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| - I have been enchanted by the darkness-- the darkness of sukiyaki. Forget shabu. Ever since I visited Shabu Shabu Paradise, I have craved that teriyaki sweetness of sukiyaki to fondue my little heart out. Honestly, I have tried every do-it-yourself culinary trick in the book, and besides Korean BBQ, sukiyaki is now the only one I endorse. Unfortunately, Paradise is a bit too far for regular visits, but Swish is right around the corner. So the other night when my craving hit, my hub and I decided to give Swish a swirl.
The set-up at Swish is a little informal with a long central bar and seats all around. It's like you are seated around a runway and the incredibly gracious servers run up and down delivering you the goods. The servers are landing from the planet of niceness. The burners sit on the inside of the bar, which can create some precarious dipping, so practice your chop skills ahead of time.
Now, for the eats: The sukiyaki is served in a shallow bowl, which can create an interesting opportunity to treat your sukiyaki like a skillet stir-fry when the juice gets low. This is a smart call when you're fixing up the udon noodles. We ordered the vegetable selection, and I like that the plate includes asparagus and carrots. Of course, there is the standard cabbage. All in all some good veggies, but I want to dip every known vegetable in the sauce, except for mushrooms. They are not really a vegetable, so stop trying to trick me. For those who have a mushroom aversion, you can ask for extra something else to replace the fungi. We have been twice, and one evening the vegetable plate was a bit more generous, and the tofu mysteriously changed consistency. One evening is was medium firm, and the next evening, soft. It did make me consider a 3-star rating, but... nah.
The sauce here is good, and they add an extra helping of garlic if you like. They might use a tad more mirin because I think the sauce is notably nice and tangy.
The prices are reasonable, but I must say for a bit more money, I like the idea of unlimited refills on veggies and tofu, which you get at Shabu Shabu Paradise. Those words ("unlimited refills") are like magic.
But, location, location, location is always a factor, and Swish is right around the corner, so I am sure you'll find me and the hub there again soon dipping and rhyming. Well, maybe not rhyming.
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