Movie Review: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

Jiro Dreams of Sushi - Teaser from David Gelb on Vimeo.

Persistence, determination, perfection, pressure. All those aspects came across in this documentary recently screened at the Tribeca Film Festival. While I enjoyed the movie, it lacked any real conflict that could have made it more stimulating. For food porn enthusiasts, it's certainly 81 minutes of close-ups and slow-motion sushi plating.

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Coming from the perspective of someone who has enjoyed one of these types of lavish sushi dinners before (Urasawa), the film made me nostalgic for that experience once again. To me, it didn't seem outrageous to pay for a meal like this, but I can imagine that the audience may not come from the same view. In one scene, a wanderer enters the restaurant and is quickly rebuffed when told that the starting price is $300 per person. A few audience members gasped, although fewer than I would imagine at a regular screening considering this was a New York film festival. To me, I was doing a quick price comparison with my meal at Urasawa in my head. For reference, my dinner at the U started at $350 two years ago, but had twice as many courses. Sukiyabashi Jiro Honten only serves about 20 courses of sushi, while Urasawa also does a kaiseki portion.

Without that sticker shock value, I wonder if I may not be the target for this documentary. If this documentary was for those who dine extravagantly, then the food isn't anything they haven't seen before. If it was for the non-initiated, then it's much more ephemeral, or fantastical. In fact, with the multitude of slow motion shots, I feel like the the target audience was more of the latter than the former. "Look at how much care these people put into their food. Isn't it fascinating?" But for anyone who has been exposed to the laborious presentations of fine dining, this aspect is somewhat lost.

However, this movie isn't only about high-end sushi. The story is simple; as the title suggests, it is a movie about a man and his single ambition to make good sushi. It's a sweet story and the characters certainly are endearing. Centrally, it is a story about the old man behind the counter with much more vigor than his body can provide and the son, groomed for twenty years to take over but with more pressure than Prince Charles.

While documentaries are commonly criticized for artificially creating drama through staged events or creative editing, that is what makes many of them compelling. A documentary avoid its stigma as a snoozefest when you see conflict. In this aspects, Jiro Dreams of Sushi is lacking. I can see the conflict brewing on the horizon--the inevitable day when the son must take over the restaurant, but there is not much in the film that needs to be overcome.

As a movie about a passionate octogenarian and the son in his footsteps, it is touching. If you want to watch the film just to see shots of fancy sushi, you'll be pretty satisfied as well.


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Tipping and Its Harm on Service

I just returned home from an all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant that would otherwise be unnotable except for one particular policy. No, it wasn't the "you must eat everything you order," which is a standby at any place that would offer AYCE for $20.95. It wasn't the "no sharing" policy either. That one makes perfect sense. Instead, this restaurant, Yuka on the Upper East Side, has a strict no tipping policy.
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It's no big secret that wait staff are commonly underpaid under the premise that tips would make up the rest of their salary. The result is wide divergence in the earnings from waiter to waiter, or even the same waiter day to day. The entire custom of tipping is ludicrous. People should earn a good salary for the work they do. When they go above and beyond, they can receive a tip as a gratuity for their service. By definition, a tip is not mandatory. When it is mandatory, it constitutes a fee. Let's not fool ourselves, when we dine out, we're paying at least 15% of a fee on top of our meal, not to mention the tax.

When I was in Egypt in December (great timing), there is a culture of tipping called baksheesh. Tourists will recognize it most in the open palms of anyone that aids you, from police point out the best photo spot to bathroom attendants enforcing a pay-to-pee fee. Many Asian countries are moving towards tipping as well, even though they traditionally have no culture of it. I like to blame Western tourists for creating this culture of handouts and corrupting the highly trained Asian service economy.

