The izakaya menu here is extensive– yakitori, kushiyaki, stews, grilled fish, pickled items, sushi, sashimi, soups; you get the idea. Prices here border on the cheap and as competitive as the other places. Get an item from each category and prepare to have a leisurely meal. Oh, did I mention, your first 12oz draft beer is only 99cents? Until September at least.

One of my favorites here is the Spicy Geso. I like their version of these deep-fried squid legs. The batter is so thin, almost non-existent, and each piece is laced with a spicy powder. You get chewy, crispy, and spicy. Love it.

I love Gindara Misozuke. Or ginadara for that matter. The portion here is a lot smaller but it is also $3 cheaper than its counterparts. It is perfectly grilled and melts in your mouth. There is a tiny hint of miso paste flavor and butter. Swoon.

I am such a sucker when it comes to Chawan Mushi. And I love all versions — Korean, Chinese, Japanese. The delicious chicken stock they use here is flavored with dashi and mirin and provides a great backdrop for the soft egg custard. Mmmm.

I wasn’t so impressed with their tonkotsu ramen. At $9.25, it didn’t even come with pork. The broth was a cross between shio and shoyu (salt and soy) and I couldn’t really taste the creamy tonkotsu. Serves me right for asking for something that’s not on the menu. They do have udon and soba soups that are far better. Get those instead.

No trip to an izakaya is complete without grilled squid. The Ika Butteryaki here is so tender and the butter-teriyaki sauce will blow you away. It isn’t your normal Americanized teriyaki sauce. Their concoction has butter, grated ginger, and a sweet soy sauce. Fantastic.

Skewers of pork belly and chicken balls rule here. The pork belly slices are thick, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. The chicken balls are made of soft, minced meat. Get them both with salt. So good.

There’s this Eggplant Miso that I have to warn you about. It’s a thick slice of American eggplant that is marinated in miso paste then steamed. The middle part is hollowed and filled with eggplant meat and annatto. It’s good. But it is way too rich that you’d feel so full if you eat it first. So eat it last.

The sushi and sashimi here have improved in quality as well. So do be sure to get a few rolls and slices on your visit. What are you waiting for? Go now.

Insider tip:
Check website for new menu items monthly and dinner specials.
First order of 12oz draft beer for $0.99 available during dinner only all throughout August.
Selected wine and sake are 50% off on Sundays and Mondays.

Sushi Mito
6470 Spalding Dr
Norcross, GA 30092
(770) 734-0398

Technorati Tags: Japanese, izakaya, Norcross

Haru’s tonkotsu ramen has been consistently amazing these past few weeks. Want to jazz up your soup like I do? Add a soft-poached egg for $1.00 extra. You can thank me later.

Haru Ichiban
3646 Satellite Blvd
Duluth, GA 30096
(770) 622-4060

Technorati Tags: sushi, Japanese, Duluth, Pleasant Hill, Gwinnett

Uni makes the absolute best food porn, no? This uni sashimi tastes as awesome as it looks. So creamy. Silky. Smooth. Heavenly. Melts in your mouth. My happy food. Yum.

Go ahead, be happy!

Oh, and, yeah, three more days before I come back!

More here.

Sushi Huku
6300 Powers Ferry Rd NW
Atlanta, GA 30339
(770) 956-9559

Technorati Tags: uni, Japanese, Smyrna

If you love steamed pork buns as much as I do, then you will go crazy over Miso’s new sliders or Bun. My favorite? The simmered pork belly, of course. The pork is braised in this delicious sauce. It is so tender. The cilantro makes it more Asian than it already is. Oh, soooooo good.

But that’s not it. All the buns are great. The crispy duck, the hamburger (which is actually a meatloaf), the hotdog, and the tonkatsu are all great. You have to try them all.

One last thing… the Pork Kimchi is insane. It’s got this tender pork stir-fried with spicy kimchi in all its glorious grease. Talk about foodgasm. I ate it with plain buns. Oh. My.

More reviews here.

