Just getting back from our most recent road trip (yes….I know, waaaay behind on travel posts) and running all those errands it looked like Sushi Yorimichi 2, whose signage I noticed a couple of months back , replacing White Rice Morena, which didn’t last very long, had opened. A quick check and it looked like they opened on the 17th.
Checking out the hours…..even though this location has much more parking than the original on the corner of Ulric and Linda Vista Road, with all of the businesses in this strip mall, parking can be a premium. I noticed that they opened for lunch at 11am….so of course I decided to head on over.
I arrived just as the open sign was turned on and walked on in. The nice woman offered me a table….I told her I would be ok with the bar; but she said “it’s ok, it’s early and I think a table would be more comfortable”. Very nice.
They’ve done some work on the interior…at least in comparison to White Rice as it’s now full of booths and dark wood. There’s also a large table with ten seats in the back of the place in addition to a small sushi bar area.
I was handed the menu which looked exactly the same as the other location’s as well as a “monthly specials” edition.
There was one item that interested me. Along with that item; I ordered a favorite dish from my previous visits and one that I had enjoyed, but seemed hit-and-miss. Of course, based on my visits to the original location, I preferred the Izakaya type dishes to the sushi, ramen, etc…..
First up was that month special; the Spicy Jellyfish ($6) aka “Chuka Kurage”.
This was quite good; a generous amount of sesame oil, good savory flavors; though not a crunchy as the version at Izakaya Masa, it was quite refreshing and satisfying. I’d gladly get this again.
Over time, my favorite item at Yorimichi has been the Kawa-su ($6.25); the chicken skin.
Love the toothsome texture and the nice savory tones of this dish. A light bit of spice, good savory soy sauce, sourness from the ponzu. A good balance of flavors. I did find the fact that the skin was stuck together in large chunks kinda strange though.
Still, it was bit spicier than what I’d had here before and for some reason I do enjoy the texture of the chicken skin.
My final dish was the Tuna Tataki, which I think is a bargain these days at $12. I’ve had this a couple of times at the OG location and it has wavered from good to mediocre. What I received was decent, though I think it was seared a bit too long as the “cooked” area was a bit too deep in the flesh for me.
Still, no off flavors, the centers had a wonderful texture. I did find the supposedl “black garlic” ponzu to be a bit weak for my taste, but the Server had kindly brought me wasabi.
Which, when mixed well with some shoyu and drizzled over the tataki, combined with the drenched onions below and the crisp onions above made the dish quite enjoyable. I also really enjoyed a slice of the tataki wrapped in the shiso leaf. I may try to get an order of that the next time I get this dish….
Yes, you read that right….I’ll be coming back. As much as I’m not fond of the mega-rolls and sushi hear; or the ramen and stuff; it’s the more Izakaya like dishes I enjoy. I know that “FOY” Junichi really used to enjoy the Tamagoyaki at Yorimichi; though I recall him commenting that it was much too salty on his last couple of visits.
The prices are quite affordable for these times….I’m sure the USD and local resident population will keep rolling with the rolls-ramen-bowls. I’m just glad that they have dishes like the Chuka Kurage and Kawa-su.
It’s a nice neighborhood Japanese Diner/Izakaya…one I wish we had here in Bay Park.
Sushi Yorimichi
5299 Linda Vista Road
San Diego, CA 92110
Current Hours:
Fri – Wed 11am – 230pm, 430pm-930pm
Thursday 11am – 930pm
**** Quick note – so this is my first “real” post using WordPress. As long time readers know…I like to keep things simple. But I do want to know what you all think? Thanks for stopping by and keeping me posting!
These were lovely specimens indeed. The tortillas had been nicely heated on the comal and were glistening with…well, something mighty tasty. 
These bow-legged stanced hind legs of said amphibian were dry and on the chewy side. The herbal topping was fine; but we just didn't care for the heading toward sourness of the flesh.
Decently “laminated” with the ridges not falling off; crisp and fairly flaky. The interior light and with a nice “moisture” balance, and decently honeycombed. Where this failed the test was in the flavor; not enough butter, thus throwing off the flavor.
The texture of the rice was so mushy.
Now, this was more like it! 
The only thing that I wished for in this version of kimchi fried rice is Spam. There's a good amount of chicken, yes I know it's a chicken restaurant; but I really don't think it adds much to the dish.
The food did take a while with the Huevos Rotos arriving first.
Though the eggs were overcooked; the yolks dry. 
