Sushi Wave

You know, I was all set to say Sushi Wave was average.  I had been there fore a lackluster lunch service, and had some Chicken Jalapeño, some Teriyaki Salmon, Spicy Scallop sushi roll, and a Blue Georgia roll.  In a word, everything was pretty average.

Because Sushi Wave is the favorite place of a few close friends, I gave it another shot.  That time, I ordered a Cool Spring roll and Lollipop roll.  Here are the pics:

These pictures are worth a thousand words.  Craftily put together, delicious balance of flavors, imaginative.  I loved them.  The first wasn’t –that– imaginative, but it was a little, and the second roll was.  I also happen to be a sucker for sweet shrimp.  And that was sweet shrimp interspersed with avocado.

Freaking fried heads.  I love it.  The Cool Spring roll was a much more interesting, and delicious, take on the "classic" "American" Spider roll.  So, here is my verdict.  3 for the first trip, 4 for the second.  3.5 in total, and above average.  I would recommend giving them a try, in particular given the dearth of good downtown Seattle sushi lunch joints.  I’m excited to drop by for a dinner service and see if it’s better so maybe they can earn and out and out four.

Sushi Wave
2904 1st Avenue  Seattle, WA 98121
(206) 441-4348

Mon-Fri	11am–2:30pm, 5–9:30pm
Sat	5–9:30pm
Sun	Closed

3.5 of 5

Famous Kahuku Shrimp (Truck)

On our culinary odyssey through the Hawaiian isles, my wife and I decided to try a few shrimp trucks.  Our first attempt was the "Famous Kahuku Shrimp (Truck)" in Kahuku, Oahu - on the North Shore.  We ordered the Hot and Spicy Shrimp, and Coconut Shrimp.  Honestly, it wasn't that great.  It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great.

Looking at those shrimp, you expect there to be an explosion of flavor.  They were good, but the explosion was lacking.  No explosion.  The dish was one note.  My Hawaiian friends over the pond will be disappointed to hear me say this, but the facts are the facts (and by that I mean this is my opinion).  Plates are not cheap at $10-15 each, so it's not a steal of a deal.  And then there was the macaroni salad.  Salt, pepper, elbow noodles, mayo.  It was bad.  

In the end, I would say, drop by if you are in the area and give it a whirl, but don't go out of your way to this truck like we did.  Moreover, tell them to hold the mac salad, and just take an extra scoop of rice.  Yelp, you let us down - another Aloha Bump.  But DO TRY SHRIMP TRUCKS IN HAWAII.  

Famous Kahuku Shrimp (truck)

56-580 Kamehameha Hwy
North Shore, Oahu 
Kahuku, Hawaii 96731 
Hours of Operation: 10 AM - 6 PM Daily

Email: Famouskahukushrimptruck@gmail.com

(808) 389-1173
3 of 5

Thomas Haas

In the Miramar Shopping Plaza in Hong Kong’s Kawloon district, you can find a little sweet shop Thomas Haas.  Their macaroons looked tasty, and with a few Hong Kong Dollars burning a hole in my pocket, I picked up pistachio, licorice and vanilla, and coconut cream and passion fruit ones.

They were good renditions, though the inside was a bit pasty.  The crust was right on the mark, which I understand is the most challenging part of making macaroons.  Overall, if you are in the area and the mood, you won’t be wasting your hard earned money if you throw a few dollars down on some macaroons. 

Thomas Haas
Shop 1001, Miramar Shopping Centre
132 Nathan Road
Tsim ShaTsui, Kowloon 
尖沙咀美麗華商場1001店
Tel: (852) 2992 0799
Email: enquiry@thomashaas.com.hk
Hong Kong, China
3 of 5

Adem Baba (Seafood)

Mmmmm... Adem Baba's sole shish kebab.  This place is a bit of a local institution, and on recommendations from Trip Advisor I ordered the fried calamari and some shishes.  A brief tangent, I have not found TripAdvisor to be very reliable.  I was able to find another review of Adem Baba from Istanbul Eats who I do greatly respect.  I'm glad I made the trip.

The bread they give you is good.  The cornbread stuff is dry.  The calamari tasted delicious, and were the right non-chewy, toothy consistency.  Their little sauce that comes with them was also pretty decent, they were just a bit too greasy.  But, the Sole shish kebabs were so delicious I still think about them.  I still crave them!

