September, 2008
Rating : 8 out of 10
Tariff : Dinner for
4
- 1 bottle cold sake ($40)
- 8 orders sushi to share
- tip
- $143
Atmosphere
At some point, Sushi to Dai For moved from a
crowded atmospheric little place to the current location, which is a
big, open, almost cafeteria-like space (someone called it sterile),
formerly Hanhs Hibatchi Korean BBQ. When we went it was chilly inside.
Service
Service was fine--pleasant and unobtrusive.
We were so busy chatting we never noticed much else!
Food
We began with drinks. Our friends ordered
a bottle of Hatsumago. This sake is
served cold and was very good (I'd only tried inexpensive warm
sakes before and wasn't too fond of them). The presentation and
story behind it was very interesting. Served in a narrow glass,
which is set in a low cedar box called a masu, the sake is deliberately
poured to overflow the glass, signifying generosity or that the customer
is getting more than their money's worth. Guests take a drink from
the glass and then pour the overflow from the box back into the glass.
There is an
absolutely giant menu of appetizers, salads, soups, noodle dishes,
meats, tempura, seafood, donburi, as well as nigiri sushi, vegetarian
sushi, sashimi, roll sushi, combination meals, and desserts.
Here is what we
tried:
avocado and
cucumber roll--is usually a simple, refreshing roll, and was fairly
ordinary ($4.75).
shittake
roll--the cooked black mushrooms had an earthy flavor and a chewy
texture ($4.20).
garlic nasu
roll--eggplant marinated in garlic sauce--was nice as the texture of the
filling was soft ($6.25).
spicy tuna
roll--tuna, cucumber, lettuce, and sprouts ($6.75)
dynamite
roll--deep fried spicy tuna with spicy mayo ($11). These
rice-on-the-outside rolls are layered down a long platter and then
drizzled with sauce and tiny orange eggs.
darkside of the
moon roll is soft-shell crab, scallop, crab, cucumber with tobiko, tuna,
yellowtail, salmon, and avocado ($16). I did try it and like it
but soft-shell crab kind of gives me the creeps and it's over-the-top
expensive....
super rock n
roll is eel, tempura asparagus, topped with avocado, spicy mayo and
teriyaki sauce The eel is so creamy and the sauces make it a flavorful
delight ($12.50).
Very similar
but less expensive is the Nick roll, with tempura eel and veggie with
mayo and teriyaki sauce ($8.50).
One of our
party who stuck with vegetarian rolls was disappointed, not because of
the particular rolls, but rather he came to the conclusion that
vegetarian sushi doesn't have much going for it flavor wise! The rest of
us enjoyed the variety and flavors of the more exotic rolls we tried;
however, I left feeling as if I would have liked more food....
Sushi to Dai For
816 4th Street
San Rafael, CA 94901
415-721-0392
|
