Ledger

Issue date: 3/8/07 Section: Arts & Entertainment

As I prepared to enter Two Koi Sushi Restaurant
in downtown Tacoma, I knew I was entering
unfamiliar territory. It’s not that I don’t like
fish; give me salmon or fish and chips any day.
However the opposite is true when it comes to
raw fish – I’m just a tad squeamish. In an attempt
to become more culturally diverse, I was determined
to acquire a taste for sushi.
The first thing I noticed when entering Two
Koi around lunchtime on a Wednesday, was the
swanky ambience of the restaurant’s interior.
The dimly lit ceiling lights were a nice contrast
to the large, globular rice paper lanterns, called
chochin, which illuminated the booths along the
large bay windows.
The bar divides into two sections, a sushi bar
and a well stocked cocktail bar. The latter boasts
an impressive list of 40 Sakes. Behind the sushi
bar, the chefs operate in the open, showing off
their handy work with a vast array of stainless
steel knives.
As I sat down in a booth under the soft glow
of a chochin light and began to peruse the menu,
I could tell this was nothing like my neighborhood
teriyaki joint, which was the closest I had
ever come to authentic Japanese cuisine.
The first thing that caught my attention on
the menu was the Taco Su, which consisted of
octopus and fresh cucumber. I dared myself to
consider it – but finally decided I wasn’t ready
to eat an animal smarter than me. The next item
that caught my attention was a serving of eel
prepared on a bed of ice.
Most of the dishes were unrecognizable to
me except for a few items on the menu that
contained words like “Katsu” and “Yakisoba,”
which reminded me of Americanized teriyaki.
I didn’t want something familiar; but I didn’t
want something that had more than four legs
either. I decided on a compromise and ordered a
“regular chicken bento” which consisted of some
raw fish, but fish I liked such as salmon, tuna,
whitefish and shrimp. I also knew if I couldn’t
force that down, there was some grilled chicken
and tempura batter-fried shrimp which would be
a little easier to swallow.
To warm up for the daunting task in front of
me, I ordered an appetizer of frozen soy beans.
These delectable treats were similar in shape,
color and texture to snow peas in a pod. All I had
to do was crack the pods open in my mouth and
suck the soy beans out. Their taste was akin to
pinto beans, but with a slightly stronger flavor.
These were not only tasty, but fun to eat.
When the main course arrived in a wooden
bento box, I surveyed what was in front of me.
In the lower right hand corner, there were a few
samples of traditional sushi which consisted of
small pieces of pink, raw fish wrapped snugly in
a layer of rice and seaweed. The lower left hand
corner contained four rectangular cubes of sticky
rice with a layer of raw fish resting on top – one
tuna, one salmon, one whitefish and one shrimp.
In the upper left hand section was grilled chicken
strips with sesame seeds, and finally in the upper
right hand corner sat prawn, fruit and vegetable
tempura.
Not wanting to mess with the chopsticks, I
picked up the first row of rice cakes – the one
with tuna – with my bare hand and plopped it in
my mouth. I was pleasantly surprised by its mildness,
and moist, juicy texture. I quickly went up
the row and polished off the rest of the rice cakes.
For extra flavor, I spread a little wasabi sauce
on the whitefish. Be forewarned about wasabi
– while its affect is similar to pure horseradish,
wasabi is green, dense and far more potent. Just
a speck of wasabi is enough to shoot fire up your
nostrils like a two barreled blow torch.
For desert I consumed four sticky rice ice
cream balls. They were about the size of bonbons
and were very rich and creamy.
I paid the $23 dollar tab sans tip feeling quite
satisfied. I felt like I had experienced something
authentically Japanese. I definitely plan on
returning to try something a little bolder – like
something with more than four legs.
What: Two Koi Japanese Cuisine
Where: 1552 Jefferson Ave, Tacoma
Phone: (253) 274-8999
Details: 13 varieties of sushi,
40 flavors of Sake
Hours:
Lunch: 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. Mondays – Fridays
Dinner:
2 p.m. – 10 p.m. Mondays – Wednesdays
5 p.m. – 11 p.m. Thursdays
5 p.m. – 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday

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