They were delicious because they were simple.  Sole. Peppers.  Tomato.  Lemon.  Simple grilled, perfectly cooked.  They had the right blend of natural flavor, heat, acid, and grill.  And a few leaves of sorrel.  I love sorrel!  I've tried to replicate them at home, and thus far have failed.  It's not cheap by Turkish standards, but it's not too bad for the average traveler.


Adem Baba
Arnavutköy Mh.  
Satış Meydanı Sokak 2
34000 Istanbul, Turkey
0212 263 2933
3.5 of 5 (shishes get a 5 all day long)

Buddha Ruska Thai Cuisine

My wife has very few food cravings.  She craves ice cream.  She craves chocolate.  She craves crappy pizza.  She craves potatoes, sweet corn, and hamburgers.  And she craves Thai.

Larb

We decided to give Buddha Ruska in West Seattle a shot one day.  It came pretty highly recommended, and it was not disappointing.  It just wasn't fantastic.  We ordered Chicken Larb, Lemongrass Chicken, Crispy Garlic Chicken, and Pad Thai.  The Larb was good.  The Pad Thai was good.  We still talk about the Crispy Garlic Chicken, it is crave worthy.  The Lemongrass Chicken was only ok.  A quick word on their spice levels, with the Larb you can taste it - but it's mostly just adding extra red pepper (lazy spice).

Pad Thai

Lemongrass Chicken

The Winner - Crispy Garlic Chicken

So what did we think in the end.  If you are in the neighborhood, it's a solid option.  If we do find ourselves again in West Seattle, there's a good chance we'll stop by for some of their Crispy Garlic Chicken.  I am not sure we would go out of our way to Buddha Ruska though, in particular as the service is a bit slow. 


Buddha Ruska 
3520 Southwest Genesee Street  
Seattle, WA 98126
(206) 937-7676
3.5 of 5

Nobu - Dubai

Nobu Nobu Nobu.  After hearing about Nobu for years, I finally went to Nobu in Dubai.  I wanted to get the deluxe omakase because I doubted I would be back anytime soon.  The waiter, however, talked me out of Omakase Deluxe for Omakase (regular), reasoning that if this was my first Nobu experience the regular Omakase meal would provide a great overview of the restaurant.  I'm never opposed to saving a few dollars, and I appreciate waiters that do not recommend the most expensive thing on a menu, so I went with it.  I was a little disappointed in the end, but more to come...

Take a gander at that giant lobster!

I always feel like I'm in a pretentious place when I have to pay for still water.  Nobu was no exception - they brought me out Fiji - at least it's a personal favorite.  Water is water, after all, but Acqua Panna and Fiji are the two best bottled waters out there.  I digress.


First course. Yellowtail, salsa, cucumber, fried seaweed. The fried seaweed looked cool and tasted good.  Very tasty bites, but a bit unremarkable. Fresh, clean, but I will forget about that dish. (Being a little behind on blog posts, I can tell you I did actually forget about this dish... even if it does look like art.)

Second course. Salmon roll, salad roll, ginger roll, and miso dressing. Note the lack of rice in the salmon roll.  I love riceless sushi - like this, or wrapped with cucumber.  I'm a sucker for it.  The Miso "dressing" was light and sweet and delicious. Then Anchovies were a burst of flavor and nice texture contrast (see them fused together - they were like a cracker). The micro greens were flavorful, and the salmon roll was delicate and delicious too. (I did remember this dish, and I can still taste that pickled veg in my mouth today.)

Third course. Wood roasted oven Sole with Jalepeno sauce. Perfect crispy skin on the sole. Yum.  The sauce was good, light and fulfilling (though it didn't have much zip), and the flecks of flower on the top were a nice touch. It was the best Sole I've eaten, but not the best rendition of dishes of this type.

Fourth course. Alaskan black cod, with miso marinade. This is a Nobu house specialty. The sweet miso sauce very similar to the sauce on the second plate. This dish was very good, but I've had better marinated black cod cheeks at Maneki, a 100 year old Japanese restaurant in Seattle.  Maybe I am being a bit picky, but I was expecting real magic.  (It does look good, huh?)

