The last time I went to the all you can eat, it was $80 for four of us. We added up the total if we paid full price, and it came to $125, so about $31 apiece. When I go to my local sushi place here in Washington, my ticket’s usually around 30 to 40 bucks, depending on whether I get the pricier items (albacore, big rolls, etc.)
And as for the ‘sushi guys’ - my local guy knows what I like, so I haven’t placed a verbal order there in about two years. He knows my favorites, and my preferences. I never have the same thing twice, and I’ve never left unsatisfied.
Well, the sushi trip has been delayed a week because one of my roommates was sick with a 101-degree fever last night.
cerberus, bmoak, thanks for the suggestions. I normally get rolls and one or two nigiri, but since I’m paying a flat rate this time, I’ll be trying as many nigiri as possible. Do you know what the word for those cone-shaped hand rolls are? I really like them, but I don’t know how to order them by name.
I realize that this isn’t a high-class place we’re going to, and they probably serve all-you-can-eat on Tuesdays and Wednesdays becuase they get the fresh fish in on Thursday and they want to get rid of the old stuff, but I’m casting those doubts aside in favor of eating as much of it as I want to.
I’ve heard from “foodies” that when it comes to sushi, you have three concerns: Cheap, Good, and Fresh, and at best, you have to pick two of the three.
Uni is the sea-urchin eggs. Imagine that Bugs Bunny got double-lung pneumonia, and hacked up a solid mass of carrot-colored mucus, and they sectioned it into cubes and put it on rice. That’s what uni is like. It’s…an acquired taste. One that I’m too busy gagging to ever acquire. Try it out!
Raw quail eggs are not nearly so nasty, but I still think they’re kinda gross. Try them out!
The best piece of sushi I remember ever getting was a piece of mackerel sushi. It was rich, oily, meaty, and delicious. Another time I got mackerel, it was squishy and off-tasting. Try it out!
If you can get Tataki sushi, that’s also great (it’s barely-seared tuna). You get the great flavor of Grilled, plus the delicate texture of Raw.
I tried a saltwater eel once, but I didn’t like it at all. Uni, the sea urchin, reminds me of oysters. (yum!) Quail egg sounds intriguing. Eating raw eggs isn’t something I would consider doing under any other circumstances, but I keep seeing them in Asian grocery stores, and they figured into a dish on Iron Chef America last week, so I think my curiosity is going to win out.
Another question for you, cerebus (and thanks for your help!): what’s Chirashi? It sounds interesting!
Chirashi is a bowl of rice with an assortment of the same kinds of things you would usually find as nigiri (salmon, tuna, octopus, etc.) arranged on top.