First Butterflies--Now Sashimi--In My Stomach

Sushi Gen's Sashimi Dinner

If I were to draw my brain on a pie chart, about 90% of the pie would be taken up by the important stuff: my loved ones, FOOD, shopping, and TV. And then the remaining 10%, a thin little sliver, would be dedicated to work.

Sometimes things end up getting so hectic work-wise that your pie-chart starts to shift--suddenly that thin little sliver winds up a big fat slice. Now Work Pie NEVER tastes that good, so needless to say, I've lost my appetite. Yup, things are a-changing for me lately careerwise and although they're changing in a good way, I'm still stressed-the-fuck-out. So this is when you gotta slooooow your roll and remember to enjoy life again.

Which is why I ended up at Sushi Gen, one of my favorite sushi joints, tonight. Located in Honda plaza in Little Tokyo, Sushi Gen ain't one of those fancy shmancy Philly-Volcano-Caterpillar Roll places. Instead, it focuses on the core of good sushi--the fish. Yeah, they do offer other specialties--sunomono salads, various small plates like baked fish collar and fried soft shell crab, as well as the mainstream cooked stuff, e.g. tempura, teriyaki, etc.--but you know what I came here for.

I ordered the Sashimi Dinner, which at $19, is a bargain in my opinion. Our waitress, as usual, brought out all the "extras" first: miso soup, two little dishes of tseukemono and sunomono, assorted tempura (shrimp, zucchini, eggplant and potato), and rice. Still good, but only foreplay. And then it came...

A perfect medley of some of the freshest fish I've ever tasted, all arranged artfully and colorfully on a platter. Melt-in-your-mouth pieces of assorted tunas, yellowtail, salmon. Crunchy slices of octopus and squid. A little mound of spicy tuna to kick things up a notch. And a few other items to add some interest to the plate: briny wakame seaweed, a small chunk of baked salmon collar, and a sweet little hunk of tamago (egg) that I always save 'til the end to mellow it all out.

This lover also keeps things interesting: the fish selection on the assorted sashimi changes from time to time depending on what's fresh that day. I've ordered the same plate before where it's come with sweet shrimp or buttery rich mounds of monkfish liver. Or you can customize it and order a-la-carte from the sushi menu. Either way, you'll be in heaven.

Ahh yes, life is put back into perspective again.

Sushi Gen
422 E. 2nd St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 617-0552