THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 2021 • THE BULLETIN
GO! MAGAZINE • PAGE 13
FOOD
TRUCKS
& CARTS
p.14
bendbulletin.com/goeat
but this Salmon Nigiri was ten-
der, melt in your mouth and full
flavored. The Suzuki Nigiri, made
with striped sea bass from Baja,
California, was topped with ponzu
and a bit of ginger and chives. The
toppings added a fresh taste that
balanced the distinct bass flavor.
Although I tried another sushi
venue, the owner asked not to be
included in the article. Likewise, a
soon-to-be-open sushi food truck
did not want to be mentioned. It
is likely a matter of diminished
supply. These small places do
not want to be flooded with or-
ders they cannot fulfill right now.
Skomski explained that fishermen
have been catching less because of
the lower demand for fish during
the pandemic shutdown, thereby
reducing the supply of fresh fish.
To avoid the supply issue,
but increase his customer base,
Skomski is considering adding a
Thursday night Vegan roll menu if
there is enough interest. His favor-
ite spicy tuna substitute made with
butternut squash is one possible
item. A miso-glazed sweet potato
sushi roll with jalapeños is another.
Those interested in vegan rolls can
contact Skomski through Face-
book or Instagram @KusshiNW.
As a comparison to Skomski’s
sushi and a quick way to satisfy a
sushi craving, I picked up a cou-
ple of sushi rolls from Market of
Choice. Two rolls looked creative
and exciting. The first was topped
with all four types of fish roe —
tobiko (flying fish roe), masago,
ikura, and caviar atop toro and
maguro (tunas). The second was
filled with tempura fried shrimp,
fresh avocado and cool chunks
of cucumber on the inside Tuna,
tempura crunch, jalapeño, wasabi
mayo and spicy mayo on top.
The rolls were $11 each. Rolls
made from these ingredients at
a sushi restaurant would proba-
bly cost $5 more. While they were
somewhat tasty and could quickly
fulfill a sushi craving, it made me
aware of sushi quality differences.
The higher the quality of sushi,
the more flavorful and tender the
fish. The highest quality fish prac-
tically melts in your mouth with
a burst of flavor. Fresh sushi rice
Where to get sushi in Central Oregon
KANPAI
CHI CHINESE & SUSHI BAR
MIO SUSHI
Tuesday through Saturday, 4 to 8 p.m.; call to order
541-388-4636, kanpaibend.com
990 NW Newport Ave., Bend
Kanpai is a “culinary experience,” which is evidenced
in the creative high-quality ingredient combinations
and preparation of the rolls.
Specialty nigiri and rolls are $13 each. One example is the
Slammin’ Salmon which has Salmon around rice with
slightly broiled crab, lemon aioli and sweet soy reduction.
Other specialty rolls run from $12 to $17. The Hatter
Hanzo is made with black pepper seared tuna, tem-
pura, mango, avocado, cucumber, scallions, and red
curry peanut sauce. A combination of Western cui-
sine ingredients—salmon, cucumber, goat cheese,
macadamia nuts, mango vinaigrette—are used in
the Flying Kamikaze.
Kanpai also offers 10 veggie rolls.
Tuesday through Sunday, 4 to 9 p.m.
541-323-3931, bendchi.com, or order on their “Chi
Chinese & Sushi Bar” phone app
3118 N Hwy 97, Bend
Chi offers 17 specialty sushi rolls. Snow
White and the Sushi Chef has snow
crab, cucumber, avocado, topped
with yellowtail, shies, green
onions and ponzu sauce
for $14.
Open daily for lunch and dinner
541-241-1008, mioshushi.com/mio-bend
Old Mill, 375 SW Powerhouse Drive
Mio offers 22 premium rolls, including the Ahi
Tataki — real crab, cucumber, takati
tuna, tobiko, avocado, sweet sauce,
pineapple sauce, and spicy
cream sauce, green onion.
BEND IZAKAYA RONIN
Friday and Saturday, 5 to 8 p.m.
bendizakaya.com. 541-797-4325.
70 SW Century Drive #120
Ronin has traditional rolls like a Spicy Tuna roll for
$12 and California roll (real crab) $13. But it’s the
Omakase (Chef’s choice) roll at $18 that will surprise
and delight your palate with unique combinations
of ingredients. For a pure sushi experience try the 5
($35) or 8-piece ($45) Nigiri flights that include tuna,
albacore, salmon, hamachi.crab leg and a 6-piece roll.
