Sometimes you get lucky, I had missed my exit on the I-5, and went over to the Mile of Cars exit to turn around. I turned into a strip mall and saw Yakata. And even though I just did a U-turn in the mall, Restaurant Yakata just kind of stuck with me. The final straw was reading through Jeni’s post on Sushi Zo – Off the Beaten Path, and Yakata quickly came to mind. I did a Yahoo search on Yakata, and came up with almost nothing……perfect!
I arrived at about 530pm on a Friday evening to find Yakata totally empty, and I thought that my instincts had turned on me.
Being alone I took a seat at the sushi bar and started looking over the fish. I started cautiously, with Maguro and Hamachi, just to get my bearings and determine the quality of he fish. I had also started a conversation with the Itamae; Makoto. Please pardon the photos, the lighting in Yakata is really tricky.
The Hamachi was quite good, the Maguro decent, but on the very cold side. The rice was a perfect temperature. Things were looking up. Makoto was just the opposite of the talkative and friendly Sam at Sammy’s, being on the reserved side. But since there were no customers in the restaurant, I was given am excellent opportunity. You see, part of what can make eating sushi a great experience is getting to know the Itamae(Sushi Chef), and giving the Itamae the chance to know my eating habits. Makoto also noticed that I didn’t use any "Wasabi"(da’ fake green stuff) with my fish, opting for just the most minute touch of soy.
So having started a conversation, I asked Makoto, "what is good tonight?" And after looking at me, and asking me a few questions, he came up with this:
The Hotategai(scallop) was excellent, sweet, with a buttery-velvety texture, among the best I’ve ever had. When I mentioned this to Makoto, he told me it was Hokkaido Hotategai. The Mirugai was also good, sweet and crunchy, obviously very fresh. I bought Makoto a Sapporo to thank him for such great sushi.
A short time later, Makoto asked me if there was anything I really didn’t care for, and why. I mentioned that I’m really not fond of Saba(Mackerel), as most times it overly fishy, and can be quite funky. So a minute later, a pair of Saba Nigiri appear in front of me, Makoto placing them on my plate with a grin.
The first thought that entered my head was, "how confident…." That said, the Saba was good, very good, just the right touch of the oily fishiness, enough to make you realize that this soft piece of fish was Saba. By now we had entered into a very nice conversation. It seems that Tuesdays through Thursdays are his busiest days. During the afternoon, it’s a combination of customers from local businesses as well as Japanese customers from the area, and those returning from Mexico. During the evenings it’s His regular customers, and Japanese returning from various businesses in Mexico.
Finally, I ordered some Aji(Spanish Mackerel). When asked my preference, I requested a thin slice of lemon in place of the usual minced ginger.
This was most excellent, the lemon added a slight citrus hint to the almost milky-rich flavor of the Aji.
By now several customers had made their way through the restaurant, most sitting at tables having tempura, teriyaki, and the such. And 2 elderly Japanese customers who went for Sashimi and Gohan(rice). I started asking Makoto about other items, and came to find that to balance both having the best product available for His customers, and getting the most out of His investment, Makoto will only have many of His specialty items "in season". That means Tai(snapper) usually only the spring, Ankimo(Monkfish Liver) during the winter, Aji and Amaebi(sweet shrimp) during the summer and fall. I had also found out that Makoto hails from Tokyo, though He has been in San Diego for 16 years, the first 14 in North County, opening Yakata 2 years ago.
This nice light dinner cost me a bit under $40(including 3 large Sapporo). I left satisfied, and with the knowledge that Saturday evenings were His slowest in the back of my mind….I knew where we were going on Saturday.
Stay tuned for Part 2 later on this week.
Restaurant Yakata
2424 Hoover Ave
National City, CA 91950