^-^* Sushi Adventures - Sushiville, Tualatin OR ^-^*

Konnichiwa! Here we are again for another round of Sushi Adventures!

Hai! This time, we visit the newest branch of Sushiville in the Tualatin area (7107 SW Nyberg St., Tualatin OR).

I've been to one of their 'older' branches in NW Portland (along NW 23rd), so I was expecting a similar layout inside.

Surprise-surprise. This is quite the modern version instead. The seats, decors, arrangements - very different from the rest of their other branches. Granted, this is a new branch, which just opened this September 2009. They did a good job, ambience-wise, I must say.

Now, on to the food...


I like Sushiville's wide range of plate selection, and their price. They have a good spread of plates and pricing (5-6 plate selections, $1.25-$3+).

Food is good, and a lot of variety. They do have custom sushi selections which you can order anytime. They got a wide selection of drinks too, including a favorite brew of mine (Kirin Ichiban).

The sushi is quite fresh. The Nigiri, for example, the Salmon nigiri has 'generous' slices of salmon on it. The fish overlaps each end of the nigiri and rests on the plate. The rice is pretty much 'covered' underneath it. You get more 'fish' for your cash. :-D

The other selections are good and standard fare - cali rolls, house rolls, seaweed, tamago, various nigiri, etc. I'm still swayed to the shrimp/tempura roll of Sushi Town versus Sushiville's though - perhaps because of the bigger shrimp used in Sushi Town.

The rest of the selection is comparable - though Sushiville does serve cream puffs, aside from the regular dessert plates. Go ahead and make the mistake of thinking the cream puff plate is Takoyaki and dip it in soy sauce with wasabi....surprise!!

Speaking of which, there is no elusive Takoyaki in their menu. Alas, a little disappointment there. Why no Takoyaki?

But one thing made up for the lack of Takoyaki, at least for that evening.

That night, everything was $1.50. Everything. And the dishes are not 'happy-hour-configured', meaning they are served in their regular slices and amounts, and not 'double-sliced' or less one piece than usual. But this pricing was available only that day, as it was their actual Grand Opening day. Lucky for us to be there indeed.

[Update - 9.30.2009]: All this talk about Sushiville made me want to visit their branch in NW23rd St. in Portland uptown. They have the same fare...til I noticed something in a dessert plate....a choco Pocky stick snack set on a green plate (1.25)!! Yup, the classic Glico Pocky being served as a dessert selection. Hats off to whoever thought of that idea, pretty novel. I know I'm glad ;-)

To summarize:

Food: 5
Nothing bad to say here - food is fresh and good.

Price: 5
A good 'price spread' here. You can stay below the $2 radar and get a good selection.

Selection: 4.5
Lots of options to choose from (but no Takoyaki....)

Service: 4
Now I'm not sure if it's probably because they're new - but some of the servers need to step it up notch and keep up with the customers.

Appearance/Presentation: 4.5
Nice and modern. I wouldn't mind hanging around there longer. Lots of lights and nice decor. Very loong conveyor though...

Overall: 4.5
Yes, I'd eat here in a heartbeat. Highly recommended!


Itadakimasu!! :-D

Code of Silence

Ended up at my usual Sushi spot - Sushi Town - after reading some periodicals and contemplating whether to get Persona PSP...and a PSP 3000 unit. Of course that was a no brainer - I didn't get the PSP. Well, not just yet. I can't even keep up with my DSi. Though the new Persona port to the PSP, and upcoming Persona 3 port, will surely feed my interests in getting the PSP someday.

Back to the main topic...as I sat down and readied myself to have my 6-plate showdown, I noticed two ladies seated to my right. One of the ladies was waving at one of the chefs and pointing to a plate of baked mussels. I didn't mind it at first, then I saw a few more hand gestures from her and her friend - then it dawned on me. They can't talk (mute), hence the sign language.

It's amazing watching them actually. They're both communicating fast, and it was just like a quiet version of regular chit-chat amongst those who can talk. And I somehow felt their enthusiasm and happiness as they 'talked'. It was quiet, but the sign language animates the conversation and that adds to the liveliness of their communication. And this is not through regular speech, but still, that 'energy' you still see and feel. I have a friend back home, and his brother is deaf-mute. But he always hung out with us and even taught us how to do sign language. I still remember how to do A-Z! And I remember how we get really animated while talking, while also trying to learn new sign language words and phrases. He can actually talk a bit, I'd say similar to Marlee Matlin. So he can voice out words a bit, but sign-language is his main communication line.

I wondered also how it feels like for them not to be able to talk. Definitely they have accepted that, which in turn is very impressive, since it takes a strong will and drive to do so. That's the human spirit for you I guess. :-)

And as I left the sushi place, I kind of reflected a bit, about how lucky most of us are to have complete and working 5-senses. Let's all be very grateful for that.

3-hour sleep!

Around 10-15 years ago, sleeping at around 3am is normal weekend fare.

