1.198
22 (Thu) July 2010
Negitoro Maki
3.0
at Sakanaya (Chelsea Premium Outlets)
-Yeoju, Gyeonggi, Korea-
with the Family, In-Laws
Negitoro maki is a Japanese dish. Consists of minced tuna belly (toro) + diced scallion (negi) + vinegared rice (sushi), wrapped in roasted laver (nori). The sharpness of the raw scallion cuts through the fat to make a perfectly balanced combination of fresh and rich. Without question, it’s my favorite Japanese dish.
Sakanaya is a kaiten sushi restaurant, in which customers directly take plates of sushi and other items moving past them on a revolving conveyor belt, each color-coded plate tallied up at the end. In Korea, the system is referred to as “hoejeon-chobap” (회전초밥), which literally means “revolving” (hoejeon) + “sushi” (chobap). Most plates at most places are at least 3,500 won and anything worth eating is around 5,000 won and anything good comes close to 10,000 won, which means that, for example, 10 pieces of standard tuna would cost somewhere in the neighborhood of 25,000 won (5 plates x 5,000 won). The negitoro maki featured here was 5,000 won. Still, Sakanaya is one of the better dining options at this mall, an outlet mall located way out in the middle of nowhere.