Hikari Sushi & Sake Bar

The scrolling neon sign above the door at Hikari Sushi & Sake Bar has read "Coming Soon" for weeks.  So when we finally got word that they had opened, we didn't waste any time finding a seat at the sushi bar.  Plus, Justin had been craving sushi for quite some time, so Hikari's opening couldn't have come at a better time.

We started off with the calamari tempura, which was served with a sweet and spicy dipping sauce.  The calamari came out a bit cold, but the batter was light and perfectly crispy, while the squid was nice and tender.  I'll attribute the cold dish to it being just their second night open.  I'm sure when we visit again, it won't be cold.

The rest of our meal was garnered from the sushi bar.  The 2 sushi chefs were cranking out rolls left and right, and it didn't take long for ours to be set in front of us.  Justin ordered his favorite, uni with a quail egg on top.  The uni was so rich and creamy, while the egg was the perfect topper.  I ordered my favorite, the salmon skin roll, though it came as a maki roll (I usually prefer a hand roll).  Nonetheless, the salmon skin was nice and crispy, with a salty, charred, umami flavor.  The white tuna sashimi was nice and buttery as well.

Then we dove into some of their specialty rolls.  We had the caterpillar roll, which had eel and cucumber inside, rice on the outside, and it was topped with avocado.  The eel was nice and warm, with the perfect amount of sauce, while the avocado added a nice creamy element to each piece.  We also enjoyed the rainbow caviar roll.  The roll itself was a California roll with tuna, and each piece was topped with a different kind of tobiko.  I think the lemon tobiko was my favorite because it added an unexpected citrus element to the roll.  There was the stop drop roll which consisted of spicy scallop and cucumber.  There was just enough heat with the scallop that they weren't overwhelmed by spice.  You could still taste the fresh, sweet scallops.  The final roll was the shiso tofu maki.  I'm not one to order vegetarian rolls, but Justin suggested it and I went with it.  The tofu stood up to the rice, and the shiso added a nice, herbal-y flavor to the roll.

All in all, it was a delicious meal.  They had a good selection of traditional sushi and maki, in addition to some creative rolls.  They also had several cooked items on the menu, but we didn't try those.  Our server was a bit slow, but considering they've only been open for a handful of days, I'll let that one slide this time.  Following the meal, one of the managers or owners asked us for feedback on our meal and offered us a complimentary dessert, so we opted for the mango sticky rice.  It was the perfect way to end the meal.  The rice wasn't overly sweet, and the mango was perfectly ripe.

We hadn't found a decent sushi joint in DC, but Hikari will certainly fill that role considering how close it is to our apartments, and the quality of the meal we enjoyed.

Best Birthday Ever!

I gotta be honest here, I usually don't look forward to birthdays.  It comes so close to Christmas that it usually ends up being an afterthought.  When Kara told me she had a special surprise in store for me this year, I knew this birthday would be one of my favorites--especially since it was competing against previous years, like the year I was injured in hockey practice, or the time I had to work late, or in third grade when my mom told me she got me a girl present by mistake.

Any guesses what the surprise was?  I was perplexed too, but I figured it was food related (of course!) and I knew it would be amazing.  For Kara's birthday I took her to Rogue 24, and I could see she was determined to have another unforgettable meal together for my big day as well.

She certainly didn't disappoint...my first time dining at the legendary Komi! I figured it out when we got off at Dupont.  It had to be either Komi or Little Serow, and seeing that Little Serow doesn't take reservations, my intuitions proved correct.

For those of you not familiar with Komi here is a bit of a background.  It is a small, intimate, and personalized experience serving a Greek inspired, prix fixe menu, custom tailored to each tables preferences.  Reservations are hard to come by, only taking them a month in advance of the day you plan to go.  Don't be discouraged if you can't get through, keep redialing!  It took Kara and her mom 45 minutes to get through, using 4 different phones, and even then, our reservation was still at 8:45pm!

I was visibly excited when we sat down, and I needed a drink to settle in for the gastronomic journey ahead.  Kara and I are both really in to all the inventive craft brews around now, and are big fans of porters and stouts.  Luckily, Komi has a decent beer list.  In fact, we both opted for a couple of our tried and true favorites; her a Duck Rabbit Porter and me an Old Rasputin Imperial Stout.