Miso Izakaya
619 Edgewood Ave SE
Atlanta, GA 30312
(678) 701-0128

Technorati Tags: Japanese, izakaya, downtown

If you have the time (and money, of course) to spare, I highly recommend getting the Omakase. It is a somewhat pricey, multi-course kaiseki meal, lasting about two hours that consists of nothing but the freshest ingredients of the day (and season). If that does not sound like something that would fit your schedule or budget, I highly suggest you order off the day’s Special menu with items that are not conventionally found in Japanese restaurants. Kaiseki meals are traditional meals served in conjunction with Japanese tea ceremonies. It typically includes a soup, three side dishes, sunomono (vinegared dish), sashimi, yakimono (grilled dish), nimono (simmered dish), and sushi.

The first course of our meal included a piece of marinaded herring with Colza buds (similar to rapeseed). This was very interesting because the texture of the fish was made gritty by the seeds. It was like having an explosion in your mouth with every bite as the buds popped like tiny roe. The tamago (omelet) topped with a dollop of mild teriyaki sauce was a refreshing start. The creamy lobster salad wrapped in a single shiso leaf was a contrast of textures.

A sunomono of super sweet shrimp, snow crab leg, mackerel, and octopus with seaweed and paper-thin slices of cucumbers was invigorating. The tartness and sweetness of the dish woke up your taste buds.

Sliced jellyfish (flown in from Japan) was sweet and gelatinously wonderful. The shiso buds added a slight crunch and a berry taste overall. This elicited an oh-my-god-this-is-wonderful comment from me at every bite.

A big bowl of the freshest sashimi came next. It had squid, octopus, yellow tail, red snapper, tuna, and salmon. A special soy sauce is made in-house just for accompanying this — a concoction of soy sauce, dashi, sake, and sugar. Phenomenal.

Tiny, baby octopus fried golden in a light, flour batter was served with dollops of Japanese mayo. These were delicious.

A nimono of tender, sweet, steamed flounder with taro, daikon, okra, and carrot in a miso-soy-dashi broth catapulted me instantly to food heaven. I had to have complete silence, stopping all chatter at the table, as I savored each and every bite. I oohed and aahed as each bite went into my mouth. Umami. Enough said.

A thick slab of grilled salmon in a very light teriyaki sauce was very flavorful.

A sushi plate came next. It had otoro, yellow tail, mackerel, sea scallops, snow crab leg, and tamago. Each was as fresh as the other. The sushi rice was perfection — perfectly steamed, served at a perfect room temperature, and seasoned perfectly. Everything was just perfect.

My most favorite here is the Ikura Don. No one and I mean no one in the state of Georgia makes it better than Chef Art. Normally super salty, he preps the salmon roe in a manner that the saltiness is not offensive, yet still there; and adds a slight hint of sweet to make this an amazing, memorable dish eaten with his perfect sushi rice.

I have finished every single morsel of food that was served. But before I could go to a complete and total food coma, the last part of the meal came next: dessert. This tiny, two-ounce, house-made granita made with Calpico (a popular, yogurty, Japanese drink) is sweetened with honey and laced with the strongest, non-alcohol tasting, sake. I am sure it is just me, but two, teeny, tiny spoonfuls of this was enough to get me, well, drunk.

So far, my best meal of 2010.

Insider tip:
This omakase was $65 per person.
Reservations accepted.

The scoop:
Sushi House Hayakawa
5979 Buford Hwy NE
Atlanta, GA 30340
(770) 986-0010

Technorati Tags: sushi, Japanese, Buford Highway

I had absolutely no expectations when a group of us 13 girls came in for dinner one busy Saturday night. The reason being, I prefer authentic sushi from traditional sushi joints. RA Sushi clearly doesn’t qualify but we wanted to have a fun girls’ night out at a trendier place with at least good cocktails and decent food. With those pretty low standards and expectations of good food out of the way, I knew it was going to be nothing but a fun night.

While all the other girls got different kinds of rolls, dinner selections for me and my sister included the sashimi plates, eel hosamaki, and uni gunkanmaki (our absolute favorite). We really don’t care much for bastardized rolls geared for the American palate which are often doused, drizzled, laced, and topped with fruit, mayo, sauces, cream cheese, and such. Anyway, here’s the kicker: the sashimi was absolutely exceptional!!! (Notice the triple exclamation points?) I love it when a place proves me wrong and I was totally blown away by the sashimi here. The fish were of the perfect temperature and the slices were done right. The most surprising thing was the quality. I could not believe how superb the quality of the fish were — first, the tuna wasn’t just regular tuna but the pricier and higher caliber chutoro. Each slice was so fresh, buttery, and literally melted in your mouth. The yellowtail, salmon, and whitefish were of equal grade and without the sinewy, stringy flesh common in cheaper cuts. The octopus were also a delight, tender, and not chewy at all. Sashimi is all about texture because, face it, raw fish should not taste like anything. You can control how much flavor you want to add with the shiso, soy sauce, wasabi, and daikon. I just wished they used fresh wasabi for the price point that they have. Surprisingly, however, the sashimi was outstanding for a place like this with so much bad rep and preconceived bias, mine included.