So what can you do as a customer? You can't stiff the tip at the expense of the poor waiters, unless they truly deserve nothing. Tipping is so ingrained in our culture now that it reflects badly on you when you leave less than 15-18%. What we need are more restaurants like Yuka that have a policy of no tips. In fact, any money left on the table will go to charity. Instead, Yuka charges a management fee of 12% for parties less than six and 18% for six or more. While I applaud the no tipping policy, the mandatory management fee makes me suspicious. Presumably, if it goes towards paying the higher salary for the staff, I can full get behind the charge. The restaurant cannot simply price in the management fee into the food; the restaurant business is too competitive at the price level.

What we need are more restaurants following this innovative policy for the benefit of both customers and waiters, not to mention all the people who work at back of house who don't have an opportunity to earn the tip on their own. Let's put a stand to the spread of mandatory tipping. I support no more nickel and diming customers and a fair wage to service people.



Yuka
1557 2nd Ave
(between 80th St & 81st St)
Upper East Side, NY 10028
(212) 772-9675
All you can eat sushi $20.95

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Sensory Overload: The Urasawa Experience

If Urasawa is not what a perfect dining experience should be, then I doubt anything else in LA could be. Granted, the cost is prohibitively expensive, and if I were to come back more than once, it would weigh more heavily on my review. But for a one-time visit, I felt good dropping $540 for the six-hour dinner. I suppose the cost just didn't bother me because I knew exactly what I was getting into fully anticipated handing over my paycheck to the Urasawa Corporation.

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Hiro in intense concentration

The most common response I receive when describing my meal is always, "Was it worth it?" To most people, the idea of paying this much for a dinner is outrageous. But to them I reply that it is precisely that type of thinking that makes it so expensive. It isn't just a dinner, it's an experience. Why would you pay for a concert when you can download the song for a dollar? On the surface, if you view dinner as just a form of sustenance, you're doing yourself a disfavor. A life of subsistence is not a life worth living. People take pleasure in different ways; this happens to be my vice. But hopefully I can convey to those who don’t already know the multi-faceted pleasures of eating.

Throughout the night, I constantly found myself rubbing my palms and fingers against the silky smooth blonde wood of the bar. The attention paid to this counter was indicative of the meal to come. No varnish, no sealant, this wood was sanded daily to a soft finish. It was a theme I noticed throughout the night, elegance in simplicity. All ingredients served a purpose; the experience was sensory on all levels. Whereas most use of gold leaf is ostentatious and completely unnecessary, its effect as a visual stimulant spoke to the complete sensory arousal in this meal. Too often sushi is too flashy, especially in American rolls, monstrous creations often appropriately named Godzilla. Elegance in simplicity comes with care and expertise, not with a squirt of rehydrated “eel sauce” and hastily battered tempura. Our first course had the weighty responsibility of setting the standard for the night, but the toro senmai-maki demonstrated a graceful interplay of seared tuna belly wrapped monkfish liver, garnished with shiso, topped with caviar and dashed with ponzu. Layer after layer of flavors hit me, as each ingredient harmonized yet played its own melody. Like the successful concerto, culminating in rich euphony, this was a great way to start the meal.


First course: Toro Senmai-maki

Even if it's not his intention, Chef Hiro Urasawa is an entertainer. The fact that this is dinner and a show helps to soften the wallet blow. With your seat in front of the master himself, you are privy to watching the exquisite knifework and attention to detail. Had I not been seating in my prime spot, I wouldn't have enjoyed the experience at quite the same level. He answered our questions cheerfully, and I could tell when he took out his prime Ichigin junmai daiginjo sake that his passion is really in his craft. Our Cristal failed to impress him; he’s seen all manner of victuals over-hyped. It was Brian’s bottle of Nihonbashi 2007 Gold Medal winner sake that made Hiro’s ears perk. I would’ve scoffed at any hip hop glamorizing this bottle, but it was music to my ears to hear Hiro exclaim “so good” after a taste. That was how the entire evening felt; he was enjoying it right along with us, talking, joking, sharing.


