No wonder sansei sucks.

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Four chefs weigh in on sushi-bar do’s and don’ts
Freedom News Service
June 19, 2006
America has become a sushi nation. There are sushi bars in strip malls and sushi at supermarkets. Sushi served at bar mitzvahs and trendy nightclubs, in college dorms and on luncheon menus. Sushi depicted on shirts and shower curtains. Sushi at Costco.

The number of sushi bars in the U.S. quintupled from 1988 to 1998, according to the California Sea Urchin Commission. But sushi is a relative newcomer to America’s culinary lexicon, and a recent issue of Food & Wine magazine set some strict guidelines.

Curious to see if their rules were accurate, we asked four sushi chefs for their opinions: James Hamamori, chefowner of Wasa in Irvine and Newport Beach, Calif.; Takashi Abe, chef-owner of Abe in Newport Beach and Bluefin in Newport Coast; Lorin Watada, corporate sushi chef for 11 Roy’s; and D.K. Kodama, chef-owner of six restaurants in Hawaii, including three Sansei Seafood Restaurants & Sushi Bars, and coauthor of “D.K.’s Sushi Chronicles From Hawai’i” (Ten Speed Press, $35).

The “rules” and the sushi chefs’ comments:

1. It is correct to eat sushi either with fingers or chopsticks.

Hamamori: In Japan, we use our fingers. You can use chopsticks; you don’t have to use your hands. But fingers are more correct.

Abe: I eat sushi with my fingers. Sushi is delicate and soft — if you use chopsticks it is messy.

Kodama: Yes, either way is correct.

Watada: A lot of people are afraid to use their hands. But sushi is traditionally finger food.

2. Place entire portion in your mouth, holding sushi so that fish portion touches your tongue. Never bite in half and put remainder back on plate.

Hamamori: Yes, so hold it upside down with your fingers, so the fish is next to your tongue — not the rice.

Abe: Sushi is one-bite sized. One bite.

Kodama: One bite is the traditional way of eating sushi. But who’s to say? Hey, sushi is pleasure; enjoy it any way you want, is my philosophy.

Watada: Yes, one bite. And yes, you want to taste the fish first, not the rice. I would suggest that to first-time sushi eaters. And after I had established rapport, I might offer other suggestions as well.

3. Lightly dip fish, not rice, into small amount of soy.

Hamamori: In dipping, rice can absorb too much soy (if it’s dipped first). Sushi bars in Japan change the flavor of the shoyu (soy sauce) by adding konbu-seaweed — so it tastes different from restaurant to restaurant. Instead of shoyu, very upscale sushi bars in Japan make their own flavor (of dipping sauce) with sake, konbu and mirin (low-alcohol wine made from glutinous rice), not soy.

Abe: Yes, it makes soy messy.

Kodama: It’s personal preference. Sometimes first-time eaters don’t like the taste of fish. So if it’s heavier with soy, that’s OK. The etiquette they are talking about is for fine dining, but sushi bars are friendly. You won’t insult the sushi chef.

Watada: Yes, (the sushi) will break. You’ll have a little bowl of soy and rice. Soy complements fish. It adds salt. But you want the natural taste of the fish to come across.

4. Do not dump a large amount of wasabi into your soy, turning it into soup. Wasabi should be placed directly onto sushi if added at all.

Hamamori: Correct. Especially if fresh wasabi is being used. Enjoy the flavor of the fresh wasabi.

Abe: We don’t put wasabi in soy in Japan, but if you like it that way, it’s OK. But if you want spicy sushi, please ask the sushi chef to make it that way. In America, people want taste control. They like to do it themselves. It’s a different culture. Americans do what they want, and that’s fine with me. There’s nothing really rude about it. Fish needs a little touch of soy sauce. It adds a little salt that makes the fish taste sweet.

Kodama: It’s a personal preference. More formal sushi restaurants don’t serve soy at all. The soy is put directly on the fish. There are no soy bowls.

Watada: Yes, wasabi can have an overpowering taste and you lose the taste of the fish.

5. Use chopsticks to grab sushi when taking it from a shared plate.

Hamamori: Correct.

Abe: Yes, but use a fork if you want. Chopsticks are very difficult for some people. If sushi is made correctly, with good balance, it should be easier (to grab it with chopsticks). If the amount of rice is too big and the fish is too small, it is more difficult — and the other way around is not good either.

Kodama: In Hawaii, we turn the chopsticks around and use the large end (to take off a shared plate). So you use the end that is untouched by your mouth.

Watada: Yes, out of politeness, I agree.

6. Do not rub your chopsticks together to remove splinters. It is rude. A good sushi bar would never offer chopsticks of such low quality.

Hamamori: Oh, that is very correct.

Abe: This is very bad manners. Nobody likes it.

Kodama: Some places do have really horrible chopsticks, but most are fairly good. Look at the chopsticks. Then, if you really want to (chip) them off, rub them together like crazy.

Watada: Yeah, that’s true. In the Japanese culture, that is considered very rude. High-quality chopsticks are smooth — no problems with splinters.

7. Never flop a big piece of pickled ginger onto sushi before eating it. Eat ginger between pieces of sushi as a palate cleanser.

Hamamori: I hate that, but well, some people like it. It’s OK.

Abe: Some like it. It’s OK.

Kodama: Again, this is a personal preference.

Watada: Literally, I’ve seen people eat a quart of pickled ginger. It’s meant to be a palate cleanser, but some use it as part of their meal. If that’s what you like, I won’t argue, but it’s not meant to be eaten that way.

8. Never hand money to the sushi chef. The chef typically never touches money.

Hamamori: Yes, we want to keep our hands clean — that’s why we tap knuckles (with one another, rather than shaking hands) when they leave. We have pockets for money.

Abe: Sushi chefs don’t want to touch anything except their knife, towel, fish and rice. Sushi is made directly in the hand, so they don’t want to touch money. It’s dirty when you think about it. Not comfortable for me, or the customers.

Kodama: We have the customers put it right on the bar. If the chef touches it, he washes his hands.

Watada: Sushi chefs love money! A lot of guests leave it on the bar and the wait staff picks it up for the sushi chef.

Take it one thing at a time

Is it rude to order more than one sushi at a time at a sushi bar? Abe says order just one thing at a time: The sushi will taste different if it sits around, especially if it’s nigiri style (a bite-size mound of vinegared rice with a piece of fish, shellfish or other topping). Watada says many Americans like to “order in bulk,” but traditionally it is best to order one thing at a time because you don’t want to mix flavors.