Uni (sea urchin) is our most favorite sushi. A perfect meal for us would be a pound of freshly harvested uni on top of warm sushi rice, aah, so yummy. The uni here was very fresh and creamy. It was of medium grade but had all the tastes of top quality variety. The sweetish-salty flavor is quite intoxicating.

We originally wanted eel hosamaki which was not on the menu so a bit of explaining to the server had to be made. My sister and I love hosamakis because they’re the perfect snack: not much rice and the nori gives extra flavor to the fish. What came before us was regular eel roll instead. Rather than sending it back, I decided to use it as a measuring stick. The main reason for sloppy rolls is the rice. Here, the rice is too soft, brought about by using too much water in the steaming process. Too soft rice will make rolls fall apart as there is not enough structure to hold the ingredients in. I did like the fact that they use teriyaki sauce sparingly.

Another notable item on the table was the ceviche which was excellent. The fish was so fresh and the citrus marinade was very good. We don’t like American rolls so we didn’t even try any but I noticed how big they were. Our seaweed salad was nothing out of the ordinary but it wasn’t bad either. The tempura were a bit over-fried and the batter was coated unevenly. Skip the overpriced edamame altogether.

Final thoughts:

• Definitely a fun, energetic place especially for groups.
• We had two servers (a main one and an assistant) so service was pretty good.
• Syrupy cocktails tend to be extremely sweet.
• Prices are reflective of the area and type of establishment, which were quite reasonable.
• They were playing awesome music on our visit: rock, pop, indie folk, indie rock, 80s, 90s.
• Bathrooms are located on the main floor which is a pain to get to if you’re hanging around upstairs waiting for your table.
• I hate it that they offer you something but don’t tell you that it’s not free. The edamame is so overpriced at $3.50.

The scoop:
RA Sushi
1080 Peachtree Street, Suite 8
Atlanta, GA 30309
(404) 267-0114

Technorati Tags: Japanese, sushi, sashimi, Buckhead, Atlanta

Yakitori Jinbei is one of the best places for ramen. The Tonkotsu ramen is just absolutely fabulous and the very best in the city. The creamy pork broth, simmered for hours, is deep in flavor, rich, and, yes, creamy which you will never get with shortcuts. Instead, it’s a labor of love, consisting of days boiling in the pot to let the bones break down into a milky sheen (something no milk can ever accomplish). The ramen has structure and bite and made of long noodles that will stretch for a good bit before snapping. The roasted pork topping is exceptional. It is enveloped in crispy fat, a true measure in good Japanese roast pork. To say this soup is fantastic would be a gross understatement. It is simply perfect.

Their Shoyu ramen, seasoned with soy sauce, is Tokyo-style  –  the dashi taste is very distinguishable and adds depth.  Soy sauce is used both for additional flavor (although it doesn’t overpower) and color.  It is very good, light and savory; just not as awesome as the tonkotsu broth.

I am not very big on chopped raw fish (think spicy tuna rolls) mainly because scraps of fish are usually used; and, I prefer the texture of sliced raw fish more than minced. I was surprised to see the Negitoro Bowl (Negitoro Yukke) with pretty good quality fatty tuna. The texture is silky smooth and tasted very fresh. However, it hardly has the requisite sliced scallions that give this dish a hint of oniony taste. The raw quail egg adds a slight smoky, earthy flavor to the minced fish and compensates for the omission.

If you’ve visited during dinner time, then you already know this place has the best yakitori and kushiyaki items. The chicken pieces are well seasoned and perfectly grilled, and go really well with the ramen.

Next up: the Ramen Wars — places for the best ramen in town. Stay tuned.