Hiro displaying his Ichigin Sake

While there were several dishes I've never encountered before, most of the menu was fairly familiar for a regular Japanese food consumer. Of course, it was the highest quality examples of said items. I didn't mind that there was nothing so rare I would find no where else. The Saga beef, wagyu from the Saga prefecture was unique enough by itself. No Kobe here; I’m convinced now that Saga is the only way to go. The beef, whether seared lightly on top of sushi or braised for three-days with snow pea, had tenderness without sacrificing meaty flavor. Carved from the block of cow behind Hiro, the meat could be chewy in one moment, and melting the next. Texture influences so much of the sensation of flavor that we too often forget that the touch of your lips, tongue and teeth are integral to the eating experience.


Seared Saga Beef Readied for Sushi


Three-day braised Saga beef

I'm certain that the menu would be quite different coming here at another time during the year. For our early Spring dinner, the variety was not quite so extensive. One seasonal difference—the shabu shabu course of amaebi, Saga beef and foie gras came in metal bowls instead of the summertime paper. A quick dip in the broth and the shrimp was ready. Sweet as is, a splash of dashi helped bring out flavor depth. The unctuous beef and goose liver inundated the soup, making the resulting broth richer than many French stocks and so full of umami that I hesitated to swallow, lest one mouthful be gone. As indescribable as umami is as a flavor, I would direct you to Urasawa’s shabu shabu for a demonstration of its full potential.


Individual shabu shabu

The orchids along the wall are supposedly hand-picked by Hiro. I’ve heard of chefs personally picking the fish for the day, but Hiro goes beyond the food. He knows that he has staked his reputation on more than just the food; he has to make everything beautiful. While “stunning” is not usually a word used to describe Japanese food, the hand-carved ice block with Spanish toro, Kyushu tai and Toyama kanpachi flanked by a clean white orchid and bright orange slivers of Kyoto carrot was much more stunning in person than in the pictures. Colors abound, the taste almost took a backseat to visual appeal in this course…almost.


Sashimi platter

Most of the night was marked by a myriad of aromas, sometimes in front of me, sometimes wafting in from behind the curtain. The smell of the shiitake mushroom, grilling on the back-counter made me anxious for the renowned shiitake sushi, the only place I’ve heard it served before. Though the flavors of the fungus and the rice were slightly incompatible, the smell of wood permeated my nose. Yet this course paled in olfactory indulgence compared to the kani miso korayaki grilled hairy crab innards topped with uni. Each diner got his own hibachi with a simmering shell. Each bursting bubble sent waves of crab aroma into the air. My favorite course of the night.


Simmering hairy crab

We got to walk behind the bar after dinner and witness a huge kitchen for such a small front. I was somewhat dumbstruck by the massive mechanism behind the scenes, pushing forward twenty-six dishes or so to ten anxious diners. Come to Urasawa with an open mind and ready body. Hiro’s dishes hit all your senses, putting your body at ease so that your mind can enjoy. With your head floating in the Nirvana of culinary delight, you can truly forget the weight of your wallet.

Special thanks to Yoko for providing the photographs. Thanks to Kevin for his notes and borrowing his kick-off phrase. To all else who joined me on this adventure, I appreciated you sharing it with me.

For the play by play, please visit Kevin or Kung Food Panda's blogs.

Urasawa
218 N Rodeo Dr,
Beverly Hills, 90210
(310) 247-8939
$350 omakase pp

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My First Warm Rice Omakase: Echigo

Nozawa-style sushi has been on my list for some time in all its saucy, warm rice glory. Sushi Nozawa, the home of the original "Sushi Nazi" Chef Nozawa, has been spit out apprentice sushi chefs left and right. Sasabune here, Sushi Wasabi there. I decided to go to Echigo because it has a reputation being a cheaper, more low-end Nozawa sushi restaurant. I wanted to try the warm rice sushi first at an affordable restaurant before going all-out into Sushi Nazi territory.

