Like any good Hispanic person I have heaps of family in the Los Angeles area. Thankfully, I was able to spend a lot of time with my cousin while I was in town for the Long Beach Marathon .
When we met up for dinner on Friday night we did so with a common purpose – finding the best sushi restaurant Long Beach had to offer. As I’m often prone to do while traveling, I consulted Yelp . The reviews consistently raved about Sushi Kinoya .
Sushi Kinoya turned out to be a very small restaurant located in a non-descript strip mall. Still, that didn’t dissuade the crowds from waiting for a table. When we arrived, even the sushi bar was packed. Clearly, the place had to be good.
There were next to no cooked dishes on the menu. Accordingly, we decided to share a variety of rolls . Rather, than stick to the usual suspects we tried to diversify and choose dishes that reflected the fusion nature of the restaurant.
I don’t know what they put in their seaweed salad but it was unusually good. Almost, as though the seaweed was much fresher than the kind you usually find in sushi restaurants.
We were off to a good start.
The nigiri sushi allowed us to sample the quality of the fish at the restaurant. Both the tuna and salmon were perfectly fatty and fresh. Exquisite really.
Generally, my favourite sushi roll is a spicy tuna roll. Yes, it sounds like a simple enough but too often its not done properly. I like my spicy tuna full of fresh fish, with a subtle spice, and preferably mixed with Japanese mayo.
Sushi Kinoya’s spicy tuna roll is probably the best I’ve ever had; the roll was chocked full of wonderfully seasoned tuna.
Holy flavour combination Batman. The seared tuna with peppers, and onions was absolutely amazing. Seriously, the highlight of our meal.
I would never expect to have a dish like this at a sushi restaurant. The mixture of ingredients (and the addictive sauce) really spoke of the Latin American influences in Southern California cooking. Somehow, the peppers echoed the flavours of a fajita without denigrating the delicate tuna taste. Amazing. Kudos to the Chef.
This was my least favourite dish of the evening. Essentially it was a dynamite roll with baked seafood on top. Yes, the servings were incredibly generous but I found the creamy seafood concoction overwhelming.
Our last selection was something I had never had before – a raw shrimp nigiri sushi. It was lovely and very sweet. Of course the shrimp started out with a head, and that’s served deep fried separately.
I kind of felt like I was getting two dishes for the price of one. Score.
Overall I had a fantastic time at Sushi Kinoya – the food was excellent, the prices fair, the service attentive and not rushed. I could not recommend this restaurant more highly!
What is your go to sushi roll? How about the strangest roll you’ve ever eaten?
Like any good Hispanic person I have heaps of family in the Los Angeles area. Thankfully, I was able to spend a lot of time with my cousin while I was in town for the Long Beach Marathon .
When we met up for dinner on Friday night we did so with a common purpose – finding the best sushi restaurant Long Beach had to offer. As I’m often prone to do while traveling, I consulted Yelp . The reviews consistently raved about Sushi Kinoya .
Sushi Kinoya turned out to be a very small restaurant located in a non-descript strip mall. Still, that didn’t dissuade the crowds from waiting for a table. When we arrived, even the sushi bar was packed. Clearly, the place had to be good.
There were next to no cooked dishes on the menu. Accordingly, we decided to share a variety of rolls . Rather, than stick to the usual suspects we tried to diversify and choose dishes that reflected the fusion nature of the restaurant.
I don’t know what they put in their seaweed salad but it was unusually good. Almost, as though the seaweed was much fresher than the kind you usually find in sushi restaurants.
We were off to a good start.
The nigiri sushi allowed us to sample the quality of the fish at the restaurant. Both the tuna and salmon were perfectly fatty and fresh. Exquisite really.
Generally, my favourite sushi roll is a spicy tuna roll. Yes, it sounds like a simple enough but too often its not done properly. I like my spicy tuna full of fresh fish, with a subtle spice, and preferably mixed with Japanese mayo.
Sushi Kinoya’s spicy tuna roll is probably the best I’ve ever had; the roll was chocked full of wonderfully seasoned tuna.
Holy flavour combination Batman. The seared tuna with peppers, and onions was absolutely amazing. Seriously, the highlight of our meal.
I would never expect to have a dish like this at a sushi restaurant. The mixture of ingredients (and the addictive sauce) really spoke of the Latin American influences in Southern California cooking. Somehow, the peppers echoed the flavours of a fajita without denigrating the delicate tuna taste. Amazing. Kudos to the Chef.
This was my least favourite dish of the evening. Essentially it was a dynamite roll with baked seafood on top. Yes, the servings were incredibly generous but I found the creamy seafood concoction overwhelming.
Our last selection was something I had never had before – a raw shrimp nigiri sushi. It was lovely and very sweet. Of course the shrimp started out with a head, and that’s served deep fried separately.
I kind of felt like I was getting two dishes for the price of one. Score.
Overall I had a fantastic time at Sushi Kinoya – the food was excellent, the prices fair, the service attentive and not rushed. I could not recommend this restaurant more highly!
What is your go to sushi roll? How about the strangest roll you’ve ever eaten?