Opinions. OFF ° ° CAMPUS OQkonomi Sushi CUISINE A welcome alternative to the Eighth Street sushi scene By Jacey Gibb, Opinions Editor hen I go out for sushi, it’s not something I put a lot of thought into. If a place has unagi rolls and no visible rodent infestations, I’m usually satisfied. This lack of expectations means | never go beyond Eighth Street for my sushi cravings, but Ki Sushi can be sheer chaos during the lunch/ dinner rush and Bao Sushi, while charming and friendly, takes forever and charges too much for what you get. Fed up with these usual haunts, I took a friend’s recommendation and checked out Okonomi Sushi. A 10 minute walk, or even quicker SkyTrain ride, from Douglas, Okonomi Sushi resides on the inclination known as Fourth Street. Literally around the corner from the Columbia SkyTrain station, the restaurant is a bit bigger than Ki and with about half the tables, meaning you don’t knock into someone every time you move your chair. The real gem of their layout is the line of comfy couches along the windows set up like 14 booths. For too long have I been forced to enjoy my meals while sitting on an uncomfortable chair! Thank you Okonomi. The menu is expansive, to the point where it’s almost intimidating, so lasked my server which of their special rolls was the most renowned / popular. It took a few suggestions before she mentioned one without imitation crabmeat: the Crazy Roll. With cream cheese, cucumber, unagi, leftovers home. As sushi usually does, my rolls arrived quickly and looking mighty appealing. Okonomi’s rice has the red tinge that comes from adding berry juices during preparation, but I couldn't notice any intruding flavours when I chomped down on my first Vegetable Roll. They were surprisingly bland, only consisting of carrots, cucumbers, and spinach. Terribly unimaginative, even for a Vegetable Roll. “,..Philadelphia Rolls are generally fine in my books, but | think the break-out hit of the Crazy Roll unfairly built up my expectations... Not terrible, but not terribly good either. Luckily | had saved half of my Crazy Roll and was able to fill up on it while mostly ignoring its fellow dishes.” special sauce, and a bed of tempura flakes, it sounded eccentric enough. When eating sushi and exploring an unknown menu, I’ve adopted the habit of ordering one dish that’s outlandish and then pairing it with something I know I'll love. In this case, Philadelphia Rolls are a sure bet for me and it never hurts to give a place’s Vegetable Rolls a try, so I ordered all three with plans to take Luckily, the Crazy Roll was there to pick up the slack. Presentation wise, the roll was easily the most attractive, with the tempura flakes coating the roll like snow on a winter landscape. They added a positively satisfying crunch sound to the roll too, while the cream cheese and other contents made for a smooth and creamy filling. Insanely good! Like I mentioned before, Philadelphia Rolls are generally fine in my books, but I think the break-out hit of the Crazy Roll unfairly built up my expectations. The salmon had an unusual texture, while the rest of the roll failed to make my tastebuds quiver. Not terrible, but not terribly good either. Luckily I had saved half of my Crazy Roll and was able to fill up on it while mostly ignoring its fellow dishes. Considering only a third of my dishes were delicious, basic math says my review of Okonomi is poor. But I was never one for logic, so I’m going to go ahead and give Okonomi Sushi a thumbs up! The Vegetable Roll and Philadelphia Roll were both subpar, but the Crazy Roll was more than enough to save the meal. Perhaps it was the contemporary jazz humming throughout my visit, or maybe it was the generous mound of ginger that came with each dish, but I left the restaurant feeling great about my experience. If nothing else, I can’t see my school from Okonomi’s windows, so that’s a plus.