Carlsbad: Yoshino Japanese Deli

I went up and spent a couple hours hanging out with my buddy "JohnL" today. We had a great time "talking story" and catching up on things. I often kid John about his (lack of) taste, as his recommendations often leave me a bit puzzled, wondering if he was playing some odd joke on me. So far, John has been oh-for-two....two strikes on him, so he's ben a bit more hesitant making recommendations. But today, John decided to take me to his favorite little hole-in-the-wall sushi to go joint in Oceanside named Yoshino. No it's not that Yoshino's, but this one.

Located near the corner of State and Grand avenue in downtown Carlsbad this little shop is run by an older Japanese couple. There's not much in the shop, just a cold case an ice cream freezer and the couple making rolls and poke bowls.

Nothing fancy and no frills, the couple is very friendly. Apparently they make whatever they can based on what's available that day....then it's pau hana, no more......

John's favorite here is the Poke Bowl($6.75), which is what I got.

While this is nowhere close to being as good as the stuff back home in Hawaii, it's a nice decent light meal. It's more of a poke "salad" of sorts since there are only about 4-5 cubes of fish in the bowl along with seaweed salad, cucumbers, and a good amount of avocado. The tuna is decent quality, better than the typical "saku" Sushi Deli stuff and is lightly seasoned. All of this rests on a bed of sushi-meshi, seasoned sushi rice, which was mild, though the rice quality is not the best. A piece of nori separates the rice creates a barrier for the rice.

All in all, not bad....I'd have this for lunch on occasion if I lived close by. There were a variety of rolls available, though as you know, it's not my thing.

We also got the "tako salad" - $2.75.

The octopus had a nice texture, this was solidly flavored with komezu(rice vinegar), sesame oil, and some sneakily placed thin slices of chili pepper.

There a couple of tables inside and right outside the little shop and it's cash only. So JohnL, looks like you didn't strike out! One for three still ain't that great though! Just kidding my friend, this is a nice little neighborhood shop.

Yoshino Japanese Deli
2913 State St
Carlsbad, CA 92008

 

Comments

[kat]

looks like a great place to hang with a good friend.

[Food detective]

Lol! That's cool. I hesitate to read your post because I didn't want JohnL to get oh and three.

[Kirk]

It was Kat!

Ha, double LOL! I think John knew the pressure was on.....