Sushi at Doma- Fairmount (Philadelphia, USA)

We went to Doma sushi last weekend on a last minute whim. It's a short walk from our house and I have been meaning to try it since our move to Philadelphia. The restaurant is very small with modern, clean decor.  I really liked the look of the place. The staff were all young, nice and attentive. 

The menu is extensive with many choices for those non-sushi lovers amongst us. In fact, they also offer a few Korean dishes. So is it a Japanese or Korean restaurant? I'd say it is a combination of both. Not sure where the owners are actually from but they do a good job of executing the menu (see menu).

We started with several starter dishes including the jumbo ebi shumai ($6). 

Two open face dumplings were served with a ginger soy vinaigrette. The presentation was beautiful. However, I was not overly impressed with the dumpling itself. I've had many better and cheaper dumplings in Chinatown. Next was the tuna flatbread ($15). 

Thin slices of tuna served over a pita topped with some onions, peppers and cilantro. It was pretty good. However, it was not worth the $15 dollars it cost. We ordered some sushi and rolls including the tamago and amaebi. Both were beautifully executed. 

Next, the Count who is a sucker for fancy rolls ordered the Triple Spicy Double Tuna ($13) and the Naked Salmon ($12). The Naked Salmon was very original. Not really a sushi but fish served over a sticky fried rice. It was very tasty. 

The Triple Spicy Double Tuna consisted of tuna, spicy sauce, siracha, tempura crunch, scallion and seared albac. It was a very good roll, however, was nowhere close to being as spicy as the 'triple' in the tile would make you think.

The spicy tuna roll ($6) again failed to be very spicy. Nevertheless, it was a nicely executed roll and I had no complaints. 

For dessert we had the molten lava chocolate cake served with vanilla ice-cream. Usually this sort of cake takes at least 15-20 minutes to bake. Ours came out in less than 3 minutes leading me to believe that it was microwaved. After first bite I was sure that it was microwaved. It was not as good as it looked. 

Our meal came to over $90. It was a BYOB and no alcohol was obviously served. The price was a little over than what I imagined a small and quaint restaurant to charge. If I had wanted to spend so much I would have visited Morimoto. For those that love plain old quality sushi like myself you will not love this restaurant. There are many fancy rolls and the mix of Korean and Japanese is something that I don't enjoy when visiting a sushi spot. If you want an overall trendy 'asian' meal then you will definitely enjoy your experience at Doma. 

Vic Sushi Bar- Rittenhouse Square (Philadelphia, USA)

Coming from Vancouver where the sushi shops compete with the ever-so-present Starbucks for space, it is hard to find good sushi anywhere I go. I was referred to Vic Sushi Bar in Philadelphia by a fellow Vancouverite who had already gone through the sushi hunt and found this little gem. 

It is literally a little gem because the restaurant is tiny and the sushi- delicious. There is a small bar facing the chef and one table in front of the door. Making it an ideal spot to pick up or go in a very small group. We went on a weekday after the lunch rush and found seats at the table in front. The menu is extensive and includes all the basics you'd expect from a sushi shop. We ordered the spicy trio roll (salmon and avocado, spicy tuna and shrimp tempura roll) and a specialty roll consisting of salmon covered with salmon, avocado, eel and drizzled in eel sauce. 

  

Everything tasted extremely fresh. the rice was the perfect amount in each roll. It was made fresh and tasted warm. The fish were all tender and literally melted on first bite. 

For dessert, the tamago roll which consisted of a very thing egg concoction. It takes a very skilled tamago maker to create the perfect tamago and this in my mind was perfect. 

If you want real sushi made fresh then this is the place for it. You won't find anything else like it in the city. 

Chewie's Steam and Oyster Bar(Vancouver, Canada)

A New Orleans inspired restaurant in the heart of Vancouver? This I had to try. It had been a while since my last trip down to NOLA. Craving some fried chicken and Cajun inspired dishes I headed to Chewie's Oyster Bar in Kitsilano. The place is inspired by Rodney's Oyster House in Yaletown but with a Southern twist.  Mr. Chewie himself and the staff are all ex-Rodneys staff, who spent some time in New Orleans learning from the best and bringing their favorite recipes home to Vancouver for all of us to try. 

The atmosphere was lively yet laid back. The staff were very friendly and knowledgeable about each dish. The menu offered fresh oysters in addition to their Cajun dishes. We tried the fried chicken and Jambalaya. Not being a fan of oysters limited our choices to the main menu. 

The Jambalaya was the typical Jambalaya dish I've had in New Orleans- although in all honesty I haven't had that much Jambalaya, usually choosing to go with the Gumbo instead. My dish- the Southern Fried Chicken was served with a honey drizzle, mash potatoes and green beans. The chicken was marinated in buttermilk for two days and tasted tender and juicy.  However, I felt that it lacked in flavor. I had to add a lot of salt to make it flavorful. If you like your food less salty then you will enjoy this dish. For dessert, we just had to try the beignet inspired by Cafe du Monde in New Orleans. It was served with a side of creamy vanilla sauce and was delicious and probably not so light on the calories. 

All in all, this was a great place to spend the evening: great ambiance, an all male serving staff, great food and great service.