Sushi Boat 2 Part Review

This has probably been the most expensive review I have done. Not because the place was expensive, but because I had to make two trips to give a proper review. While I was going to upload actual pictures this time around, it turns out my phone cannot do file transfers. If I could entertain you with obscenities that borders Turret's syndrome, I would. Alas, I cannot due to contracts drawn out by the sponsors. I can say that I want to take my Motorola and toss it into a meat grinder. That is totally acceptable.

However, the show (in this case, the review) must go on.

Sushi Boat Part 1

In Sushi Boat they serve mainly Japanese and Korean food. For the first week, I reviewed Cha-shu Ramen, which costs $8. It was a mixture of beef sides, pork, Asian celery, asparagus and ramen noodles. It was a very filling dish and I was impressed at how the service was that day. The texture of the ramen is very authentic to the Japanese style and I would say that the restaurant has some potential to rise back from its esteemed status. Their Cha-shu ramen reminded me of the ramen stores in Japan in a French dining place. main due to the fact that their dininng area does not totally fit the atmosphere of the sushi bar.

At one point, they were giving discounts to UNR students, but after the roach infestation, I did not come back for three years. Since then they must have gotten complaints from customers and health inspectors and have since then raised their standards considerably. Read on if you want to know what the hand of destiny dealt me into coming to this place a second time...

Sushi Boat Part 2

Round two required for me to have a bigger stomach and while I took many pictures to post in this blog I was again stiffled by the Motorola that I now want to toss in front of a Hummer H2 just to see if it will crack. While it would be fun to do, it just is not prudent so *sigh* moving on.

In case if you are wondering what I had, it was the following:

Godzilla Rollx2
Happy Roll
Philli Roll
Spicy California Roll
Futomaki Chef Special Roll
Hotate (Oysters)
Dragon Roll
T.N.T. Roll (Spicy clam sauce with tempura and crab)
and the Rick Roll

Okay I did not have a Rick roll obviously. I did have the rest plus two other rolls. If your wonder what was the caloric intake for all of this, I would say it was around 5,000 to 7,000 calories. Fortunately the amount of sushi I had is actually ideal for body building due to the amount of Omega-3. Unfortunately, I will not be going to a gym today. I will just take my atrophy with a heightened state of pride and tom-foolery.

There is a variety of dishes at this place so if are adventuresome, you will find this place rather pleasing. After two weeks of fish and noodles, I am ready to give you the overall results of this escapade!

Presentation: Asian counter check. Japanese beer flyers, check check. French dining tables what in the world? Also some of the letters are burned out on the outside of their building. They need new signs.+.50

Service: Good the first week. Mediocre the second week and since I was the only one there, you woud think they would be a tad more attentive. Obvioucly I was dealing with the co-owner the first week and a under paid flunkie the second. And the chef was the quiet type. The second week was not all it was cracked up to be. The chef kept the rolls coming, but the assistance on the drinks was lacking. I was there about 2 hours and my drink only got refilled twice. +.75

Taste: the sushi was good and the cha-shu was great. So to average this, I am going to say the sushi was epic in variety and texture. The chef got them out quick. He only had me wait for a roll that had to be breaded, but he made other rolls until I was done. Oh and for the leaf eaters that do not want to emit CO2 into the enviroment, there are veggie rolls. For the rest you carnivores, you will find the rolls both healthy and meaty. For the people that think Al Gore is full of it and want their red meat cut lean, Sushi Boat will also find a place in your heart. +1

Price: The best thing next to the food, is the price. You can eat dinners at lunch time for only $13! That is a steal in the name of seafood buffets! Oh and they ad hoc tax too! +1

Cleanliness: It was very clean but the rugs could use a shampooing. +.5

I forgot what my other catagory was but it is all fishsticks or sushi rolls and tuna for lack of a better word. The grand total is: 3.75/5 stars. It is mainly due to customer service and presentation. If they can improve in these areas, I would be willing to re-review them sometime next year. I think the staff should perhaps be more vigilent while there is only one customer in the establishment. If they were then, there would be no need to take off points for customer service. This is perhaps the most important thing that makes or breaks reviews: the customer service. If it is good, they will come. If it is epically terrible, the customer will leave. I feel that this could have been a 4 four star experience if the improve upon what is suggested. Sorry,

I could not load pictures to make you scream for sushi. I forgive my Motorola. I will have to settle for shattering it into a googleplex of pieces using some ingenuity and a sledgehammer.

Until next time, feed food for the stomach!

