Mikado, Redux

For as long as I can remember I've hated writing. I wouldn't call myself a bad writer, just kind of uninspired and unimaginative. In school I was always the one to wait until the last possible minute to write a paper, staying up way too late to fulfill the minimum word count. And I hated it, I gave myself countless stress migraines avoiding assignments then, finally, agonizing over every word. In college, I scoured class descriptions and syllabi to find the courses that didn't require long papers and essays. I thought if I was writing about something I really enjoyed (food!) it would be easier. It is, at least a little bit. But not quite enough.

Chicago : Tsunami

Mariann introduced us to Tsunami last spring when we were in town to see Arcade Fire. The sushi was delicious that first time and has been equally satisfying on the several occasions we've visited since. Tsunami is a fairly swanky spot in the Gold Coast area of Chicago. It's much larger than it appears, with back rooms and seating on the 2nd floor. They also have a nice patio with doors opening to the main dining room. It is a bit pricey, but in line with other Japanese restaurants of similar caliber. Tsunami has a nice selection of vegetarian and seafood rolls as well as a full menu of other Japanese specialties. The reviews on Yelp are rather mixed, but I definitely recommend it if you are looking for sushi in Chicago.

There were five of us so we ordered a bunch of rolls to share. The best thing about ordering sushi in bulk is that they bring it out on a big boat!

Mikado

Of all the Japanese restaurants in Bloomington, Mikado is probably the nicest. And by nicest I mean most expensive. The decor isn't particularly fancy or trendy, like Japanee or Sushi Bar, but Mikado has an air of classiness that the other restaurants don't have. But it's not so fancy that you can't wear jeans and a tee shirt. The wait staff wear dress shirts and are usually quite professional and attentive. The best thing about Mikado is their huge selection of creative and delicious specialty rolls. These tend to run anywhere from $7-$18 per roll, so I usually end up spending more at Mikado then at Japanee or Sushi Bar.

Japanee

Japanee was pretty much my first Japanese food experience. Although my family has always been big on ethnic food, Japanese was never on our radar. Maybe because it tends to be pricier than Chinese, Thai, etc. Anyway, for our first few visits Japanee was called Japonais. They eventually changed their name because of the much more famous Japonais which totally had dibs. The restaurant is decorated in a sort of contemporary trendy style, with flat screen tvs and electro-indie music playing. The tables and chairs that are all just a tad too low or high to be comfortable. If you're going with a group, there are private karaoke rooms that you can reserve

Sushi Bar

Of the four sushi restaurants in Bloomington Sushi Bar is probably the cheapest. They have a good balance of cheap rolls ($3-$5) and specialty rolls ($9-$15). But just like most sushi spots it's easy to rack up a huge bill by adding a few extras to your meal.

There are a few rolls we always get at Sushi Bar. The Asparagus Tempura Roll is great, with just enough eel sauce to keep it moist. We often get a Sweet Potato Tempura roll which is usually pretty good. They have a large selection of vegetarian rolls and, of course, they tend to be cheaper than the rolls with fish. A fairly cheap yummy roll is the Crispy Spicy Yellowtail, which is best if it's served hot. It can get kinda mushy if it sits around. The jaguar roll is good if you're in the mood for some deep fried deliciousness (see it at the bottom of this photo). A lot of their fishy rolls have tobiko in them, but if you want a roll where it's the main event try the Angel. It's one of Sushi Bar's more expensive rolls. Also good for a splurge is the Statue of Liberty Roll, which is topped with lobster. Not super high quality lobster but still yummy. My absolute favorite roll, though, is the Tiger. It has spicy tuna or crab (not sure which...) inside with fresh tuna, tempura flakes, and spicy sauce over the top.

Last time Mariann and I went we tried the Twins Roll, pictured above and here. It was okay. The mango on top was good but the texture wasn't great and it wasn't particularly flavorful. If we could just order a selection of rolls from Japanee, Mikado, Domo, and Sushi Bar I think we could create the perfect meal. Anyway, more on those restaurants later.







Sushi Bar

2522 E. 10th St.
Bloomington, IN 47408

(812) 331-7688

Check out the menu at Straight2YourDoor.