Koo
3 ratings since posting on Wednesday, February 9, 2005
Overall Rating  based on 3 ratings |
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 Mellow lounge beats quietly playing in the ambient background set the tone in the dimly lit, modernly decorated Japanese dining room, where the front door enters. To the left, a more lighted small sushi bar area beckons where only six seats are available. Two sushi chefs in standard white chefs jackets towered over the sushi bar. Beautiful nihonjin or issei waitresses (thanks for the clarification, Jay) clad in black offered smiles and Japanese salutations. Noticing details, such as the restaurant's logo, its various wall fixtures, I could tell this venue was new. Koo opened its doors in the fall of 2004, giving owner and sushi chef Kiyoshi Hayakawa his own venue after years of working in Japan, Boston, Santa Barbara, and in the Bay Area at Sushi Ran, Ace Wasabi's, and most recently,Tokyo Go Go. My meal began with an ambitious set of nigiri orders. Chu-toro, hotategai, hamachi, and tamago; and, from the specials menu, white salmon, as well as a special Hawaiian fish I had not tried before. All were well prepared and fresh. Unfortunately, I forgot to ask for the fresh wasabi, which I've previously read is available. The shiro maguro nigiri was curiously served dressed with a sauce, some seasoning sprinkles, and grated ginger. While tasty, it left me wondering if they were trying to cover up any off flavors from some less than fresh fish. I detected no off flavors, but I tasted more sauce than I preferred. I then moved on from sushi to a few dishes from other parts of the menu. The stuffed jalapenos, which were halved and seeded jalapeno peppers stuffed with hamachi, cooked, then served with a lime aioli on the side. The presentation of the dish reminded me of a spicy hot version from Grandeho's Kamekyo on Hyde Street, which involved the hamachi first mixed with Sriracha spicy Vietnamese sauce and mayo before being stuffed into the pepper, and then charred with a brulee style hand torch. The Koo version, which was served piping hot, apparently from the back kitchen's broiler, was very mild in terms of spicy heat, but still quite tasty. The aioli dipping sauce furthered the mildness, making for a very approachable small plate selection. The dish which stood out was, surprisingly, the goma ae. The chilled spinach was served in tightly wrung and packed vertically in artfully shaped cylindrical molds, along with a few pieces of blanched and chilled asparagus, sitting in a thick sesame sauce. It was probably the best goma ae I have ever had. The presentation on the wide, medium sized white bowl was clean and balanced. The flavors comprised of an nice contrast between the green produce and brown sauce. The grilled eggplant was served with a sweet sauce and little bits of red pickle. For a dish which starts with such a bland base ingredient, this eggplant was quite flavorful, even comforting. While sitting at the sushi bar, I was treated to two small dish specials from the sushi chefs. The first, served early in my meal, was a moderately spicy, pickled and julienned radish salad, that really caught my attention. Much later, tiny thin strips of blue fin tuna skin mixed in a sesame and yuzu dressing appeared in a small bowl, making for a nice seafood complement to my vegetable dishes. I glanced at the dessert menu, which featured a cheesecake, as well as a few Japanese inspired gelato flavors, and the obligatory mochi ice cream, but in the end, I passed on dessert as I was quite full with my meal. Service was excellent. There was always plenty of hot tea in my cup. The sushi chefs were efficient, professional, and friendly. The kitchen chefs skillfully prepared cooked items which were clearly under strict guidance by chef Kiyoshi. For a rainy Thursday evening, there was just a modest number of dining customers, but I was told that this residential neighborhood location, just a few blocks away from the bustling 9th and Irving area, gets very busy on Fridays and Saturdays. While it's not the very best sushi I've had in San Francisco, it is definitely in my top 10 list of sushi joints I've tried. I will most definitely return, to sample the various sake and other sushi items. - Mason , posted 02/18/05 |
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I had the pleasure of being introduced to Koo, recently. It just opened within the past few months and it kicked my ass. There were combinations of stuff I hadn't thought of before, and almost everything seemed to be paired with a glass of sake. Maybe that's why it kicked my ass. Or maybe it was the "spoonful of happiness", which combined ankimo, quail egg, uni, tobiko, hirame, and... oh yeah, sake. Or maybe it was the sashimi salad with the ponzu jelly sauce. Or the age dashi tofu topped w/miso pasted and scallions. If you think Kitaro is awesome, then maybe you should just stick with that. - Gary , posted 02/09/05 |
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The best recommendation I can give is that I eat here at least twice a week. Fresh fish (of course), creative dishes, enormous attention to detail, beautiful presentation and one of the few places in San Francisco with fresh grated wasabi (you may have to ask for it though). - Jay , posted 02/09/05 |
Koo was recommended for:
- Tribe: NoCheapSushi
- Tribe: For the Love of Sushi
