I'm sure you're asking what the heck "R&R Week" is……and no; it's not "Rest and Relaxation", though I wish it was. This week; other than travel type posts, I'll (finally) get around to posting some of the "Recommendations and Requests" that I've gotten. I've often said; this blog would not exist without the wonderful comments, question, recommendations, and requests I get. Right off, I'll say that my definition of "R&R" might be rather broad; it could be just a quick email, comment, you know "have you tried????" kind of thing. But, I hope you enjoy these posts……
Several months back "Julie" mentioned Kotobuki in the comments of my most recent Kokoro post; saying "fish quality is fantastic". So, over the last couple of months I made a couple of visits to this rather low-keyed location (I believe it used to be Wa Sushi), in the corner of the strip mall that houses Khan's Cave, Boll Weevil, and La Miche.
In between meetings I headed over to Kotobuki right after opening for lunch.
The place is rather spartan; on both my lunch visits, a charming little girl was coloring and doing other things at one table. The Itaemae is an older gentlemen.
The sushi bar is "walled off"; so you really can't ogle the fish, nor watch the Itamae in action.
The lunch menu had several items priced rather reasonably; so I ordered the Chirashi Lunch ($14.99).
I wasn't a big fan of the watered down miso soup. The sushi meshi had a nice balance that I enjoyed; not too over-powering sour tones; but was quite pleasant and the rice was prepped nicely.
Of the fish; the salmon was nicely fatty and tender; the maguro quite decent, meaty with no off flavors, and the Hamachi was tender, almost buttery. The tamago had a nice eggy-sweetness and was fairly supple. The shiromi; the whitefish was dry and the shrimp mushy.
With some tea; this made for a decent meal.
A few weeks later; I decided to drop by for lunch again and got the Sashimi Lunch Combo ($15.99).
The miso soup was the same as was the Hamachi, very nice texture.
The maguro wasn't the best cut this time around; on the tough side and dry. The Tai was pretty good, slight chew, mild sweetness. The salmon was fine, though not as good as on my previous visit.
The rice was fluffy and moist.
This was fine; though I had enjoyed the chirashi a bit more.
After my two lunches; I decided to drop by for dinner and was seated at the bar. That wood paneling really separates you from watching the Itamae and he seemed to not want to converse with his customers. In fact, you order by menu from the Server and have no interaction with the Itamae. This kind of takes away form the experience in my mind. I've always thought that eating at the sushi bar was a very personal, somewhat intimate experience……
I did ask the very efficient young lady what was good today and was told, "it's on the menu……." Ok……
I placed my order and was served all my nigiri at once.
The nigiri are on the smaller size; even smaller than the Edomae stylings of Tadokoro; though it makes for a decent small bite.
The Kanpachi was a lot whiter than what I've seen in the past. It also seemed a bit fattier, with a mild sweetness.
I'm fairly certain it wasn't escolar and was told in no uncertain terms it was Kanpachi; which to me is Greater Amberjack. Whatever; this , in terms of texture was quite good.
The Hotate, scallop was sliced a bit too thinly for my taste and wasn't very sweet.
The Maguro had that "tinny" flavor that I don't care for, though in terms of fat and texture, it was the best of the three portions I'd had so far.
And it had that "center cut" to ensure it could be folded over the rice.
The Toro was very good; nice texture, meaty, buttery, no off flavors.
It was a pleasure to eat.
I had requested my Tamago to be served last, which they did.
It was a nice piece of tamago; just as good as what I'd had in the Chirashi and with a mild sweetness and the light handed touches to the shari; this was a nice "dessert" of sorts.
As you can see; I'm not a real big eater and this enough for me. Kotobuki seems like a decent neighborhood sushi bar; though the service seemed all business. Or perhaps it was just that "wall" in front of the sushi bar and the Itamae not engaging customers. The prices are good, the quality decent. Perhaps I'll drop by in the future again.
Kotobuki
9340 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92123
Hours:
Mon – Fri 11am – 2pm, 5pm – 9pm
Saturday 5pm – 9pm
Thanks for the recommendation Julie!