Monday, January 26, 2009

Kabuto Sushi, Richmond, San Francisco

I had dinner at Kabuto in the Richmond last night. It was my second time, and I've really been quite satisfied both times. The fish is fresh, and the prices are quite reasonable. Next time I will try omakase when the sushi bar isn't completely full. I like how warm and inviting the small restaurant is. The service was nothing special, but it was fine.

Admittedly, I was dying to peg this place as a fushion sushi place, especially after viewing their menu online. However, I was impressed with their menu ~ it offered a good variety of traditional sushi/sashimi, as well as a separate menu of jazzed up fish dishes. I ordered mainly from the former menu, as I tend to enjoy those a lot more. Overall, with the exception of a few dishes, a great experience. I'll definitely be coming back again!

I liked the Hamachi (on the right), and the Shiro Maguro wasn't bad either.


The monkfish liver was quite good. Beautiful round taste, and buttery texture.
I like the plumped, dried cranberry that garnishes each dish ~ it tastes like they soak it in a bit of plum wine for extra sweetness.


The "Valentino" dish is going to be geared toward lovers of Japanese fusion cuisine. Unagi is mixed in with seared foie gras, dark chocolate and sweet yellow gelatin cubes. Personally, this dish is not for me, since I tend to favor the fish itself over the tastes of the surrounding sauce. Plus, I felt like the whole dish really just tasted like Unagi (the kind that you find on a dragon roll, but without the rice) and was a waste of foie. It definitely sounded more interesting than it tasted. But maybe I'm too much of a purist.


Toro ~ nice and rich chutoro (I think). Smooth texture, buttery taste ~ still somewhat lean yet melts in your mouth ~ no complaints here.


Not a huge fan of the torched toro ~ the flavor of the toro was a bit more fishy (not because of bad quality ~ I think the cooking process plus extra seasoning intensified the fishiness). The texture became chewier too. I would have preferred to eat this un-torched.


Hawaiian Tuna and Escolar


One of my only major complaints about the meal came toward the end with this dish. We ordered the Halibut Sushi with pickled shisonomi topped with Yuzu-Kosho Paste. The peppery yuzu paste was fine, but the fish was extremely chewy and difficult to eat. For someone who's focused 90% on the fish quality and 10% on everything else, this dish was a disappointment.


By the time this seared black cod dish arrived, we were anxious to leave since we had waited for a long time to get this dish, and had to rush to the airport. I love black cod, but this dish was entirely unremarkable. I would have preferred just a piece of black cod, seared, without the thick soupy substance on the bottom, and without the rice. That being said, however, I felt like most of the meal was entirely enjoyable and I will come back again!

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