooked rice and a raw egg to the flavor-infused liquid in the nabe to make zousui.   ごちそうさまでした｡

Searching for good Sushi

I love sushi, sake and most Japanese foods.  The brightness of the fish, correctly-seasoned rice, a nice variety of maki and nigiri, pleasant service and moderate prices.  I don't need a maki roll so large it requires two-bites, or any concoction with cream cheese or mayonnaise broiled on top.  Unfortunately, I'm still looking for that go-to spot now that Sushi Taro has been reimagined as a kaiseki expense account place. 

Asahi sushi boat in Court House. 

The sushi was pretty decent in flavor and price, but the waitress, oh the waitress.  (shakes head) 

Old Sushi Taro.

Beautiful tamagoyaki in the front.  Rainbow roll spicy tuna maki.

Glisteningly beautiful sushi.  How I miss the Old Sushi Taro on 17th St.

Ama-ebi (sweet shrimp), spicy tuna, spider roll with soft shell crab, ume shiso maki, salmon avocado maki.

Endo Sushi in Clarendon.

It's reasonably priced and pretty decent, but the maki are a little large.

They make very pretty garnishes including the carrot butterfly next to the wasabi tobiko nigiri.

Kaz Sushi Bistro http://www.kazsushi.com/

Tuna and jalapeno ($5.50), ume shiso ($4), salmon avocado ($5.25) maki with flounder with ume shiso ($5.50), sea scallop ($5) and shrimp ($4.50) nigiri.  Good, but pricey.

Kotobuku sushi http://www.kotobukiusa.com/

Sushi Deluxe with fresh nigiri and spicy tuna maki ($18).

Good quality fish, lower prices, but spare and small dining room with no reservations.

Kotobuki's kinpira salad

I'd like to try their kamameshi, but I rarely make it out to their MacArthur Boulevard location.

Magical Mitsuwa

 If you're feeling nostalgic for Japanese foods since Daruma and other area Japanese grocery stores have closed, your best alternative is a road trip to Edgewater, New Jersey.  http://www.mitsuwa.com/english/  Mitsuwa is a large Japanese supermarket with a food court.  Also nearby is the Sanseido bookstore, which  carries Japanese books, magazines and stationery goods.  The food court has a variety of small counters.  Place your order, pay in cash, and wait for your number to be called. 

 Katsuhana. I love the plastic food display. 

 My boyfriend chose the Berkshire Pork Katsu (fried pork cutlet) set. ($11.50)

 I ordered the Kani-Cream Croquettes Set (crab and cream-filled croquettes) ($7.20).

Sanuki Udon is a famous type of udon from Kagawa-ken on Shikoku and very delicious.

 Sanuki-Sando Udon Display

 My croquette set with finely shredded cabbage salad, rice, tonjiru soup and pickles. 

 My boyfriend's pork katsu set with rice, cabbage, pickles, tofu and tonjiru soup.

***

We wandered about shopping for books and groceries for a while, and returned for a second meal at Kayaba, a soba place.  Slightly gluttonous, but totally worth it.

 Zaru Soba with tempura and tsuyu set ($5.90)

 Tempura soba in a hot broth. ($5.90)

 Soba noodles are made from buckwheat flour.  They're great hot or cold.  The cold version is served on a bamboo mat called a "zaru", then dipped into a bowl of "tsuyu", a dipping sauce of dashi, sweet soy sauce, and mirin.

Tempura soba in a hot "tsuyu" broth.  The tempura quickly becomes soggy. 

 Oishinbo

 This little girl was eagerly watching the ladies make fresh taiyaki and obanyaki.

 Taiyaki and custard-filled taiyaki.

 Taiyaki "baked sea bream are made in molds with waffle batter filled with sweet bean paste "azuki".

My boyfriend fondly remembers the taiyaki shop near the train station.  Every night on his way to juku, he'd pass by this shop and smell the delicious treats.

 Another variety includes custard.

Sweet bean paste.

Custard filling.