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I felt uncomfortable taking pictures at the Echigo sushi bar. The interior and exterior, part of a strip mall, doesn't scream high-end sushi. Also, since I came to Echigo to celebrate, I wasn't in a photojournalism mood. I was however, in the mood for a glass of jun shimeharitsu junmai ginjo, my favorite junmai at Tokyo Table's sake night. It was clearly as aromatic and crisp as I remembered, no harshness going down, and only a pleasant rice taste lingered on my palate.

At Echigo, the sushi bar is reserved for omakase only patrons. I had braced myself for the sticker price beforehand, and I didn't think I could get a good enough experience outside of omakase. What did bother me was that the omakase was a set course of one sashimi, eight nigiri sushi, and a blue crab handroll. The price is determined based on what's available. So far, my omakase experiences have always been "keep on coming till my stomach or wallet bursts." In the end, I think we received more than the eight pieces of nigiri, but I was still a Double-Double hungry afterward (after the Jungle Food Marathon, I'll measure satiety in In-n-Out Double-Doubles).

The sashimi course was actually three plates, a baby abalone, abalone liver and soft squid stuffed with blue crab. I've never seen a pretty little abalone shell so small, and biting through the crunchy flesh, I felt slightly guilty that whoever farmed it didn't wait for it to reach maturity. Unlike veal, which I have no qualms about eating, there's a catch limit on abalone. I'd rather wait for it to grow fully before adding it to the annual quota. Thought I'd be compassionate for the abalone--nope, it's a shellfish. I'm just thinking in economic terms.

The abalone liver tasted clamy and warm, not a particular inviting combination. Plus the raw taste of iron, which is always a liver deal-breaker, turned me off. Soft squid filled with crab could've just been a plate of blue crab. As I will discuss later with the blue crab handrolls, the crab was the star and the squid merely the container.

Our first nigiri was some surprisingly lean toro. None of that melt-in-your mouth, make you pray to Tuna heaven, deliciousness. The engawa (halibut fin muscle) was served warm, strange since I don't think it added anything to the fish. In fact, I could hardly taste any fish under all that sauce. Such a shame considering my favorite sushi is engawa. The hotate (scallop) tasted strangely more like a fish than a scallop.

Now the fish got a little more interesting. This was my first experience with sayori (needle fish), but again I couldn't taste any of the fish itself because of the heavy use of warm dashi sauce. As far as I could tell, needle fish doesn't have a distinct flavor of its own. Next, I got a pinkish fish that I could only understand as aji no kanpachi. It tasted like kanpachi although I'm not sure what "aji no" means. The chef put a large dollop of yuzu kosho pepper on the fish, giving it a spicy, citrus finish.

This was my first ono (butterfish) served raw. The chef served it with a small dab of sweet miso in the center. Its flavor resembled the miso-cured butterfish I had at Asia de Cuba. I guess ono and miso are a popular pair, although I think the fish has a memorable flavor by itself that may not be supplemented with sauce. The aji (Spanish or horse mackerel) felt cold and lifeless. It had no elasticity biting through the fish. I enjoyed the kinmedai (Golden-eye Snapper) and the spicy skipjack, but both had no memorable attributes besides sweet and tart respectively.

After a service of mostly lackluster, though somewhat exotic, sushi, the night culminated in the famous blue crab handroll. I could sing praises to the temaki, which I fondly recalled for days after the dinner. As far as I could tell, it was simply outstanding crab meat, but it tasted so rich I wondered if there was a secret mayonnaise addition. Echigo even offers a lunch combination of eight pieces of sushi and a blue crab handroll for $13. That would be quite a steal. In total, my omakase experience came out to about $48 pp plus drinks.

None of the sushi was terrible, but besides the blue crab, nothing seemed to stand out either. One complaint I had was that I couldn't taste the fish in some of the nigiri. Either it was masked by sauce or the fish itself just wasn't that flavorful. When it comes to sushi, I guess I like to keep it simple. I had the warm rice, and while it didn't detract too much from the sushi, it didn't seem to add anything to the food. I would be willing to try one of the higher end Nozawa places, but for now, Echigo's fine by me.

