| Burlingame sushi bar with large selection of Sake and exotic fish |
Reviewer: Jason
Total Reviews: 998
Reviewed: 8/17/2004
Rating: 8.5
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Sakae Sushi and Grill is the real deal...if you have deep pockets, this place will treat you right. For a restaurant that has about 6 tables and 10 or so seats at the sushi bar, they have quite the selection of Sake and exotic fish. Ive never seen half the fishes they posted on the whiteboard. From the moment they brought out the moist towels, I knew this was going to be a different experience from the previous sushi places Ive been too.
My order consisted of Chicken Karaage (Japanese fried chicken), side of rice, and 6 pieces of sushi Tai, Hon Maguro, and Kanpachi (all the fish was from Japan).
Chicken Karaage, cripsy and cooked to perfection, very juicy and always great with a side of rice. How the heck does a tiny bowl of rice come out to $2? That stuff should never be more than $1..its f*cking sticky white rice!
Tai (Red Snapper), probably my least favorite of the 3 but still fresh tasting. Usually snapper has one of the worst smells but luckily this one had no fishy taste or rottenness to it, wasabe rice mix was just right.
Seeing that Blue Fin Red Tuna was on the whiteboard, I decided to fork down $10 for 2 pieces. I should have gone for the $16 Blue Fin Fatty Tuna but I only brought $40 with me. The tuna was bright red and served slightly chilled, a dab of wasabe (stuff is potent, watch out, teary eye alert) underneath. Slowly chewing, try to savor every little bit of it....it was awesome but it didnt break apart like i was expecting it to. The 2nd piece though...holy sh*t, I was in a trance...excellent texture, teeth had no problem cutting it up, I wish I had more money to order another.
Im still relatively new to the sushi thing with only 25 or so sushi places under my belt for the Bay Area. Without a doubt, I can say the Kanpachi (Yellowtail) was the BEST Ive ever had anywhere...sure it cost $7, but it was worth every penny to enjoy fish that dissolves in your mouth. I didnt really chew it...it turned into liquid....daaaammmmm. JACKPOT! JACKPOT!
Seeing that jatbar caters to the common man or woman, I cant give Sakae a 9.5 or 10. Their fish is the freshest and best Ive had but the prices are way too high. I shelled out $40 for 6 pieces of fish, small bowl of rice, and chicken appetizer. I was still hungry leaving that place, we contemplated stopping at another place to fill the void but that never happened. I may sound like Im bitching about the price but try eating at 160 different restaurants in a 8 month period...you tend to look for the best tasting meals for the money. If money is no object to you and want excellent sushi, Sakae Sushi and Grill is the place for you.
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RETURN VISIT for Jason! 2/23/2006 - 10 Rating: Im kind of embarrassed when I read my 1st review on Sakae Sushi. I knew it was the best fish Ive ever had but gave them an 8.5? Its definitely a mistake on my part. After visiting numerous sushi restaurants in the bay area, Ive matured in my sushi tasting skills and I cannot think of a better sushi place. Sakae is expensive when you order off the whiteboard, but the fishes are things you dont see at the other sushi houses. If you stick to the regular menu, for the quality of fish you receive its nearly impossible to beat Sakae Sushi.
We arrived around 8PM and we grabbed the last table. It was packed to capacity and half of the people here were Japanese businessmen. Although Im not much of a sake drinker, they have a great selection of fine spirits and a listing of prices. They are open until 10PM most of the days of the week, just give them a call for the latest hours. Theres plenty of parking but space inside is limited. Be prepared to spend some $$$$ but its COMPLETELY WORTH EVERY PENNY. I spent $45 and was able to get a chicken karaage, assorted nigiri, and green tea ice cream.
Sakae Sushi isnt a fancy roll type of place. They have your standards like tempura roll and a California roll but people who know about this place, come for the nigiri/sashimi. For tonights visit, I stuck with all nigiri and only ordered 1 whiteboard item. I did eye the o toro blue fin for $22 but I only had $70 on me...haha.
To get a full tasting menu, get the Moriawase Sushi or Chefs Choice. I went with the Moriawase #34. Heres what I ate
Maguro - deep red, 10
Hamachi - melting, 10
Ebi - semi-sweet, 10
Unagi - bbq madness, 10
kani Ashi - real crab, 10
Suzuki - fresh, 10
Tobiko - snap, pop, 10
Sake - aka...butter, 10
Albacore - excellent cut, 10
Tekka-Maki - deep red, great fish ratio to rice, 10
Kanpachi - some blood line, broke apart easily, 10
EVERYTHING SERVED WAS A 10! I have never gotten an assorted nigiri plate where fish was flawless. The fish temperature and fish to rice ratio was outstanding. Only a master sushi chef can select the freshest fish and make those delicate cuts. Even the wasabe wasnt overly hot but enough to open your airways to inhale unique flavors of each fish.
I dont mess around when handing out a 10 rating. I only give those to the absolute best and with over 600 reviews written, Ive given less than 5 restaurants this honor. Thank you to Sakae Sushi for one of the most memorable sushi nights ever. |
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Reviewer: Eddie
Total Reviews: 47
Reviewed: 8/16/2004
Rating: 8
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Let me start by saying this is a legit sushi place, one that you can order the real exotic fish - if money is no object to you. The menu on the wall has some fishes I have never even seen the names and don't even know what they are. I ordered the shrimp tempura and a side of rice as appetizer and a sushi combo of chef's choice. Jason also ordered the Japanese fried chicken.
The chicken came first, it was good but the size of each individual piece was small compared with other Japanese restaurants and total quantity was less than generous. The shrimp came after about 10 minutes, which is a bit slow. Again the shrimp was crispy but size-wise was not up to the bar nor the quantity (only 4 of them for $7).
My sushi came after another 10 minutes wait. Visually the sushi plate was pretty good, the fish tasted fresh and the cut was very nice. One of the crab meat sushi was made of the real crab meat, I meant, the real one that came right out of the shell - not the one that's chopped up. The wasabi was very strong, there were a few times that I became teary right after the sushi.
Over all I would say this is a nice sushi place, but the price is a bit steep. They charge $2 for a bowl of rice, you be the judge on that. If they lower the price a bit, it could be 8.5 ~ 9 easily.
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