Joe F.
Yelp
| Review #200 |
There were two essentials for my 200th review: First, it would have to be at a place neither my girlfriend nor myself had ever been; second, it would have to be Japanese food. One year ago, we were adventuring in Waikiki and experienced some of the most fantastic Japanese fare imaginable. Arizona is far, far away from the Islands, but surely one of our restaurants could come close, right?
An important admission: We had a different place in mind for dinner tonight, but despite the Google report, they were in fact closed. Sushi San was a close second, and with raving reviews on Yelp and Google, we decided to check it out.
The interior, as others can attest to, is cozy and near-traditional. Photos of happy patrons adorn the walls, you can sit in the comfy booths or the vibrant sushi bar, and -- for some curious reason -- K-pop was playing on mute from the raised televisions.
Our server presented us with menus and a pen and paper for our order. Forgive us, but we did not realize we actually needed to write stuff down; we thought that was for the AYCE option, which we did not go for. Our server only seemed mildly exasperated when we verbalized our order, and she wrote it down in front of us. To be frank, I was not keen on her attitude; for the entirety of our visit she was cold and aloof. The other servers appeared much friendlier. That out of the way, let's move on to the food.
| Complimentary Miso Soup |
Nice way to start off our dinner. The taste was superb; I could have gone for more tofu, but that's alright.
| Seaweed Salad |
Simple, light, and bright green. Nothing out of the ordinary to report.
| Arizona Roll |
Spicy tuna atop a spicy crab and cucumber roll. A good concept, but for a roll named after our state, I'd expect something a lot nicer! The spicy tuna had no texture; it was just globs of kickin' fish that the cucumber did well to cool down. The roll was mushy overall and melted in your mouth, but not in a good way.
| Shrimp Tempura Roll |
Shrimp tempura, cucumber, avocado, and an eel sauce drizzle. The flavor was good, but like the Arizona roll, there was no texture. It was also cut unevenly; a mild complaint, of course, but it did the roll no favors.
| Udon |
Sorry, but thumbs way down. One piece of thin shrimp tempura, a decent serving of noodles, underwhelming broth aplenty, and nothing else. Hawaii must have spoiled us with tempura galore and plenty of decorative fixings in our bowls because this display was miserable!
| Chicken Yakisoba Noodle |
Yakisoba noodles, despite their name, are made from wheat flour. These noodles were heartily seasoned to their credit, loaded with vegetables, and there was a lot of chicken to go around. The problem was that the chicken was bone dry, and -- strange complaint coming from me, I know -- the quantity was just too much. I'm not that concerned about the latter, though; I will use my leftovers for an egg-white omelet tomorrow.
| Verdict |
I want to assure you, my friends, that for my 200th review, I tried to keep an optimistic attitude all dinner long. However, given the lackluster, borderline-rude service, the disappointing sushi, the even more disappointing udon, and the uninspiring mass of chicken yakisoba noodles, I render a 2-star verdict for Sushi San. A sticker on the door claims that Yelp loves them; tonight, I am left wondering...how so? While the restaurant does not tout itself as Asian fusion, that's essentially what it is; the authenticity is not effectively feigned.
I'm not opposed to coming back to try something new, but as more businesses reopen, the likelihood of a sequel to this review is satisfactorily low. I've had better, and I know the Grand Canyon State has better to offer! I will find it.
So, although we are not throwing a happy celebration for 200 reviews, let's lob off a couple of zeroes for a 2-star review I enjoyed writing. Perhaps #201 will be better!
Godspeed.
