mmm-yoso!!! is just a place where you can vicariously experience food which is eaten by others. Today, it's a meal Cathy experienced. Because Kirk is on vacation and ed(from Yuma) is in Yuma, working. Apparently Cathy is doing neither.
Hi again. I blogged about Nozomi quite a while ago, have eaten there many times since, but never bothered to blog about it again. The other day I brought my camera.
Yes, they have an All You can Eat Sushi special, with many asterisks. {2 hours max, no to go, extra charge for leftover rice...}
The menu is a mix of Japanese and Korean and the decor is clean and simple.
It isn't large but also not too small inside.
There is a regular meal menu and a separate, large menu of just rolls and sushi. Those photos on the front window are of a few of the rolls offered.
We ordered and very soon some generic Miso Soup (made from paste) and a complimentary plate of edamame, freshly boiled and salted, was brought out.
We decided to try the $3 chalkboard special of tuna nigiri.
Two very fresh pieces of tender tuna were brought out, topped with a dot of wasabi on top of some excellent warm rice.
The tempura fish appetizer ($5.95) was all halibut- solid, sweet white fish, fried perfectly- lightly crispy.
Quite a large serving. I could have made this a meal if I could have eaten it all by myself.
The Mister ordered the Hiyashi Juka (cold noodle) plate. ($12.95)
A good portion of cooked then quick chilled yakisoba with mix ins of cucumber, carrot, cabbage, eggs, seaweed, red pepper, radish sprouts and mushrooms along with a few pieces of shrimp and a vinegar based sauce.
I ordered my usual, the 'famous chirashi salad' ($13.95)
A very large bowl with rice on the bottom, lots of lettuces, cucumber and radish sprouts dressed lightly with a sesame oil based dressing and topped with shrimp, octopus and three other chopped raw fish (salmon, halibut and tuna) and topped with masago and a light sesame oil based dressing.
Always fresh, tasty and plentiful.
A refreshing sliced 1/2 orange for dessert.
Total bill: $38.99
Always fresh and good. A nice dinner out.
Nozomi (#1) 4637 Convoy #104 San Diego 92111 (858)569-7773
Nozomi (#2) 4159 Regents Park Row #190 La Jolla 92037 (858)452-7778
Another one of those places where I drive by alot but have yet to stop in for a bite. Wow,those are large pieces of tuna nigiri. The tempura fish looks yummy.
Posted by: Carol | Monday, 27 April 2009 at 07:45 AM
Looks good. I love the Hiyashi Juka (spelled differently) at Sakura, but this version looks good too. And sashimi salads (under whatever name) are always good as well. Have you had Walmido's? I've seen Nozomi, but never tried it - now I have a coupla reasons to go there.
Posted by: ed (from Yuma) | Monday, 27 April 2009 at 07:54 AM
The chirashi bowl is a favorite in our house - the best combination is if you get it as takeout with one of the crunchy sushi rolls (rainbow I think?) and mix the tempura bits in with the chirashi. In a separate bowl though, it gets soggy if you leave it in the main bowl.
Posted by: Natali | Monday, 27 April 2009 at 12:10 PM
Nom...that chirashi salad looks delish. Wish we had more good big ol' salads like that down here in NOLA!
Natali, mixing in tempura bits with chirashi is inspired!
Posted by: Faine G | Monday, 27 April 2009 at 12:44 PM
mmm, two of my favorite cuisines! Looks good, especially good for hot weather dining...
Posted by: foodhoe | Monday, 27 April 2009 at 01:30 PM
The tempura fish appetizer was *excellent*, Carol. It's always an adventure to stop in someplace without knowing about it. Usually ends up with good results.
Hey, ed. I do like Sakura's version of hiyashi, too. Chopsticks version is with karaage. I need to go to Walmido still. I've been a little busy. :) Next time you are out here, we can meet at Nozomi...and several other places.
The chirashi with crunchies sounds perfect, Natali. Welcome to this side of our blog.
Hi, FaineG. The large salads with raw fish are a wonderful treat when it gets warm in SD.
foodhoe! I haven't heard from ou in a while. Glad to see you'd like it here.
Posted by: Cathy | Monday, 27 April 2009 at 02:53 PM
Wow! This looks fantastic. I am particularly interested in the Hiyashi Juka and the chirashi salad, both of which I have not seen at all before. I like that their servings are big! Good for a big party :)
Posted by: Eat. Travel. Eat! | Monday, 27 April 2009 at 03:50 PM
Used to go here a lot but haven't been in a while since I moved. Craving the chirashi...
Posted by: Rosa | Monday, 27 April 2009 at 05:22 PM
Wow that tempura halibut looks AMAZINGG, i think i might just go there to try that!
plus that's amazingly cheap tuna... and judging from the quality on the pics it looks very fresh!
Posted by: itsCliff | Monday, 27 April 2009 at 10:34 PM
Chirashi is pretty standard at most Korean non BBQ places, ETE. It is so refreshing and makes me feel like I've been eating healthy. Welcome to our blog.
Hi Rosa,and welcome also. I would miss Nozomi also. The green noodle soup when it is cold out and the Chirashi when it is warm. You can drive South one day as an excuse for a post, you know. :)
Thanks for checking out our blog, Cliff. The appetizer portion is quite a large size. They really fry things perfectly here. That is kind of my "test" when I visit places the first time.
Posted by: cathy | Tuesday, 28 April 2009 at 01:23 PM
I would like to add that service at this location has sped up considerably over the last few months. I remember going for lunch and having a 1 hour quick lunch turn in to a 2 hour fiasco. The last time I went they were really fast! I was pretty impressed. Of course, the chirashi was really good as always... now just to figure out what they make the dressing out of. Is it simply gochijan and sesame oil?
Posted by: Bryan | Tuesday, 28 April 2009 at 04:51 PM
I've not seen hiyashi chuka served on a plate! How do you mix it all together without making a mess?!? Did they serve it with sauce? I'm befuddled, but it looks really good. It's perfect hot weather food, satisfying without being heavy.
Posted by: Amy | Wednesday, 29 April 2009 at 09:03 PM
Hi Bryan- The dressing that comes on the salad seems to only be sesame oil. I could not detect any vinegar or soy/salt. They give you the gochijan on the side and I add it after eating about half the salad...for some variety.
It is a slightly curved plate, Amy. But they also gave us two plates and two bowls when we ordered, so I was grabbing the veggies and then noodles and mixing in the bowl (once I finished the salad portion I had) and mixing things together. There was a house made vinegar based sauce served on the side. Used the salad serving spoons to get some onto the veggies/noodles. It was a perfect meal.
Posted by: Cathy | Thursday, 30 April 2009 at 11:37 AM