Food Review: Asian Gardens

I have been a bit busy juggling other side projects, but finally I am back to entertain you with another long awaited food review. Last Wednesday, I went to Asian Gardens to enjoy some Beef Chow Fun. Let's see how they did.

Taste wise. it was really good and the portions was excellent. The meal was filling, dispelling any pre-notions that I needed to eat again afterwards. So if you think that Chinese food is not filling, you need to try their Beef Chow Fun. Oh and for the plant eaters, they do have vegetable Chow Fun as well. +1

Service was excellent. I also tipped excellent in kind. She was eager to please and was willing to bend over hand and foot. She had tea, water and sodas at the ready in a New York minute. +1

Presentation, it felt like a Chinese restaurant and that is a good thing. The food was symmetrical with the atmosphere. I felt at ease when I went there. +1

Value for the money. I have to say that the billing was somewhat steep. Do not order a soda there, it will cost you $2. If you are paying anything more than $1.50 plus tax, then you are paying too much of beverages that cost about 8 cents for the chemicals to fill up your cup. There is no need to be up charged on that. The value on the Chow Fun was generous so I have to give this a certain balance. +5

Menu Variety. Good but I think they should axe the sushi menu. I know they are the same owners as Sushi Boat, but seriously, if I wanted to eat Sushi at a Chinese restaurant, then I probably do not distinguish difference in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean culture. And that would be ignorance on my part. Sure I understand they might get requests for sushi, but it feels awkward in a non-sushi specialty shop. Especially since I can go over next door and order the exact same thing. There is nothing wrong with non Japanese people making sushi, but I just do not picture sushi in a Chinese restaurant especially when it is not a sushi bar or a Japanese style cuisine specialty shop. +5

Overall Asian Gardens get a 4/5. My recommendation is just to order the food and no drinks. They were expensive.

Two Food Reviews!! Yama Sushi and Carrows

It has been a long time since I have done a food review, but it is just because I mainly have not been in any specialized local restaurants as of late.

Carrow's

First up is Carrow's. I went there Memorial day as a way to get something to eat when other chains were closed. The staff seemed a bit distant but the service was still good. +.5

Food was okay. I had the spicy gumbo. It was not memorable though and that is one of the things I look for when I write these reviews. I have to say their shake was good, but I think the spicy gumbo 2 course meal was not that filling as I thought it would be. The cream of broccoli soup that came with it was excellent. Perhaps the highlight of the dining experience. +.75

The atmosphere was perfect for presentation. It felt like a diner. +1

Price wise they were a little high. If you wanted to get something similar to their cooking for the same price, I would suggest going to Denny's. +.5

Also the staff was a bit uptight with handling the bill. Usually breath mints and toothpicks are handed out at the end of a diner. At least throw me a mint chocolate. +.25

Carrow's while okay in food, needs to work on service. Usually they are balanced in presentation and it pangs me to give them a mediocre 3/5. Good if you need a quick bite to eat. Not so much on the value of your dollar. Just stick to the mainstream; Denny's blows them out of the water.

Yama Sushi
Next up to plate is Yama sushi. The fist thing I noticed is a concrete floor in a sushi
restaurant with the fact there was a eloquent bar. Even if you are going to open up a sushi place near Grove street aka Reno's ghetto, presentation is still key. I talked to the owner and said he doubles the place as a club on weekends. There is one tiny problem with that: there is no where on the outside of the club that states that he is a club and there loses half a star. +.5

The service on the other hand was top notch. While I would of bought the chef a beer (it is a custom in Japan) I instead left a generous tip. He was earnest and eager to make the next roll and yack it up with me. And the waitress never left me with an empty drink. +1

The value for the dollar was equally impressive. The roll selection was fairly generous for the lunch time and the freshness of the fish is not bad for Nevada standards. While the staff is Hispanic, it does not mean they do not need to know anything about fish and prosper. You can tell they studied earnestly the art of sushi merchandising. +1

Their logo is perhaps the most memorable mainly because they made it feel stylish by writing Yama in katakana. More than likely they learn the rules from other stores, but if one has read Sushi Economy then it will be apparent that sushi is being embraced by other cultures more and more. +1 For presentation and effort.

Bill handeling was a snap. They were done with me in seconds. They also had business cards at the ready of private catering.+1

Yama Sushi in their generousity and snappy survice gets a generous grade of 4.5 stars matching the Thailand Gardens restaurant that I reviewed earlier this year.

That's all for today. Hopefully I will find some more time to help you satisfy your palets. Until next time.