[SF] Tataki Sushi

[Carolyn Tillie]

Four of us headed to Tataki last evening. This restaurant heralds itself as being 100% sustainable and the offerings are not remotely typical.

Being the only one drinking to start, I began with their version of a sangria; riesling, sake, and fresh fruit (lychee, Asian pears) which was very refreshing and enticing. The other three had bowls of miso.

We started with the Baked Sanma (mackerel pike) on skewers with sea salt. These were thin and crunchy and a great start to the meal.

Next came two tataki specials, the seared albacore with garlic sauce and their version of an Arctic Char which was sliced thin and topped with capers and yuzu citrus sauce. The albacore was stunningly tender and although it was offered with a bit of wasabi, the garlic sauce was preferred. I was all over the Arctic Char which reminded me of one of the better crudo offerings at Ame.

We had a vegetarian in the group so we ordered a number of their veggie offerings (which go WAY beyond your typical cucumber sushi). We had two versions of pumpkin served; a sweet potato roll with mixed vegetable (spinach, egg, gourd, and shiitake mushroom) and the hot potato roll where the sweet potato was tempura and topped with spicy tofuna and sweet sauce. The latter was a bit on the spicy side for me and for some odd reason, reminded me of Mexican food (probably the spice).

We then also shared a sashimi sampler; tuna, arctic char, amberjack, and albacore. The quality and richness of the fish is remarkable.

It would have been possible to stop there, but we were enjoying the now-ordered chilled sake and the company, so we ordered two more rolls; the Golden State, a spicy scallop with minced apple topped with albacore tuna, avocado, and 24k gold flakes and a Vegetarian roll, the whole of its ingredients I don't quite remember except that it was topped with thin slices of tomato. I was genuinely impressed with the craftsmanship of the Golden State when I saw the avocado; most often a roll which is topped with avocado it is thick slices. But here the avocado was thinly sliced and fanned -- but this is something one would not normally see as it is topped with the apple. So there is a pride in the work that the chefs take which shows in the quality, plus there is the supremely superior quality of the fish.

So, all the food, two bottles of sake and one sangria came to about $45 a person; a fabulous bargain considering the quality and quantity of the food. This is a place best shared with friends. I will go back alone, but probably stick to the tataki and sashimi offerings. There is no classic nigiri offerings and the rolls are such that two or three would be incredibly filling for one person. I'm a very happy person that this is walking distance for me and can't wait to go back and try the other tatakis and rolls.