02 Sep Slow Fish Los Angeles: Sushi and other Asian Fusion dishes

When it comes to sushi, I am a purist. I was raised going to Nozawa, the “sushi nazi,” where I was instructed when to use soy sauce and not offered “Americanized” rolls. It is always about the purity and freshness of the fish. That said, I am a fan of Asian fusion cuisine and I like other dishes beyond sushi. So, when I was invited to check out Slow Fish on Wilshire Blvd in the Miracle Mile, I went with an open mind. SlowFish, with a second location in Huntington Beach, was founded by Korean entrepreneur John Lee and Executive Chef Sean An. Together, they focus on offering Asian fusion cuisine with a California twist. The decor of SlowFish is not typical of an Asian restaurant. It has an art deco decor with high ceilings, dark red and black interior and chandeliers. The menu offers a selection of Pan-Asian dishes with Japanese, Vietnamese and American influences. Albacore, Black Snapper on Black Rice and Toro – The sushi fish is as fresh and tender as other sushi places in the city. The black rice with the black snapper is a novelty. SlowFish is proud to offer Black Rice, known as forbidden rice. It is an ancient grain with impressive health benefits, including powerful disease-fighting antioxidants, dietary fiber, anti-inflammatory properties, and the ability to help stop the development of diabetes, cancer, heart disease and even weight gain. Gangster Wrap – spicy tuna, crab meat, shrimp with cucumber, gobo, avocado in soy paper with spicy goma sauce is full of flavor as well as low fat due to the lack of rice Fat Avo – A favorite dish at the restaurant, the seasoned albacore is covered with a layer of avocado to look like an apple and coated with eel sauce. Mustard Ponzu Albacore – One of my favorite sushi dishes is albacore and here it is served as sashimi with radish sprouts, scallion and mustard ponzu. Yuzu Ponzu Hamanchi – The brightness of the citrus ponzu sauce and the heat of the jalpeno add flavor to the delicate yellowtail with yuzukosho and radish. Tuna Tostada – While this dish is more American than Asian, it is quite tasty with tuna, tomato, masago and scallion with a spicy sauce on a fried wonton skin. Seaweed Salad – Seaweed is topped with blue crab meat, sesame sauce, tofu, carrot and radish for a very light salad. Slow Beef Tender Rib – The shortrib is slowly braised for tenderness and marinated Korean-style. Banana Tempura with Plum Ice Cream – As a kid, I loved banana tempura but what makes this one so good is that the tempura batter is served warm and is not too thick and the banana flavors are what dominate. SlowFish 5406 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036