Echigo
12217 Santa Monica Blvd, Ste 201
Brentwood, 90025
(310) 820-9787
Omakase ranges. Mine came out to $48 pp, but it can only go up from there.

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Cool Things to Do with a Blowtorch and Fish: Kiriko Omakase

I recently tried Kiriko as part of my journey to eat at every restaurant on Sawtelle. Don't ask me for the exact parameters of my dine through Sawtelle journey since I am still deciding whether or not to go to Bar Hayama. But I did know that Kiriko, as one of LA Magazine's Best 75 Restaurants in LA, was on the top of my list.

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Finding myself alone for dinner on a Friday night, I decided to resume my list of Sawtelle restaurants. It wasn't until I was parking at a meter on Olympic that I decided which restaurant to try. I wasn't in a particularly spendy mood, but that had to change when I decided to go for sushi. The restaurant is small and subdued, nothing flashy or obtrusive to the meal. Even on a Friday night it was suspiciously vacant. There were a few tables and a couple finishing at the bar, but not as packed as I was expecting. This is usually not a good sign at places like sushi bars that require quick turnover on their fresh ingredients. However, after my dinner, I am glad that Kiriko is lesser known and I can get a seat at peak hours.

I mistakenly order a salad and an adult yellowtail sushi to start. I mention specifically adult yellowtail because this was listed as buri on the menu, which refers specifically to older specimens on their way to spawning. The flavor was therefore much more pronounced than it would be in a younger fish. Sufficiently satisfied with the buri, I decided to go for an all-out omakase.

Buri sushi

Shinji, my chef for the night, guided me into the dinner with a tai red snapper topped with grated wasabi and squeezed with lemon. Since tai tends to be a more delicate fish, it was nice to have some acidity in the citrus. I glanced at a bowl sitting above me on the countertop; sure enough, they had real wasabi root. I asked if I was eating the real thing or the imitation paste. He glanced in front of me, and placed a dollop of something slightly duller green next to the heap of wasabi. Real wasabi, a true rarity, tastes much more herbal and earthy than its doppelganger. There isn't as much eye-watering either. Given the chance, make sure you look for the real thing.

Next was a bonito with a little fried garlic on top. It tasted sweet, meaty and wholesome. No wonder bonito flakes seem to be used everywhere. But this was my first time having it as a sushi. The chutoro medium fatty bluefin tuna belly was satisfyingly melty, but not as decadent as some of the truly fatty toro I've had before. Next came a fish I'd never heard of prior to Kiriko - kinmedai Goldeneye Snapper. Besides sounding like a villain from a James Bond movie, the fish also has a soft white flesh similar to tai. Of course I didn't get much of that delicate flesh because Shinji went to town on it with a blowtorch. This wasn't a dinky brulee torch either, it actually enveloped the counter in flames. I later saw him do the same thing for a seared scallop sushi. It may be partly for show, but who doesn't love the tricks at Benihana.

I generally like ebi more than amaebi raw shrimp, but the one I had today was clearly very fresh, thereby incredibly sweet. It even tasted almost like lobster. Of course, the waitress later brought my the fried shrimp head, something I've never figured out quite how to eat.

Tempura shrimp head served with ponzu

Shinji served me wild king salmon with caviar next. I never had wild salmon sushi before, though I had heard that some people refuse to eat farmed salmon because it was terrible in comparison. Now I know exactly how those people feel. As with game animals, wild salmon had much higher concentrations of the flavors that make salmon what it is. Too often have I had buttery salmon that is indistinguishable from any other heavily marbled fish. The mirugai geoduck had a few drops of lemon to mask the ocean flavor. I had both aji jack mackerel and saba blue mackerel. Though saba tends to have a heavier vinegar flavor due to the preparation process, I found this saba to be almost as subtle sweetness as the aji.