Fifth course. Sizzling Beef Teppanyaki (on a personal stone plate) with mixed mushrooms. I was told this would be a Wagyu course on the Deluxe Omakase. I wish I'd ordered that now. The ju was so delicious that I could have poured it on a bowl of rice and eaten it like a porridge. A super rich, heart attack portage. Mmmm.  This was the first truly remarkable dish of the evening, and it would have been all the more spectacular with Wagyu. A word to the wise, order one shade under what you want, the beef continues to cook on the plate and Middle Easterners always overcook their meats. I ordered mine rare, and it ended up being a perfect mid-rare.

Sixth course. Sushi and miso. To say this was an incredibly sparing portion may do injustice to other sparing portions out there. Spicy tuna, salmon, seabass, and sweet shrimp were served. The Rice was perfectly cooked - not a trivial accomplishment. The spicy tuna, a scallion, Jalapeno, tuna roll was a tasty riff on the classic, but needed more spice for me. The miso soup had a hidden surprise, two pieces of clam at the bottom. While that was nice, this was by no means the best miso soup I've ever eaten. Again, nice, but not memorable. (Again, I'd literally forgotten about it.)

Seventh course.  "Pre-dessert" Tiramisu mochi. Shockingly delicious (since I don't generally like tiramisu and hate the flavor of coffee).  It was much more subtle than I expected with almost fruity notes. The consistency was not the best, but the ratio of mochi to ice cream was on the mark.

Eighth course. The finale was a warm chocolate souffle, a la a molten chocolate cake. The sorbet, a banana one, WAS one of the best I'd had and the dessert was a very successful end to the meal.  A real high note.  

Overall.  The wait staff was attentive and excellent.  Without a doubt they raised the quality of my experience.  Watching on during the preparation of dozens of sushi pieces and rolls was great fun while I sat at the sushi bar.  The ingredients looked fresh and of excellent quality, but the portions were stingy, small, and the price tag was high. I'd recommend the restaurant for impressing someone, like a prospective client, or for a trendy, modern Japanese atmosphere and special occasion. You can get numerous hard-to-find (in Dubai) luxurious ingredients like Otoro, Wagyu, etc.  This said, if you are not willing to shell out the money for specialty Japanese fare (and by specialty, I mean said hard to find items), you should probably go to somewhere more reasonably priced.


Nobu - Dubai
Atlantis (Hotel)
The Palm (Jumeirah)
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
971.4.426.2626
4 of 5 (only 3 in its class - aka fine dining or fancy Japanese)

La Mar Cebicheria Peruana

La Mar's Cebicheria Peruvian restaurant installment in New York City was good, even very good, but just not great.  It is well known for its cebiche/ceviche (maybe Cebicheria is a giveaway) - the fish, veggie, and acid combo that leaves the fish (or shrimp, octopus, squid, etc) slightly cooked by the acid but still delicate and quasi-raw.  There is an enzyme reaction that you can see from lemon, lime, orange, pineapple, etc., juices mixing with the seafood that indicates it has been done well.  It normally has some red onion, and then any other variety of ingredients.


La Mar's cebiche was very good.  We ordered a sampling featuring octopus, tuna, shrimp and white fish.  The octopus was an absolute winner.  The tuna was great, but a tad sweet (the pineapple juice I believe).  The white fish was forgettable because the others were much better, and the final Del Tigre spicy shrimp ceviche was probably the best of the lot.  It had a great balance of spice.  Not a bargain, but when at a Cebicheria, do as the Peruvians...


For dinner I ordered the Squid Ink rice and Scallop number, and my first dinner companion ordered the Asian inspired Hamachi while the other got the Grilled Salmon.  My meal was great, and the scallop was excellently cooked, but the one scallop top and one other mixed in hardly read "main course" to me.  The Hamachi was a bit disappointing, and the Salmon was really solid (but basic).   

We got this dulche de leche, with strawberries and guava thing dessert.  I think they were trying to do something deconstructed, but it just ended up being a bit of a jumble.  Sort of mochi ball and crumble with a little leche.  Overall, the meal was nice, great flavors, great cebiche's with few disappointments.  The fact was, however, between the price and the a few misses (Hamachi, weird dessert), it's not quite at the level of 'overall fantastic.'  We all had a great time, and if you are entertaining I doubt your client will be upset, but I won't be rushing back soon myself.

