Thanks to all who gave birthday greetings; apparently Facebook is good at reminding friends?
We had sushi for the first time in a long while with our former Kayo chef, Ichisan, who is now at Japon Bistro in Pasadena. We went around 5:30 on Friday so there wasn't anyone there--it was almost like having your own chef!
I had been craving sushi since I read the book The Zen of Fish by Trevor Curson, which is a very entertaining English language history of sushi. I don't think I've had sushi since Ichisan left Kayo, and my experience at the bar was a reminder that I've been missing out (although my wallet probably appreciated that!).
While I had the usual salmon with the marinated seaweed on top, 3/4 of what I had were recommendations from Ichisan, including the sea bream in the picture which he took a blowtorch to sear. Most had their own sauce, so he said "no soy sauce" a lot. Aw man, what a flavor rush! With the handy tips on eating sushi fully followed, I left satisfied for my birthday dinner, if a little poorer :)
