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| - The Mackerel was fresh.
That's it. My only real compliment.
Mackerel is actually a tricky one. It can be dry, over marinated, oily, or even somewhat shredded if it's not exactly prepared. But for a less inexpensive choice, it's been one of my favorites used to determine an establishment's ability to serve quality sushi. This was up there with some of the better locations... until... the sushi chef put a mess of what I thought was minced garlic on top of each piece. Unfortunately for both of us, it was not garlic. It was ginger.
Why on earth would you obliterate the wonderfully marinated flavor of Mackerel with what I equate to Mother Nature's Lemon Pledge? (I HATE ginger). Fortunately, my server switched out my frozen beer with a less frigid relative and I was able to wash out the remnants of the furniture polish condiment before too much damage had been done.
Moving on to the Tabiko.
Again, this was fresh, but it was prepared with the finesse of a Taco Bell cashier... smashed and poorly wrapped and then thrown onto a plate. Most locations will ask if you'd like the quail egg atop the tabiko... but here, each egg will run you an extra charge. The only bright spot was that the chef offered me a ramekin of Ponzu sauce that was a nice touch over the standard soy sauce, low sodium or otherwise.
Finally, the Olive You roll. This was a "unique" choice as it contained ingredients I had not yet seen on a sushi menu, including an olive tapenade, sun dried tomatoes, cream cheese, and toasted garlic. It was the toasted garlic that sold me as I actually HAD that on a fantastic Albacore Tuna item at Sushi Creek in Queen Creek. Unfortunately, the chef here either forgot the garlic, or did not put enough of it in to be distinguished from the briny olives. I only ate 3 of the 8 pieces.
I know, I know. "First review I've seen from this guy and he blasts a local place to pieces." Well... I can only say, try it for yourself. I hope I'm the exception to the rest of the crowd as I would love to see East Mesa develop into a culinary destination. Unfortunately, the hype, the loud music, the lack of ambience, and the poor customer service completely undermine what was only mediocre sushi to begin with.
If the owners or management read this, I would only suggest that this be seen as positive criticism. The staff needs direction and training... the food quality (freshness) is there, it just needs refining and possibly a little trimming... more is not better.
Ask your customers to fill out those little surveys... find out what you can improve on to fill the place on a Friday night while still serving a quality product and giving your customers an experience rather than just some rice and fish.
* Clean up your menu, too many items and its not presented to the customer in a neat manner. Mine literally fell apart and had food remnants from previous guests.
* Train the sushi chefs and servers the finer points of customer service. Your establishment exudes luxury, but the servers think they are working at Oregano's. Far too casual and not very knowledgeable about the products or even their surroundings.
* The high ceilings draw the customer's eye upwards... unfortunately, there is nothing up there but the air vents. Paint them black so they are no longer the draw... hang some tapestries or photos on fabric. This will provide some desperately needed art while also assisting in reducing the din of the ambient chatter echoed off the concrete floors.
* Your clientele is NOT the Scottsdale crowd. These are older adults with some money, taste, and expectations. Play on that. Adjust the music to a tolerable level while still playing modern artists. Unusual tracks, acoustic versions of popular hits and live music will also bring in a niche unsatisfied in the East Valley. The younger crowd likes this for dates too... and keeps them from doing sake bombers.
* Hang some artwork on those big, tall, green walls. This place is screaming for some big black and whites of the beautiful Superstitions. What better way to acknowledge the area?! OH, and lose the piece of @%*(& hanging in the Men's room. That wouldn't have even worked in the 80's. BLECH!
I wish the proprietors luck... but in the mean time, I'll be at Sakana or Sushi Creek. They may not have the glitz and glam, but the food is fantastic, the service is stellar and appropriate to their approach and decor, and I can be sure of quality over quantity every time.
Hippiaz (aka John, 38, Mesa. AZ)
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