After the pandemic, new restaurants appeared one after another in Hawaii. One of the characteristics of these new restaurants is that the number of restaurants offering omakase courses has increased dramatically. Don’t be fooled into thinking that “omakase” is a restaurant’s convenience. If it tastes good, it’s a win-win situation. If the food is delicious, it is a win-win situation.
One restaurant that has left a lasting impression on me, along with its unique concept and taste, is Sushi Fukurou. It is impossible to find this restaurant, which is by reservation only, on the street. It is located in the BUHO Cocina y Cantina Mexican restaurant on the 5th floor of the shopping plaza along Kalakaua Avenue.
After entering BUHO, continue straight ahead, and when you reach the end of the narrow passage, look to the right. You will notice a curtain gently hanging from the wall. Passing through the curtain, you will find yourself at “Sushi Fukurou”. The reason it is hard to tell is that it was originally used as a warehouse. It was renovated and opened as a “super hideaway” in 2022.
The restaurant has only 10 seats at the counter and is a two-part restaurant with full reservations. The menu consists of 12 dishes for $90. The concept is not a typical “sushi restaurant,” but rather “Japanese x Hawaiian x Mexican. The menu is a mix of Japanese, Hawaiian, and Mexican cuisine, served as an omakase course. Incidentally, the Mexican restaurant “BUHO,” where this restaurant is located, means owl in Spanish.
How will you encounter a fusion of three culinary cultures? The sushi chef was Chef Miki Yanagihara, who was born and raised in Hawaii and has ties to Japan. He was able to create each dish by combining Hawaiian ingredients, Japanese seafood, and seasonings from Hawaii, Japan, and Mexico in imaginative ways.
The photo shows the 14-course ($125). Contents change depending on the season.
The octopus ceviche features quickly seared octopus, okra, jalapeño, a hint of lime and garlic. The pickled tuna sushi roll with a quail egg popped on top is made with pickled red tuna from Nagasaki, a quick coat of wasabi oil, and topped with arare.
The Chutoro Tartare with Taro Chips features chutoro on top of wasabi guacamole, caviar, and tempura-style ogo (Hawaiian seaweed). The crispy and melty texture can be enjoyed with the taro chips. The Kampachi Daikon Taco is a refreshing fish taco style presentation with Kona Kampachi from the Big Island of Hawaii, grated daikon mixed with orange juice, and daikon radish that is used as the skin of the taco.
The surprisingly unique chawanmushi is a novel gem that allows you to enjoy the carefully prepared seafood broth, the texture of salmon roe, and the sweetness of the Okinawan sweet potato and mashed corn that emerge from the egg. The eggs are freshly caught locally. The seared kombu-jime of Spanish mackerel is accented with salt and chopped kombu, which give off the aroma of kiawe (a tree).
Onaga snapper caught off the coast of Hawaii is combined with yuzu dressing and served with salmon roe and micro pak choi. The sea urchin loco moco is a luxurious loco moco with rice and shiso under a pile of sea urchin and a quail’s egg on top. The dish is filled with the aroma and sweetness of the sea as well as a thick texture, and the exquisite spiciness of Mexican spices and tahin round out the flavor.
Then, following the King Salmon Nigiri, which is topped with Kamuela tomatoes and Maui onions to resemble Lomi salmon, the Tsushima sea eel Temaki is refreshing with a special dashi sauce and finger lime, which is daringly light. Hokkaido scallops topped with chopped wasabi and ponzu jelly are slightly seared to lock in their sweetness.
The so-called beef tacos are a new world of flavors, combining koji miso seasoned Washu beef with wasabi mayonnaise seasoned shiitake mushrooms and served on ube tortilla chips. Underneath all this hides just a little bit of rice. The hand-rolled sushi roll with toro and takuwan (pickled radish) on red vinegared rice is a well-balanced sushi roll that can be enjoyed as many times as you like.
Dessert is a sweet treat that is a collaboration of three cultures, with freshly fried green tea churros, red bean paste, and Hawaiian-made roselani ice cream.
Chef Yanagihara described the theme of the omakase course as “Journey,” and said, “I want you to enjoy it like a roller coaster. He serves up plates of opposites in terms of taste, texture, and visuals at a brisk pace, “sweetness followed by sourness, and softness followed by firmness.” The experience of enjoying the playful dishes as if on a culinary journey is unique to this restaurant.
© Source travel watch
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