I'm not usually a fan of ikura salmon roe, but this one was juicy and not at all briny. Too often it suffers from an overwhelming fishiness, but this ikura lacked it completely. It probably was a function of freshness. A good fish market should never smell like fish! I felt pretty full at this point and asked for one last piece. Shinji pulled out a tub of thick, brown sauce and stirred gently as it warmed. This was unagi freshwater eel sauce, not to be confused with the separate sauce they use for anago saltwater eel. I'm usually turned off by the sweetness of the eel, but there was none of that this time. Still, eel just didn't appeal to me as a sushi. I wouldn't mind it as part of a donburi instead.

Ikura salmon roe

With the sushi portion of the meal over, I asked for a dessert menu. I had heard that Kiriko prepared homemade ice cream that was amazing. Unfortunately, they do not allow customers to have dessert only, according to a Yelp review. The bark menu listed wild honey vanilla, honey sesame, bitter green tea, and brown sugar and ginger flavors. Upon recommendation by Shinji, I chose the brown sugar ginger. Turns out that the sushi chefs know their desserts too, otherwise every one of their ice creams is top notch. Be sure to try one on your own visit.


Physically and spiritually content, I rose from my chair and bid farewell to my chef, who had been the most important person in my life for the last hour. I reached to shake his hand, but realizing that it would probably have been a health code violation, he gave me an appropriate fist bump instead. I regret not chatting him up more, though I can rest assured there will definitely be another trip. Even better, I got out of there for less than $90.

Kiriko Sushi
11301 W Olympic Boulevard
Suite 102
West LA (Sawtelle), 90064
(310) 478-7769
kirikosushi.com
I had omakase for around $70 with the above listed items

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Hide Sushi

2040 Sawtelle Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025

Adequately Fed: $25
Omakase
-Maguro****
-Hamachi*****
-Toro****
-Salmon*****
-Hotate Special*****
-Spicy Tuna**
-Ume-shiso maki**
-Uni****
-Bin-Naga****
-Hirame****
(Out of Five Stars)

First off, I'll note that the items I gave low star ratings to are only because of my personal dislike for that item, but in reality, everything was excellent. This was my first opportunity to order "omakase" myself, which is a term used in sushi restaurants roughly analogous to "chef's recommendation." The sushi chef chooses his best of show and places each sushi in front of you until you tell him to stop. The pricing is left entirely to the will of the chef, so only do this if you are willing to pay for it. If you refer to my photo album marked "Sushi in Taiwan," you will see another fancier omakase experience.

All the fish was fresh as you can tell by the popularity of the restaurant. Nightly, there is a sizable crowd waiting for seats either at the bar or in tables. I have frequently been asked for a sushi recommendation in the area, and of all the places on the West side, Hide has never disappointed me.

The staff is friendly and Japanese. Frankly, I never believed that being Japanese is necessarily a prerequisite to being a sushi chef, but there's something unsettling about being served tuna by a Mexican as once happened to me in Reno. Not only do the chef's serve you, but they also joke around and like to have a good time. I know that to many, the bar is intimidating to approach, but come up sometime and you can experience the way sushi was originally intended to be served. The interaction with the chef is an integral part of the dining experience, something too frequently neglected.

Hide does not feature any special rolls that have dominated the American sushi scene. You're not going to find elaborate monstrosities of fish, avocado, and tempura. The California rolls here are actually made from real crab. If you go to Hide, do it right and order sushi. This is not to say that they do not also have a fairly decent menu of non-fish staples like teriyaki and tempura. But once you step inside, you can tell by what's on the tables of the other clientele that sushi is really their specialty. Here, you're going to find many more traditional sushi items frequently left off other restaurant menus like Ankimo (monkfish liver) and ume-shiso (plum paste and perilla leaf).

There is valet parking behind the restaurant. If you come here, expect a long line. Yet sushi moves fast; you should be seated soon.

Recommended: Keep in mind that they only accept cash. Knowing that sushi can by pricey, bring a good sized wad or make use of their in-store ATM.

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