★ (1 Star)

I think I’m going to cry.

When I moved to San Antonio, I knew that I wouldn’t find sushi like I did on the west coast.  But, I never thought I’d be let down so thoroughly.  The reason I hadn’t Yelped about Sushi Zushi sooner is because for the past 3-4 months I’ve lived in San Antonio, I have been avoiding sushi altogether knowing that I might be let down.

I had visited Sushi Zushi and ordered the tonkatsu (panko breaded pork cutlet) before and thought it was just okay.  The tonkatsu was overcooked and a little burned on the edges.  The tonkatsu sauce was good and that covered the fact that the tonkatsu was dry.

Tonight, however, I tried the sushi.  There were two pieces of nigiri that were decent, the sake (salmon), and the hamachi (yellowtail).  I suppose these were fresh because people order them fairly often.  But, this was not true with the Bintoro (Albacore).  The albacore was dry and abnormally fishy tasting.

I tried the Las Vegas Roll which had tempura shrimp, but the tempura shrimp was soft and chewy.  Every roll I’ve had with tempura, prior to tonight, have always had a crunch and a fried tempura flavor.  It wasn’t bad, but I can’t say it really had much flavor or anything to it really.

I was extremely disappointed with the ama ebbi.  I asked the waiter if he knew if it was fresh, which was a stupid question because what else would a waiter reply with?  So, out comes the ama ebbi.  I took a bite of the shrimp and it was bad.  I took a bite of the fried head and it too was just as fishy tasting.  Now, I’ve had ama ebbi before, but have never had non-fresh ama ebbi.  The ama ebbi had indications that it wasn’t fresh, discolored, yellowish tails, yet it was still served to me.  I don’t even know why I tried it.  I let the waiter know, and he didn’t argue, but he also wasn’t accommodating to the situation.

Last thing I ordered was the mochi ice cream.  This was really good and a whole lot less chewy and sweeter than real mochi cakes.  It was about the only thing, aside from the Asahi Beer, that I enjoyed.

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To those who say freshness is not an issue since fish is flown in overnighted via airplane, etc. . .  Sushi can be fresh if the restaurants sold or disposed of their fish on a frequent basis.  But if they have an item that doesn’t sell well, they don’t order it as frequently and they basically hold onto it longer, leading to sushi that is not as fresh.

★★ (2 Stars)

Nobody walks into water puddles and no one lays down their jacket for the pretty ladies to walk over.  I was watching carefully for this, as I had a nice view of Houston and Navarro streets from one of Yokonyu’s many window-side tables.

I walked in to Yokonyu Sushi Bar just as it had started raining.  It took a while for someone to attend to me as there was no host or hostess at the podium.  Finally, I was seated.  The ambiance was nice and it became apparent that Yokonyu was striving for the trendy, stylish, hipster look.  The sushi bar was somewhat hidden in the back, for some reason, and there were a lot of windows to look out of and into the city streets.  There were only about 4 other tables occupied during the downtown, prime-time, lunch-hour which concerned me a little bit.  Perhaps the annoying raver, dance-club music had driven some people away.

The service was fine, in fact the waiter did a great job.  I think that alone bought Yokonyu an extra star.    The food on the other hand was, as Yelp’s 2 stars put it, “Meh.  I’ve experienced better.”  I ordered the lunch special Yaki Udon with chicken ($10.99) that reminded me of some pretty decent Lean Cuisine frozen entrees.  Of course the problem with this is, if Lean Cuisine can compete with Yokonyu’s food why wouldn’t anyone just get a Lean Cuisine at $2.50 a meal? In addition, the Yaki Udon was served on a tiny plate and whenever I would try to grab at the noodles, the plate would spin!  Image, with chopsticks,  trying to eat noodles on a spinning plate!  It was crazy.

I didn’t order any sushi.  Who could afford it here, though?  I know we’re not too close to the Indian or Pacific Oceans in San Antonio, but at $9 for two pieces of hamachi nigiri?!  $19.99 for Ama Ebi?!  It also makes me wonder how fresh it all is. . .  The nigiri and sashimi seemed to be the only high priced items.  The rolls seemed at about the same price as they are anywhere: $10-14 a roll.

The only thing decent, as far as the food goes, was the salad with ginger dressing and the miso soup.  I might try coming here again for nigiri, my favorite type of sushi, once I win the lottery.

★★★★★ (5 Stars)

This is hands down the best sushi in Ventura.  I’ve been to I Love Sushi on a fairly regular basis.  Unlike other sushi restaurants I’ve visited in Ventura, their fish is consistently fresh.  It’s never been hit or miss.

They have a wide variety of maki-rolls, and some temaki rolls.  They also offer a wide variety of nigiri, and sashimi.  Their menu includes other items such as chicken and salmon teriyaki, and udon, but if you’re looking for dishes such as, tonkatsu or yakisoba you won’t find them here.  It is, after all, a sushi restaurant.    I highly suggest their albacore roll, mexico city roll, and the spicy tuna roll.  Their nigiri is usually priced in pairs and is as good as the fish is fresh.

The one downer is that there is always a wait for seating, being that it is a small restaurant.  Take-out can at times also take a while.