One of the other lunches I got to enjoy while on my recent trip to LA was the Trust Me at Sugarfish. You can order some items a la carte, but the best option will be to order some of the omakase set menus where they decide what to serve best based on what is fresh and in season. All the sushi at Sugarfish is traditional, so don’t expect crazy combinations and sauces, there are no fancy rolls, including no California Rolls. Just simple sushi and hand rolls. I ate little slices of ginger and a smear of wasabi but never needed or even poured a drop of soy sauce.
We each ordered The Nozawa, the Trust Me. At $37, it is the most expensive of the three options (the other two are the Trust Me and the Trust Me Lite, which take out the Daily Special, Snapper sushi, or more for the Lite so that there are less courses.). But, for the amount you get and quality it is very reasonable. And lunch is the best deal, the same menu is more expensive at dinner or without the special for the to go version. After my sister birthed my niece, Trust Me at Sugarfish To Go was her choice after denying herself sushi all that time… how cool is the to go box?
Here’s a look of the menu when dining in! The Nozawa, the Trust Me at Sugarfish, with courses of
- Organic Edamame
- Tuna Sashimi
- Albacore Sushi, Salmon Sushi
- Yellowtail Sushi (2 pieces), Harame Sushi (1 piece), Snapper Sushi (1 piece), a Daily Special (2 pieces)
- Toro Hand Roll
- Blue Crab Hand Roll
No matter what you order, you’ll get to experience melt in your mouth sushi, partially because of the way they use the founding Chef Nozawa’s 50 years experience and creation of rice that is served warm and is loosely packed to create a melt-in-your-mouth sensation beneath the cool fish. While we were dining we had quite a wait between courses at one point because the rice was deemed not quality enough and they had to make a new batch. They apologized profusely for the delay, and comped a sashimi dish for our table. It worked out perfect as it gave a diaper change moment for my niece.
This is my niece’s second time observing sushi, and prompted my current search for a sushi teething toy that I remember seeing a couple years back, obviously pre-niece. Has anyone seen one of these? I searched for it online but haven’t found anything beyond a printed wooden block so far – I recall seeing it in a store while browsing stores before a dinner reservation, but don’t recall which infant/children’s store.
In the meantime, besides the sushi onsie which was a baby shower gift, I found some great foodie books for babies/toddlers, and one called First Book of Sushi (World Snacks) by Amy Wilson Sanger which I am sending to her!
For families that place good food high on their list of priorities, educating their wee ones about the joys of sushi may be far more important than teaching about bunnies and balls and flowers. But even those who don’t know futomaki from hatahata will relish the playful rhymes and lush collages in Amy Wilson Sanger’s wonderful First Book of Sushi.
Miso in my sippy cup,
tofu in my bowl.
Crab and avocado
fill my California roll.
English-speaking tots will love wrapping their lips around Japanese words such as tekka maki, ebi, and wasabi, and will soon be joining in the bouncy recitation of sushi favorites for the very young. This bright little board book, with its gorgeous array of patterns and textured, mixed-media collages, looks good enough to eat. And who knows, it might even inspire picky eaters to try a little egg tamago or squishy salmon roe (otherwise known as ikura)! (Baby to preschool) –Emilie Coulter
What is your favorite sushi roll or hand roll to order? Would you get the Trust Me at Sugarfish to dine at the restaurant so you can try the warmed rice experience, or to go with the cool box?
I’m loving that you took us on a road trip to LA! 🙂
And there’s still more LA posts coming, which is shocking since I only ate out once a day!
That looks delicious and love the simple, classic plating!
All of that looks SO good! Next time I’m in LA I will need to remember this!
It’s pretty damn good sushi at an affordable price!