I have never been a big "sushi person." I turned the corner on sushi when my mom took me to a place that used to exsist in Vancouver called Moshi. I was obviously very apprehensive because it was in a strip mall. I always thought the best sushi was found at swanky trandy sushi restaurants.
Then I found San-Sai. It's on NW 21st Ave across the street from the McMenamins Blue Moon Cafe. There is a sign in the window advertising happy hour. It is always there. Do not be alarmed. The place is always buzzing, always bright and clean. And certain items on the menu are always 50% off, and the items that aren't, are reasonably priced. They don't have lots of creative cocktails, they don't have a big fancy fish tank with exotic fish in it that you are not actually eating.
San Sai is in the neighborhood Portland writers, but not actual Portland residents commonly refer to as "The Alphabet District."Some of my personal San-Sai Favorites:
Crunchy Spicy Tuna Roll, Spicy Tempura Roll, Spider Roll, Mudslide Roll, Catepillar Roll, assorted vegetable tempura and miso soup.
Honorable Mention: $3 Warm Sake. (I don't like sake)
So I continued my thought that the best sushi was supposedly to be trendy and expensive. So I went to Sinju, which according to Citysearch.com is "the best in Portland." I spent a lot of money. (Keep in mind I am not usually cheap on the tip, unless you really deserve the "hint.") I drank a fancy cocktail and ordered all my usuals; hand rolls of the spicy tuna persuasion, tempura, and so on and so forth. It was good. Presentation was nice. But that's it. And in all actuality, I think San-Sai sushi is exactly the same...if not better.
Perhaps I was not wrong about Sinju?
This dirty dining report on Sinju refers to the Bridgeport location, not the Pearl location. Their score was only one point above requiring closure.
http://www.sinjurestaurant.com/ <-----Very nice flashy Flash-based website.
We know never to judge a book by it's cover. Now we know not to judge sushi by it's accompanying cocktail menu!
Please post your replies and let me know about your local neighborhood sushi gem!
I prefer my sushi from the less swanky establishments - which apperently is a good thing. We should do a raw fish lunch sometime.