Yakitori Jinbei
2421 Cobb Pkwy SE
Smyrna, GA 30080
(770) 818-9215

Technorati Tags: Japanese, ramen, yakitori, Smyrna

The menu boasts of the usual fare including a combination lunch where you get to choose two items and the blink-and-they’re-gone daily specials which sell out within the hour. But the one thing they really are well known for is the ramen. A ginormous bowl of hot broth is mixed with perfectly cooked egg noodles and slices of delicious, housemade roasted pork. There are four flavors of broth to choose from, plus an assortment toppings that you can pick.

The Shio flavor, my absolute favorite, is seasoned with natural sea salt. Although it uses chicken broth, it doesn’t really taste like chicken soup. The pork slices play a major part in the overall flavor and the result is a savory, tasty soup. Believe me when I say this is comfort food at its best.

My other favorite is the Tonkotsu broth which should not be confused with tonkatsu (which is fried pork cutlet). Tonkotsu is a pork-based broth made by boiling pigs’ bones for several hours. The result is a creamy broth that is so fantastic.

The Soy flavor is chicken broth seasoned with soy sauce. Be warned, this broth is on the salty side. I stopped getting this because I got tired of diluting it with my hot tea just so it can be eatable. However, if you like your food salty, then this is perfect for you. The Miso flavor is a salt-based broth infused with soy bean paste. This isn’t your regular miso soup, instead, the broth is sweetish with a nutty undertone.

Haru Ichiban has the best Shio Ramen in town hands down. I recommend you stick with the roast pork topping for your first visit as this is how it is normally served in Japan. It will also allow you to taste the basic flavors the way they’re intended to be.

Note: I am compiling a side-by-side comparison of Japanese ramen from the three best places in town so stay tuned for that.

Insider tip:
Lunch menu also available on Saturdays.

The scoop:
Haru Ichiban
3646 Satellite Blvd
Duluth, GA 30096
(770) 622-4060

Technorati Tags: sushi, Japanese, Duluth, Pleasant Hill, Gwinnett

One of the draws here is the ramen (an extensive part of the menu). I’ve seen two top Japanese chefs eat ramen here regularly and swear by their goodness. I agreed. Until in recent months when the flavors are just off — not quite as bold as before and more thin in taste and consistency. Despite the shortcomings, the ramens here are still far better than most places. Although smaller in serving size than most places, each order comes with a side of California roll (lunch). My favorite is the Shio Ramen made with clear broth seasoned with salt then topped with tender pork slices. I also like the Spicy Miso Ramen which is great during colder months.

All sushi are fresh. You can’t go wrong with any of them. Last week, the sea urchin were just melt-in-your-mouth delicious that I ate 12 pieces. Amazing.

The soba here is fantastic — cold, chewy, with a good dipping sauce.  I could eat this everyday.  Save room for the gyozas.  They are crazy good with their thin skin and flavorful filling.  They’re steamed then fried.  The hamachi kama and grilled salmon are all great options as well.  The portions are smallish so you have to order a few different items to get your fill.  Still, it’s a great way to sample the menu.

This place is on my regular rotation.  Try it.

Insider tip:
Closed on Mondays.

The scoop:
Blue Fin Sushi
2863 Peachtree Industrial Blvd
Duluth, GA 30097
(770) 232-5004

Technorati Tags: Duluth, Japanese, noodles, sushi

Shoya Izakaya is such a fun, fun place. It isn’t your usual Japanese dining establishment. Instead, it’s a place for a group to hang out, drink lots of shochu or sake and eat delicious Japanese bar food. Food here is meant to be shared (in true Asian fashion) and ordering from all sections of the menu is great way to sample izakaya.

I have ADD when it comes to food. I can’t just order one thing or focus on just one taste. My mind is always jumping to the next… next order, next flavor, next topic of conversation. This place is so perfect for me because I get to taste so many different flavors in one sitting. On this visit, 20 was the magic number. For three people. And a bowl of rice for me.

First, shochu. I’m a real lightweight when it comes to drinking but you can’t go to an izakaya and not get shochu or sake. Our server suggested three kinds of shochu and we settled on Taiso which was okay but just not to our liking. Next, we moved on to some sashimi and salads.

The salmon sashimi was like butter. Enough said. The tuna was fresh but it wasn’t out of the ordinary. The uni (my absolute favorite sashimi since I was young) was the best I’ve had in a long time — sweet, buttery. Two orders of this did us good. A great start to more good things to come.