I remember the days with my close-knit crew back home. Friday is always 'the day'. Wednesday I'll already be planning for the Friday swing and which Starbuck's branch to wind down after a movie or bar night. And planning group assignments - movie sked crew, the food crew, the advanced party crew - gotta love those days. And 2-3am would be the normal going home time. We weren't called the TGIF-club for nothing ;-)

I would be the last person home, as I make sure my friends get home safe and sound, and some of them carpool with me and I take them home. Of course, there's the mandatory 'text message me the moment you get home, ok?' for those who brought their own vehicles or had to commute. Regardless, I'd still text them to check if they are home.

Only then do I get to sleep - unless I decide to continue a cool game on the PC. The next day would feel like nothing, and we're raring again for Saturday's gimmick. Good times!

Fast forward now - last night I wasn't able to sleep until past 3:30 am and my 'body clock' woke me up automatically at around 6:40-ish am. Ack! 3+ hours of sleep! And I've been feeling sleepy all day - and caffeine doesn't really work that well for me.

I must really be getting old.... but I'm proud to say, still always young at heart ;-)

^-^* Sushi Adventures - Sushi Town ^-^*

An idea was suggested to me by a good friend - why not add quick reviews to the blog? Nothing too long, just short and terse, and something about sushi!

Well, this is the start of the Sushi Adventures series of blogs - a quick review of sushi restaurants, be it sushi-go-rounds or otherwise.


Let's start with our review of Sushi Town! Remember, this is just a 'trial run' - open to comments and suggestions. :-)

Sushi Town, located in the Tanasbourne Town Center is a nice, little sushi-go-round restaurant. I must admit that this was the place where I got over my sushi-snobbishness (I didn't really like sushi until just recently). One thing I noticed right off the bat is the place is quite clean. The staff are also very nice, polite,(Irashaimase!) and provide good service.

With regards to the food, I'm sold on this place. My favorites are their Town Roll (3 pieces), Mackerel Nigiri (2 pieces), and Salmon Roll (6 pieces).

Fear not, non-fans of raw food, they do have cooked selections, like fried shumai, baked stuffed mushrooms, fried calamari, and another favorite of mine, the Fried shrimp (Tempura) Roll.

They also serve 'custom' or special menu orders. You can order these over the counter and just mention it to the sushi chef and he/she will have it ready for you in no time.

Desserts are standard fare too, either on the conveyor (cakes, fruits) or you can order ice cream over the counter.

Price-wise, it is a little bit up there, with prices ranging from $1.45-$2.55. Sushi-go-rounds have their color-coded plates and each color has its own price designation - which bring up a little nitpick of mine. The place only has 3 color plates to stretch out their price range. It would be cool if they can add more options.

Sorry, no happy hour here folks, and price is pretty standard throughout the week. You do get a free 'sushi' dish if you are there and its your birthday. Just show proof, and you get your 'surprise'. I wonder if they give you a giant tuna roll or something?

So to summarize, here's my take on Sushi Town (scored 1-5, 5 being excellent, 1 being bad):

Food:5
The food is freshly and properly made, taste is really good. And the tea is free and refillable!

Price:4
I'd say the priciest so far, compared to other sushi-go-rounds, but it reflects in quality.

Selection:4
Wish they had more selection - Takoyaki...*cough-cough*.

Service:5
Friendly staff, from servers to the chefs.

Appearance/Presentation:5
The place is really clean and well lit.

Overall:5
Am I biased-schmiased for this? Perhaps, but quite frankly, I won't hesitate to recommend this place to anyone, anytime.

Itadakimasu!! :-D

Proof Reading is Important!

I need to get a proof-reader for my blogs :-D

I have a good friend whom I asked to proof read from time to time. A second set of eyes really helps.

You'll be surprised at how many errors (typos and grammatical errors) show up, even though one would say "I swore that I double-checked and re-read the post before I hit the publish button". Hehehe.

I wonder how many errors I have in this short blog? Can you spot one or two?

Thanks! ;-)

Monday Blues

I believe Mondays were designed to interfere, boggle, and confuse the week. But I meant that in a good way. :-)

The start of the work week normally isn't something that we all look forward to. In fairness, this would depend I guess on what type of work you are doing.

But in general, I really don't like Mondays. Nor Sunday evenings because it signals the coming of Monday (argh)!

Looking on the positive side though, that 'chaos' that Monday would bring us also helps in our development, provided that you look at it in a positive way (which is quite a challenge actually).

What's your take on Mondays?

The Mystery of Life

I guess that's the never ending question - the mystery of life. How is life created? And how priceless it is to be able to see such an event happen.

Yesterday, marked a very special day for a good friend of mine, his wife, and their kids. They welcomed a new bundle of joy in their family!

It's just amazing. I was in awe every second after I saw the baby boy. The start of life, right before my eyes. Makes one look back and think that we were all once in that hospital baby crib, crying and sleeping. It's something just amazing, totally priceless.

And one thing is certain, their family has kicked up the 'happiness factor' again a couple of notches with the newest family member. ;-)

Cheers!!

