Day Zero Project: Eat a Type of Sushi I’m Normally too Afraid to Try

I like to think of myself as someone who enjoys and appreciates sushi, despite the fact that I don’t care for fish.  I’ll either order it raw in a sushi roll, or I’ll order it battered and fried, a la fish and chips.  But if there’s a waiter recommending I try the swordfish steak…erm, no thanks.

I’ve tried a few different types of sushi (uni, sea urchin – too much of a texture thing to try again; unagi, eel – too rich to eat regularly), but I like to stick with my old favorites: tempura shrimp and maguro, tuna.  I created this particular Day Zero goal to again break myself out of my sushi comfort zone.

I thought that I would try the tako sushi (octopus, pictured above) because I love calamari and thought that tako would be the mildest one to try.  Turns out, I don’t really care for tako in the style on a sushi roll, but I do love it “pickled” with rice vinegar.

Charlie and I had it before we knew what it was at Sasa, and we kept saying, “Is this razor clam? I think it’s razor clam.  It has to be razor clam!”  It’s not goddamn razor clam.  We only figured this out when we went the next week to Otani and had the same dish, but saw the little Cheerio-suckers on it.  Color us cultured.

All-in-all, I’m glad I tried it, but I think I’ll be sticking to my old standards for now, until the mood strikes me for some hokki gai or some hirame. Who knows?