Salads are a waste of precious stomach space for me. But my sister wanted something to clean her palate — whatever — between flavors so she picked two: wakame and the house salad. The seaweed salad was pedestrian, but not bad. The house salad with the fried burdock root was surprisingly good, with the crispy burdock strips adding crunch.

At this point, I must have infected my dining companions with my ADD as the ordering (and conversation) turned into craziness. I applaud our server for keeping up with us and not once did she make a mistake with our numerous, confusing orders. Grilled Ika came next. It wasn’t as great as we hoped it would be (a bit on the gummy side), but we finished it, nonetheless.

Aside from uni, my most absolute favorite is Gindara. In Asia, gindara (silver cod or sablefish) is the equivalent of steak in America, with the best being served at only the first-rate places. My sister and I have loved this since we were kids, having first introduced to it as a breakfast staple in Japan. Here at Shoya, this miso-marinated fish was grilled to perfection. It melted in the mouth, as fresh as it can be, perfectly seasoned, and buttery. One word: orgasmic. We ended up getting additional orders of it.

The kushiyakis we ended up having were the chicken livers, gizzards, and pork belly. Our dear friend, the FryGuy, was giving us a lecture about liver preparation and something about buttermilk and how here differs from other places, but our food ADD was in full force at this point so we lost him after buttermilk. In any case, I particularly liked the livers because they were simply grilled lightly, seasoned only by a few shakes of salt, letting the true flavor to shine. The gizzards were a bit chewy but good in taste, otherwise. The pork belly speaks for itself. Eat it and weep.

Hamachi kama is something we saw our mom eat with gusto while growing up. She would regularly get a whole bunch from YDFM at 40-cents a piece (sometimes even for free) and grill it at home. I think they sell them by the pound now. That was way back before Harry had a falling out with his brother. He eventually opened his own place (Harry’s Farmer’s Market) which was later bought out by Whole Foods. Aha, bet you didn’t know that! Anyway, back to the food. The grilled hamachi kama was a bit pricey for its size but it was really delicious so it didn’t really matter. It was so yummy that I had to pick it up and eat it with my hands. A few bites of rice, a few dips in ponzu sauce and it makes for a fantastic meal.

Our server pushed the eggrolls and some fresh oyster on us so we agreed. These were wrapped in wonton wrappers, filled with shrimp and pork, then fried lightly. These were better than any Chinese versions you may have had. Crispy, flaky outside, savory filling, and eaten best with Japanese mustard and soy sauce. Good to try at least once.

The fresh oysters were huge. It was difficult to eat in one bite but we managed. I loved the chili oil and spicy oroshi with it.

One of the specials of the night was Okura With Sticky Seaweed. It’s a very light, refreshing salad made with paper thin slices of okra and sticky seaweed in an oil-vinegar-based dressing. I loved it. But then again, I love durian, too. You’ll just have to get past the sliminess and get to the refreshing part.

The Grilled Salmon and Ten-Musubi at this point of our meal were not really a good idea. It was an after-thought, ordered at the peak of our food ADD. The salmon, served on a sizzling hot plate, though fresh, was just ordinary. The shrimp onigiri was just too filling at this stage. The copious amount of rice enveloped a small sweet shrimp. Good but too filling. The drizzling of teriyaki sauce was also uncalled for as the shrimp was sweet enough and onigiris are usually plain anyway.

Last, and the perfect ending to our feast, was an order of Beef Ponzu Ae. Thin strips of marinated rib eye grilled lightly (rare) were served on a bed of field greens and drizzled every so light with ponzu sauce. It was superb.

There are so many more things on the menu that need exploring. While some dishes are better than others, there are quite a few stellar items that I would definitely get again. I am already plotting my next visit.

Note:
Our bill for 20 dishes (with shochu) came to close to $200 for three people before tip. We went overboard with the ordering but that’s just the way I am when it comes to food. By the way, we finished every last morsel.

Insider tip:
Located in the same plaza where Super H Mart Doraville will be. Next to Brand Smart USA.

The scoop:
Shoya Izakaya
6035 Peachtree Road
Doraville, GA 30341
(770) 457-5555
Tuesday-Saturday: 5:00pm-11:30pm
Sunday: 5:00pm-10:30pm
Closed on Monday

Technorati Tags: izakaya, Japanese cuisine, bar, Doraville