Interview blues

It's been a long time since I had my last job interview.

And I just had one this morning. The correspondence said that I will be interviewed by the head of IT, and some district representatives. As much of a scaredy-cat I am already and nervous as I can ever be, I didn't think much of it.

Maybe 3-4 people at the most.

I got there - and there were 7 people in the room! Ack! :-O

There were points that were sort of surreal, but I must admit, they were a very friendly group. Maybe it's because of their being a school district?

I'm not sure how I did. I believe I can safely say they can't call me a 'stiff' as we had quite some light moments. I do admit that I did miss out some of the questions - two of them which I even reviewed early in the morning. I wanted to hit my head on my car's steering wheel for getting a mental block on those tech questions.


It was amazing that those questions were thrown in, and I did review them. It just...dropped out of my mind. In hindsight, I was able to throw good answers I think. But of course, it's up to the board to decide while we wait.

I must say though, that the interview tips in the web, they came in very, very, very handy. I cannot stress it more - practice your interview. It helps immensely. Look at me, all dorky and all and I pulled off a satisfactory interview (meaning I didn't stutter, faint, or melt in the room of 7 interviewers).

It's been a very good experience, and humbling at that. So now, we move on.... ;-)

Need an in-car radar detector?

When I came to the US and got my first car (a black V6 'Stang), one of the first accessories my good friend recommended to me was a radar detector. My reason for getting it, aside from the 'cool' factor, was for awareness.

I didn't get it because I'd be doing +20mph at every opportunity I can, but more for the 'heads-up' and awareness factor. Sure, everyone will 'let the horses loose' once in a while (wish I could say that about my Jeep...it's more like letting goats loose...). But with my previous Subies, I would do that.

My next radar detector was a huge upgrade in both price and quality. Mostly price. But it has served me really well. It detects radar presence well beyond and far, and of course some rare false alarms now and then. But whenever it pings and says 'KA', 99.9 percent you'd see the cop around. Now with newer speed laser radars (Lidars) that's a different topic. If you're alone in the road and zipping along and the detector screams 'LASER' - you're it. I've never been tagged with a laser, but have had the thing report it more than once, as it detects the laser 'breakup' or spread from the car that was targetted.

So am I just saying these things to justify my purchase? I'd say 50/50. I do believe I've been 'saved' from speeding tickets with these gadgets - though I did say that for both the older and cheaper Cobra and my current Passport unit.

To each his/her own then. You will definitely see quality and features not found in the lower brands. As for performance, I personally believe you'll see better performance too. Again, it's a matter of personal choice.

Edit: Just off a chat regarding this matter and a very practical and sensible suggestion was suggested by a very good friend - "So just don't speed then...". Touche' ;-)

The New Ipod (again...)

Apple has released their latest offering in the form of the 5th Gen Nano Ipod - Ipod 5th Gen Link - which now has features that people have been wishing since the 1st Gen Nano came out.

First and foremost, the 5th Gen Nano finally has a FM Tuner. Finally. Better late than never. That's been a topic that I always bring up when the Ipod is discussed. Is it that hard to insert a minute FM tuner circuitry into the Ipod? Granted, Apple has its own agenda of course, but now that they finally have an FM tuner onboard, I believe this will boost sales of the Nano.

It also comes with a video recorder now. I checked the specs and another question arose - can it take pictures too? I mean, you already placed video capability on it, photo capability should be on it too right. Apparently it can't and can only take videos. C'mon Apple...what gives?

Nevertheless, the inclusion of the 'lowly' FM tuner is a blessing, and the bigger screen and that the price stayed low too, is good news to all.

They've also incorporated an Ipod Shuffle feature, the voice over feature, that speaks out the song title (provided it is music you got from iTunes that contains the required data for the voice feature to translate).

Will I be letting go of my beloved 4th Gen Nano? I still have my 1st Gen Nano as my car's music player and it still works like a charm. Perhaps I'll wait for the 6th Gen Nano - maybe that version will have internet/wifi capability... ;-)

Cheers!

Handhelds - yay or nay?

I've always been a fan of handhelds, more specifically, the Nintendo units.

They are the frontrunners, and holding their fort in this category of gaming systems to date. Of course, the next closest player would be Sony's PSP system.

I guess it applies to both handhelds and consoles - what game they provide is the actual selling point. Sure, there's battery life, wifi capability, backwards compatibility and the like - but it all boils down to the games available.

Look at the venerable PS2. It has the widest gaming library, and is also a niche for RPG gamers. As simple a unit as it is, it's still going strong.

On the handheld side, Nintendo's DS line has got a long list of titles too, and that works in their favor.

I say this because I never ever considered getting a PSP - but that changed just recently now that two of my favorite RPG games are being ported over to the PSP (the Persona SMT series).

Just goes to show how the availability of content can make a huge difference in the consumer world. ;-)

And having two handhelds doesn't sound bad, there's the variety. But does one really need it? I don't think so, but it depends again on the person. For me it's a 'yay' for handhelds - and I don't see that changing, even in the distant future.