5 FUSION & SUSHI BAR
Monday through Saturday, 4 to 8 p.m.
541-323-2328, 5fusion.com
821 NW Wall Street
5 Fusion offers 21 rolls that run $9 to $18 including
Unagi, Spider and Dragon Rolls. One of their unique
combinations is the Mr. Potato Head Roll with escolar,
cucumber, avocado roll topped with Kanpachi, crispy
sweet potato, and yuzu tomato chimichurri for $17.
mixed with vinegar will
stick to your fingers and
is chewy but not hard or
mushy.
Anything covered in
tempura is crisp and light.
Included veggies will cre-
ate a good balance with
oily rich fish. A fine sushi
chef will create interesting
combinations and include
ingredients that play off
each other to bring out all
of the flavors.
e e
Reporter: barb@
barbgonzalezphotography.com
SHINSEI SUSHI
OISHI JAPANESE
RESTAURANT
Open daily for lunch and
dinner
Tuesday through Sunday
541-306-3486, shin-
for lunch and dinner
seibend.com
541-548-3035, oishijapa-
At Cascade Village Shop-
nese.com
ping Mall
511 SW 6th St. Red-
Shinsei offer an exten-
mond
Negi-hama maki, salmon and Suzuki Nigiri
sive list of 23 regular
Many unique roll com-
complete the meal from Kusshi NW.
rolls $7- 11, 5 Tempura
binations including the
Rolls $9-$12, 10 Crispy
Wonderful Roll with salmon, cream cheese,
Rolls. $10 — $12, 15 Premium rolls $14- $18, and 7
and avocado wrapped in Ika (squid) instead of rice
Veggie Rolls. The “Amazing” is a jalapeño stuffed with
and lightly fried on outside, $15; The Tower is a deli-
Spicy Tuna, deep-fried topped with spicy tuna, tem-
cious stack of spicy tuna, crab meat, scallop, avocado
pura flakes, and Unagi sauce
with mayo sauce, $16.
OKAWA STEAK HOUSE AND SUSHI
SORA SUSHI
Open daily for lunch and dinner
541-640-8056, https://qmenu.us/#/okawa-steak-
house-sushi-bend
1180 SE 3rd St
Okay offers an extensive selection of rolls starting
with 11 traditional rolls for around $7, 17 non-tradi-
tional rolls priced from $4 to $12, and 31 Signature
Rolls for $10-$15. One Signature is the Special Yum
Yum Roll has Lobster tempura inside smoked salmon
with avocado on top. Stinky roll is topped with cajun
albacore.
Open for lunch and dinner daily
541-318-3838, sorasushibend.com
744 Northwest Bond Street;
541-923-9867, sorasushiredmond.com
3853 SW 21st St, Redmond
It may be a while before we can enjoy the sushi con-
veyer belt again. Still, this reasonably priced sushi is
available for pickup and delivery. Sora offers 38 Spe-
cial rolls from $10.25 to $15 and has 14 Rolls for less
than $9 and 9 vegetable rolls.
Sushi glossary
Unless you are an avid sushi diner, you
may find it confusing to read menus with
so many Japanese words and ingredients.
Here’s a short cheat sheet of common
terms you’ll find on a sushi menu.
Nigiri: What we think of as sushi with fish
on top of rice.
Sashimi: thinly sliced raw fish
Nori: toasted sheets of seaweed.
Maki: A sushi roll with nori and sliced into
round, bite-sized pieces.
Hamachi: yellowtail fish
Unagi: cooked eel (eel is poisonous if
raw)
Kanpachi: amberjack fish
Krab: imitation crab that is made of
starch and white fish
Bonito: similar to tuna but can only be
caught and served in certain seasons, of-
ten dried into bonito flakes for topping
sushi rolls
Tobiko: flying fish roe; the orange eggs
are often used as a topping on sushi rolls.
Masago, ikura and caviar are four other
types of fish roe.
Ponzu sauce: citrusy sauce with tart and
tangy flavor
Yuzu: This fruit is like a sharp hybrid of
lime, lemon and grapefruit. It is made into
a sauce that is acidic, tart and has a kick.
Don or donburi: Japanese rice bowl
Kaiware: sprouted daikon radishes that
add a peppery flavor to sushi rolls
Yamagobo: pickled burdock root —
looks like a long thin carrot
Sushi restaurants offer cooked and vegan
options. Many have cooked fish like eel or
seared Tuna, or tempura fried shrimp, soft-
shell crab, and the like. Vegan rolls feature
vegetables wrapped in nori and rice.