The Poke Bowl at Tommy's Sushi - If Sashimi and Poke Had a Baby
Most of the time I opt to try various specialties on the menu of restaurants I like. At Tommy's Sushi, a quaint neighborhood restaurant in Tustin, it's all about their delectable poke bowl. This dish has me looking for reasons to go to Orange County, about 40 miles from home. |
| Poke Bowl at Tommy's Sushi in Tustin, Orange County, CA |
Chirashi, a Japanese term indicating "scattered" sushi, is a bowl of sushi rice that is artfully covered with a variety of sashimi, the Japanese delicacy of fresh, raw fish sliced into thin pieces. The bowl is often accompanied by dipping sauces and garnishes of soy sauce, ponzu sauce, wasabi paste, sliced ginger, shiso leaf or sliced daikon radish.
Poke (pronounced po-kay), in Hawaiian means "cut piece", and poke is bite-size pieces of raw fish doused in seasonings - Hawaii's version of Japanese sashimi.
Tommy's Sushi invented this $11 magical mixing of the two that packs a flavor explosion in one's mouth and a feast for the eyes as well.
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| Poke bowl - detail |
The lower layer of the bowl consists of tangy sushi rice, which is topped with seasoned crab meat ("krab"), cucumber and avocado slices.
Next comes delicate slices of sashimi. The chefs include fresh offerings from behind the bar with, mostly tuna, salmon, spicy tuna, tender octopus and ususally some variety of a white fish.
This fish comes dressed in a bright and tart dressing with a crowning glory of chopped scallions, toasted sesame seeds and fresh roe.
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| Poke Bowl - detail |
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| The inevitable empty poke bowl |
While I am normally a very slow eater, I plow through this bowl in no time.
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| Friendly sushi chefs at Tommy's Sushi |
The sushi bar is much more fun than the booths (there are even some very low Japanese style booths where one can sit on the floor). The friendly sushi chefs provide their own brand of fun, somewhat risque humor to the ladies who dine before them.
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| spicy scallop nigiri (off menu) |
In over 10 years of going there, I've never ordered anything else besides miso soup or nigiri (individual) sushi on the side. The chefs are willing to make custom orders if requested.
In this case, they made me an off menu spicy clam nigiri sushi order.
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| Tommy's Sushi |
Tommy's Sushi is open for lunch only on Friday-Sunday, but open for dinner 7 nights per week.
You can find the poke bowl on their a la carte sushi menu.
I just love reading your descriptions of fabulous dining experiences. (And considering that I'm vegetarian, that's saying a lot!) Your food writing always makes me want to race out and eat something wonderful, and it also reminds me that terrific food is out there just waiting for us, all over Los Angeles (and Orange County too).
Diane
P.S. "The inevitable empty poke bowl"---that's so cute!
Dear Diane, It was such a pleasure to receive your comment. In blogs, many readers just look at the pictures and skim the text, so it's extra encouraging to know you like the descriptions as well.
And even though you are a vegetarian (I love my veges too) it's beautiful that you can appreciate the non-veg dishes. We are very fortunate to live in L.A., an extraordinary food town where a great meal lurks around every corner.
The poke bowl sounds worth the drive. Mouth watering!
It IS indeed worth the drive, Marie. Thanks for reading!