Kazu (SONO) – Inventive Sushi Rolls and Bento Boxes

photo 1Located at the entrance to downtown SONO on North Main St., Kazu offers a variety of Asian cuisine. Whether you are looking for creative sushi rolls, combination platters or a quick Bento Box lunch, Kazu has numerous choices. With tables that seat over 50 guests and a long sushi bar along the rear wall, there is plenty of seating.

I really liked the Pork Katsu Bento Box on my recent visit. It included two small dim sum, a mini-spring roll, three pieces of a California Roll, a mound of rice and a pork cutlet, a several course meal for $11. The first taste was the California Roll, it delivered fresh flavors and was a good start. Moving to the dim sum, I really liked these small niblet; filled with a delicious pork mixture. The spring roll added a little crunch and then I moved onto the Katsu. The pork patty was breaded with Panko, nicely fried, crispy on the exterior and just a touch of toughness to the meat. Dip in the hoisin sauce and it was a delightful, quick meal.

As an added benefit, i overlooked the numerous sushi chefs as they commenced the daily ritual of preparing the recently arrived fish. One meticulous carved a tuna to extract its magnificent center portion while others prepared mackerel and salmon. It was both a delicious meal and a bit of an education.

The only drawback was an aggressive server who though he deserved an $8 dollar tip on a $12 bill. I handed him a twenty and he asked if I wanted change. Just be on the lookout for this bad behavior.

Overall I really liked Kazu and it is a quick, varied lunch that can include Asian cuisine from sushi to katsu.

KAZU Japanese Restaurant on Urbanspoon

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Kotobuki (Stamford) – Fresh, Basic Sushi Bar

Located in a small storefront on Summer Street in downtown Stamford is Kotobuki. Enter the restaurant and you can choose from several tables or wander to the back of the dining area and sit at the sushi bar. After several visits over many years, I would recommend Kotobuki as a place to enjoy very basic,but very good and fresh sushi, and in the end fresh is good.

The miso soup is full of flavor and really warmed us on a cold winter night. The fried dumplings were very small, one bite per dumpling but really good flavor.Some my think both are a little on the salty side.

The rolls (eight piece per) are very small in diameter, may 1″, tasty but I wanted more fish in each. Most of the choices contain “spicy” with a couple of combinations that I have never seen on any other menu, i.e. a Betty Roll. The menu also includes a la carte sushi and sashimi selections, the price on the menu is for 1-piece sushi. Each piece is large, the tuna and unagi were very good.

Overall, Kotobuki is a quick place to grab some fresh sushi.

Kotobuki Japanese Cuisine on Urbanspoon