Finally, the small plates started coming our way, and from the very first dish the bar was set extremely high.  Frequent readers of this blog can probably figure out some of my favorite ingredients from some of the stuff we've featured, raw seafood, truffles, exotic meats, classic pastas, and international fare.  Those were all featured prominently in this meal.  I thought Kara had tipped them off, but she insists it was all a happy coincidence that some of my favorite foods were served.

The first few courses were bite-size dishes, gradually increasing in size as we moved towards the main course.  Our first dish was a bite size, house made brioche with smoked trout roe.  It was reminiscent of lox and bagels but was a very clean tasting and fresh take on those flavors.  Next, we had Komi's modernist rendition of spanakopita.  Kara had been talking about this dish since she'd had it in May, and it certainly lived up to the hype.  Essentially, what arrived was a small, perfectly golden brown ball resembling a croquette.  We were advised to eat it in one bite, so we popped those suckers in our mouths, and were treated to an outpouring of creamy, hot spinach from inside.  The next treat to come our way was a slice of raw salmon.  What really stood out about this dish was just how fresh and buttery the fish was.  It's natural flavors took center stage in this preparation and the flesh was velvety and tender on the palate.

The next round of dishes were a bit larger and built some complex and unique flavors.  The scallop dish that followed was like Chef Johnny could read my mind, and was able to create flavor combinations that need careful precision to be successful.  It was raw scallop (yum), uni (one of my absolute favorites), shaved truffle (what, are you serious here!), and diced turnip for a little textural component.  The end result was food porn bordering on over the top that Kara would never allow me to create in our kitchen.  That course was followed up by a perfectly grilled and seasoned baby octopus.

Ok, hopefully you haven't  drooled all over your keyboards yet because the dishes kept on coming.  If you've seen our post on gnocchi you are probably aware that it is my top comfort food.  In fact, gnocchi was   one of the items I made the first time I cooked a meal for Kara.  These gnocchi were amazing.  Fortunately, I was able to capture a video of Kara's reaction upon tasting them.  They were so light and tasty, no heavy sauce was needed, just some brown butter, Parmesan and chives. Kara and I are both adventurous eaters, and as fans of terrines, pates, and offal meat, we excited when the next course was a rabbit liver mousse on a crostini.  Again, it was seasoned to perfection, and it was extremely creamy in contrast to the crunchy bread.

When you think about Greek Cuisine, it is hard to overlook that simple sandwich staple--the gyro.  In this sophisticated riff on the dish, the spit roasted lamb was upgraded to wagyu beef, and the topping was a generous slice of foie gras.  Our next plate brought some salty and sweet goodness to the table.  It was a carmelized medjool date stuffed with marscapone cheese and topped with some sea salt flakes.  Again, dates are a favorite of mine, and I recreated this dish for my family this holiday.

You're probably thinking, wow what a great meal, but it was about to get even better as they brought on the main courses. Our pasta course featured homemade pappardelle pasta with lamb ragu, topped with orange zest.  This dish was simple but delicious, and the pasta and lamb worked harmoniously together without either stealing the show.  The orange zest gave the dish a fresh, brightness to it as well.  The meal peaked with the next main course.  It was a wagyu beef short-rib, served a perfect medium rare.  Accompanying this were toasted pita, pickled fresno peppers, turnip mostarda, and housemade tzatiki.

That last course was truly a tough act to follow, but the 5 dessert courses were sweet bites that rounded out a perfect meal.  Our first dessert was some creamed honey complemented with a crunchy granola-like component.  That was followed by an amazing brown butter ice cream with cashews and a bruleed banana puree. It was reminiscent of bananas foster, and I could eat a pint of the brown butter ice cream.  It was so creamy, decadent, and delicious.  Next we were treated to plate of house made chocolates and toffees that were quite exquisite.  Last but not least, we were each given a root beer lollipop, which made a nice little treat the next day.

All in all, it was a birthday I'll never forget.