Deconstructed dessert thing

La Mar Cebicheria Peruana
11 Madison Avenue  
New York, NY 10010
(212) 612-3388
3.5 of 5

Sushi Maki

There was a day, a not very proud day, when my wife and I decided to spend about $60 and buy a huge plate of party sushi for just the two of us.  We did this at Sushi Maki, in Seattle's Capitol Hill because it has so little space inside. 


We ordered a party platter with a:
-Vegetarian roll
-Salmon Lover roll
-Spicy California roll
-California roll
-Spicy Yellowtail roll
-Salmon roll
-California roll with tobiko
-Shrimp Tempura roll
-Rainbow roll


and...
-Spicy Scallop handroll
-Tuna nigiri
-Salmon nigiri

In the end, my wife commented "everything sort of tasted the same."  She was right.  The Salmon Lover roll was a standout, the Spicy Scallop handroll was surprisingly not too great. Most things were "california-centric" and it did make all the pieces taste the same.  The nigiri was a little awkward, but ok enough.  It also didn't keep well in the fridge (though little sushi does).  With so many choices for sushi in Seattle, average probably isn't good enough.  It could have easily been 2.5, but the price was not bad...


Sushi Maki
1633 Bellevue Avenue  
Seattle, WA 98122
(206) 264-0725
3 of 5 

Squeeze Inn

My family descended upon the poor unsuspecting Squeeze Inn in Galt, California (right outside Sacramento) to try their famous grilled-crisp cheese cheeseburgers.  Once a modest establishment, Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, and other accolades have caused rather rapid and aggressive expansion.  We ordered just about every type of burger and fry they served, milk shakes, and other artery cloggers.  In the end, we enjoyed ourselves, but a mix of average service and often underseasoned food caused the overall assessment to be rather lower than where they could, and probably should, be.

The milkshakes were large and delicious.

The fries were fresh and cooked perfectly, but needed more salt.

The chili fries were a meal unto themselves and featured good, Texas-style red (no bean with meat) chili.

The sweet potato fries (a new addition) were rather disappointing.  They had an odd taste, were crisp but not 100% delicious, and the wasabi ranch sauce was probably powder ranch mixed with powder wasabi (resulting in an extremely tart, oddly tangy - in the wrong way - pretty impossible to eat mix).

The burgers were beastly (hand for scale) with a delicious side of crispy cheese (which I folded back onto the burger).

And filled to the gills!  (Fork for scale of crispy cheese).  The patties were the thin variety, not fat "Red Robin" style, but more expanded "Wendy's" style.  This said, they were juicy and well cooked.  We couldn't be sure they weren't frozen, but such is life.  The main issue with the burger was the meat was underseasoned.  Salt - Pepper.  Feel free to also add a little Garlic Powder, etc.

Overall, good but not great.  We were glad to have gone.  Crispy cheese, what a fantastic idea to create a unique burger experience around it!  Bravo!  Our party could have been a little nicer, and so could the host/first server.  For example, as we arrived (with a large group) the servers were unwilling to allow us to move together a few tables (with 3/4 of the space open).  They wanted us to sit near each other, but not connected or wait for at least 10-15 minutes.  Some quick subterfuge later and the tables were connected.  

This did not seem to be a problem for local high school kids around.  The staff seemed perfectly content to allow them to nurse their fries for 45 minutes or more and drop by to see what they needed.  It appeared we caught them between shifts though, as one less helpful waitress left, a new, more helpful waitress arrived.  Seemed they may have wanted us to wait because one waitress did not want to help a big party and end up with no tip.  I cannot say I completely agreed with how our group handled the situation, but the service from hosting to serving never was super impressive.  

The Squeeze Inn

545 Industrial Drive  

Galt, CA 95632
(209) 745-4313

3.5 of 5

Kabuki Fusion Sushi and Grill

Located just outside of downtown Knoxville, Tennessee was a surprising tasty little sushi joint named Kabuki Fusion Sushi and Grill.  Gratefully, it was close to my hotel, as well as a gaggle of other major hotel chains, and I was able to just mosey on down there for the Kabuki dance.  The decor was tacky, the service was stingy, but the sushi was solid.

