Rating:
Sugarcane Raw Bar Grill
3252 Northeast 1st Avenue
Miami, FL 33137
786-369-0353
www.sugarcanerawbargrill.com

We recently had an opportunity to try the sushi at Sugarcane Raw Bar, along with some other seafood items and here’s what we found.

First of all, for those who have not been here, this is NOT a sushi bar or Japanese restaurant. They do feature their robata area. A Japanese robata is a restaurant where customers sit around the grill and eat small portions of meat, seafood and veggies as they are taken off the grilling surface. And they do have sushi. But keep in mind judging only their sushi offerings is a bit like ignoring half the menu at a pizza and pasta place. But we’re doing it anyway. (more…)

Come join us at Bluefin Sushi in Parkland on March 1st for a great time with great sushi!

The South Florida Sushi meetup group is the host, join today and see details here: http://meetu.ps/rCfB

We’ll get to meet Chef Yozo Natsui, a South Florida sushi veteran. He’s been down here for almost twenty years, and has trained many of the sushi chefs around here, maybe your favorite chef included.

Bluefin Parkland recently won “Best Sushi” title in the latest Sun Sentinel’s “Best of South Florida” contest. I would credit this to Chef Yozo, who is both a partner as well as head sushi chef. (more…)

We recently had an opportunity to try an assortment of sake varieties with a varied group of small sushi tapas. These included some of my regular junmai ginjo selections – Ty Ku black and Momokawa Diamond, along with some fruity, pear infused sake. And of course the subject of this post – G sake, from our friends at Sake One brewery in Oregon.

Now let me preface this by saying Sake One did not sponsor this, although they certainly do sing the praises of their ‘G’ sake. And we would not be upset if Sake One decides to send us some of their fine brew next holiday season, but let’s get back to the topic at hand shall we? (more…)

Many millions of BP Oil Spill settlement money is going to be spent in the coming weeks. On marketing.

Changing the public perception about seafood safety is the goal. The promoters of gulf seafood will have nicer soapboxes to shout from at more events thanks to the oil spill settlement proceeds. That includes Miami’s Food and Wine Festival, where we should see a strong presentation.

We think it’s a shame to spend millions on marketing when the fact is, close to half the fishermen are not earning a living fishing this year. Compounding the effects to include fish processing and packaging and distributing companies and there’s a lot of hurting folks out there.

We’re reading that plenty of people are speculating that seafood harvests are going to be decent this year. And we say phooey. If you’re an oyster company, and the shrimp, crab and crawfish harvests are great but the oysters aren’t how good are you going to feel about it?

Rating: Honmono Sushi
19 Soi Thonglor 23
Klongton-Nua, Wattana
Bangkok 10110 Thailand
02 185-1447
www.facebook.com/honmono

Big is in. That’s what we found when we recently visited Honmono Sushi in the trendy Thong Lor dining district in Bangkok, Thailand. Honmono literally means “real”, as in real sushi. And it was real … really big that is!

The o-toro sashimi served there is too large! No really, it should be sliced a bit thinner to be tastier instead of being supersized.

In fact the portions of fish are cut too large in many cases, which threatened to derail the perfect rating we gave. Almost.

This is particularly noticeable in the case of nigirizushi, where the properly sized rice ball is completely lost under the oversized slab of fish.

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Here’s how Sushi Pro scored it this year in South FL. We hear a lot of kvetching about how Florida doesn’t have good sushi, but it just ain’t so. There are enough good sushi joints to do a top twenty list, perhaps next year we will.

10. Asahi in South Miami – the seafood is super fresh here, and food is always tasty. Nigiri prices are good too, eat here with confidence. read Akashi review

9. Koume in Plantation – this seldom recognized hidden gem of Plantation has really great sushi and a terrific assortment of Japanese fare. read Koume review

8. Sozo Sushi in Wilton Manors – most creative menu winner! These guys have a tiny store with only 2 tables inside, and need a small menu. But they have packed a great lineup of sushi offerings into that menu – a must try! read Sozo Sushi review

7. Sushi Joe in Doral – another hidden gem, nestled in the quiet Western ‘burbs of Doral. “Joe” makes terrific sushi, and their Japanese menu is superb! read Sushi Joe review

6. Marumi in Plantation – this is a must-try izakaya. The two partners who run the place are masters, and apparently fanatical about food quality. Ever ehar of someone who went there and didn’t like it? ‘Nuff said. Allowing customers to select a fish and tell the chef how they want it prepared is what separates these guys from the pack. read Marumi review
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