Try a Break in Routine
October 28, 2005
A certain comfort, or rather, peace of mind, comes with routine. From a cup of Earl Grey in the morning to Sunday nights with The Simpsons, we all have our “rituals” (and I use that word loosely), which give us happiness and satisfaction.
The thing with routines is, sometimes they veer you in the direction of being in a rut, which can become a problem in your career or relationships. How many times have you heard your friend complain about her relationship being in a rut? But it’s all relative – for some couples, doing the same activities and or going to the same restaurant on Friday nights is a testament to a happy relationship.
Call me a sentimentalist, but I still think about the Starbucks at which my ex-boyfriend and I had hot chocolate and pumpkin-spice cookies on Friday evenings. There’s something about returning to something you know and can relate to.
But going back to restaurants, there are those few favorites to which you always return. At my dad’s old restaurant, we had regulars who ordered the Family Dinner #5 every Friday night with a side of beef Chow Fun and two orders of pot stickers. There are a handful of restaurants in the city that I frequent often, so much so that the wait staff has recognized me and memorized my favorite dishes.
Here in San Francisco, it may be hard for some to see their favorite dive or diner serve its last supper. Restaurants come and go, oftentimes it happens over night. One day you walk into a sushi restaurant, the next day it turns into a Chinese won ton house. (It’s happened to me plenty of times.)
I can usually tell when the corner restaurant I go to once a week changes ownerships just by the menu, and depending on the new proprietors, advertisements of being “under new ownership.”
Strangely enough, I discovered a restaurant déja vu when I was in the bathroom of Crazy Sushi in the Mission. Yes, the bathroom. I was washing my hands in the sink when it hit me that I’d been in that specific space before.
Crazy Sushi – opened in summer 2005 – occupies the former Vietnamese restaurant Elephant Bleu. I’d eaten at Elephant Bleu once before, but unfortunately the food didn’t leave a strong enough impression to remember the dishes precisely
Now Crazy Sushi has taken over. The interior of the restaurant is hip and clean with a nice flow. The restaurant has potential in that our server was personable and helpful and the décor was simple and inviting. It needs to improve on its food, though. My friend and I ventured into the restaurant on a gorgeous Thursday afternoon. We took a table by the window and caught glimpses of the various characters passing by.
We’d already eaten a huge early lunch, and had hoped that a few walks around the block would aid in our digestion, but we didn’t clock in enough miles. Nevertheless, we were curious to try out Crazy Sushi.
The Vegetarian Temaki ($3) was rolled perfectly. There was magic with every bite of this roll; the combination of supple shitake mushrooms, spicy daikon sprouts and sweet plum melted wonderfully in my mouth with the creamy avocado and sour rice. There’s plenty of “fun-named” rolls and maki, such as Lesbionic, Buzzed Spider, Castro Rainbow and Sleepy Caterpillar. I opted for the more classic rolls, and was impressed by the portion-controlled size of both the Tekka Maki ($3.50) and Negi Hama Hama ($3.50).
Crazy Sushi packed just the right amount of fresh and creamy tuna in the tekka; again the texture of the tuna melted with the rice. I know a lot of people out there who like to dip their rolls, nigiri and sashimi in wasabi and soy sauce (swirling the wasabi in the soy sauce and sucking the tips of the chopsticks), but true Japanese sushi chefs grimace at such a sight. The reason being? Rolls aren’t meant to be eaten with wasabi-soy; the chefs claim that the soy sauce brings down the temperature of the rice as well as disintegrates the rice. One of the pleasures you’re supposed to get when eating rolls is having the rice breakdown gently in your mouth.
Anyone who’s been out with me knows that I have a weakness for mackerel. I was looking forward to biting into the creamy and oily pieces of Saba ($7) sashimi, but was disappointed by the outcome. It lacked the velvety texture that I’d come to love (and worship.) Aside from the Saba, our other selections were good. Next time, we plan to come on an emptier stomach so we can try more of the restaurants’ goods. Hopefully, folks will check out this place so it will be there the next time we stop in.
Crazy Sushi
3232 16th Street (between Dolores and Guerrero)
San Francisco, CA 94103
415-553-6062
Hours: Mon. – Sun. 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.; 5 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.
Prices: Appetizers: $2 - $6.25; rolls: $3 - $12; sashimi: $6.25 - $10
Credit cards accepted.
Food: Fair
Ambience: Good
Service: Fair
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