I ordered:

Fresh scallop nigiri (pass)

Spicy scallop (pass)

Soy kingdom roll (good)
-tuna, salmon, mango and avocado wrapped in soy paper served with wasabi sauce

California roll (ok)

Oscar roll (good)
-Spicy salmon, asparagus, cucumber with white tuna, jalapeno and sriracha hot sauce on top

Phoenix roll (good)
-Yellow tail, spicy crunch, asparagus, and scallion with spicy tuna on top

The prominently displayed sushi bar on the left of the restaurant tried to be trendy, playing top 40 music with the staff in dark uniforms.   It was sort of cheap, with a modern feel that said both Japanese and middle of Tennessee.  However, the mix of paint, seat, table, and light colors can best be described as discordant.

Really though, you care about the food.  They had a decent menu.  The scallops were not fresh enough, and not the right kind for raw preparation.  They were ok, just not that good raw.  The Oscar roll, and Soy Kingdom (which actually comes out with a maraschino cherry) were standouts.  The rice was well cooked, and the overall value for what you have to pay is quite outstanding.  The Phoenix roll was good (just not as good as the Oscar and Soy Kingdom).  The place was lacking specials - you know the kind, displayed prominently on a chalk board by the sushi bar.  Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of their sushi since Tennessee can hardly be considered a sushi mecca.  If I were you, I would go by on a Weds for half off (select) sushi.


Kabuki Fusion Sushi and Grill

10901 Parkside Dr # 101
Knoxville, TN 37934
(865) 288-9119
3.5 of 5 (overall)

4.5 (knoxville sushi)

Serious Pie - Westlake

Serious Pie had a lot going for it. We loved our Westlake experience, which was less hustle and bustle, accommodating, and laid back. Unfortunately, Serious Pie also hit a few sour notes. This is the problem with going somewhere that has a reputation that not only precedes it, but precedes it by blocks. And blocks. And blocks.  (Because it's a Tom Douglas restaurant)

Let's jump right into it. Serious Pie's duck prosciutto appetizer was phenomenal. Slap your mamma good. Write home about it. The prosciutto was arguably the best I've ever eaten. The beets were nicely done and seasoned, and the pistachios added a delightful crunch. 


On the other side, my friend told me the bread soup was under-seasoned and a bit bland - really too bad because it looked so good. Hit, and miss.

The party I was with ordered a number of pizzas amongst the group. If you are a light eater, you might decide to split a pie with a loved one, but generally you need one pie per person. We ordered so many, the waitress got an order wrong. This wouldn't be a problem, if not for how ravenous you are by the time your pizza actually lands in front of you (aka, the wait is a bit long). The waitress thought my friend had ordered a mushroom pizza, which most assuredly she had not because she hates (hate hates) mushrooms. That was boxed, and comped, and her actual order was put in, but it was still 10-15 minutes later until it was delivered.  So that was a miss, and then a hit (because I consider this good customer service).

The Pizza in Question...

The pizzas were good, some even great. For example, the fennel sausage and soft egg with arugula pizzas were great. 

Delicious Fennel Sausage

Delicious Arugula and Over Easy Egg

The buffalo mozzarella pizza was good. 

Good - Meat added

The vegetarian offerings, the squash and a pear special, were also good, even very good. 

Special, Squash and Pear - and YES, these ingredients belong on Pizza!

The Penn Cove clams pizza, however, was only ok. It had a substantial amount of promise, but with the pancetta and clams, along with what seasoning was added, it was almost inedibly-salty. Also, maybe because of the thin crust, maybe because of neglect, a few of the pies had singed sides (read: burnt). This was another round of some hits, and misses.

Over-salty Clam Miss

The desserts were all hit. The budino, coconut cream pie, and ice cream were decadent and delicious. I would call in and take just their desserts on the road with me, and I am a savory man, no sweet.  In my opinion, this is high praise.  My wife still talks about the coconut cream pie...

The final verdict... at the price Serious Pie commands, it must not just be good, or very good, it must be great all the time. You expect orders to be correct, wait time to be reasonable, and dishes to be correctly seasoned. Because of this, I have to say it only merits 3.5 of 5. With proper seasoning and uniform doneness, Serious Pie would sit at a 4, and if everything were as delicious as the prosciutto (about which I still talk and think, and dream), it would be a 5 all the way!

Serous Pie
401 Westlake Avenue North
(206) 436-0050
Seattle, WA 98109
3.5 of 5