Ojiya Udon

Just last night I had the chance to catch up with Ruby's, my boyfriend's cousin, post-marriage life.  You can read about her wedding here if you are interested in reading my opinion about her wedding!

Originally she had recommended me to go to a Japanese curry place in Rowland Heights but after catching a nasty bug, I wasn't feeling up for it.  Instead I had asked her if she wouldn't mind getting some Pho or sushi.  We went with the latter.

I was all up for sushi until I looked at the menu and realized perhaps today isn't a good day to eat something raw while being sick.  There was no use in changing locations since this place was popular.

We both sat down and after looking over the menu, Ruby suggested me to get something warm and soothing for my sore throat; I'm glad that I did.  I ordered the Nabeyaki Udon.  At first I was hesitant to even order the dish since to me, udon is so-so, but it was much needed.    The soup was a bit more on the saltier side, but what do you expect from a soy sauce based broth.  The noodles were squishy and slurpy--even better!  Not sure why but the fatter the noodles, the more slurping sound I like to make, but I made sure I didn't make too much sound.

I did get a chance to try a piece of Ruby's spicy tuna and it was remarkable.  Very fresh and it was spicy enough not to burn the back of my throat.  I think overall, I would go here for the sushi more-so than I would for the udon, but like I said, udon isn't "my" thing. 

I must apologize for the poor quality of the image above.  I had forgotten my camera and my camera phone quality doesn't truly depict the delightful dessert we had last night: the black sesame cream puff.  This cream puff was nice and cold in the middle as if there was ice cream, but not ice cream.  So every bite you take, there is a sense of tingling feeling of coldness that runs from your gums all the way to the back of your tongue.  It was goooooood.  Not too sweet, but tasty enough to just call it good for the evening.

I would recommend this place to those who are around the Chino Hills area.  It didn't necessarily leave a memorable feeling or a place I'd highly recommend, but if you need your sushi fix, then go for it.

<3  Lina Chen

 4183 Chino Hills Pkwy, Chino Hills, CA 91709

909.606.8638.  www.ojiyausa.com

#1 Sushi Place of All Time: Goyemon.

Not many people fancy raw fish, but those who do enjoy fresh sushi or sashimi have their favorite go-to place.  THIS WOULD HAVE TO BE MY FAVORITE SUSHI RESTAURANT OF ALLLL TIIIMMEEEE!  No joke.

I've been to so many all-you-can-eat sushi places and tons of Japanese restaurants in my lifetime that I feel confident saying that Goyemon has one of the best sushi's in the States.  This would probably be a whole different story if I've been to Japan, but that has yet been crossed off my bucket list.  In the meantime, this place is my #1 spot.

So why do I love this place?  Although Goyemon currently has 4 stars according to Yelp, I feel that it depicts this place so wrongly.  It should receive 5 1/2 stars. That's how great it is.  Being Asian and all, I have come to love rice.  White, brown, sticky, broken...I LOVE rice, just ask the boyfriend.  When it comes to sushi, the way the rice is prepared makes all the difference in the world.  Trust me, I know.  If the rice is too sticky, you'll be sitting there all day chewing on sticky rice.  If there's too much rice vinegar then the sushi rice just falls apart once chopsticks come in contact with it.  This place does it right.  They "cut" the rice in such a way that it's one with the sashimi/raw fish.  The portion between the fish iteslf as well as the sushi rice is perfect.  Some places either put so much more rice hoping it'd fill you up faster, but that just takes away all the trust a customer has in the restaurant as well as the sushi chef. 

Anyways, let the photos speak for themselves...

Bomb dynamite.  A lot of sushi places are starting to add rice at the bottom of these delectable appetizers, but it's really taking away the taste of this delicious dish.  Goyemon thankfully doesn't do that.

Mussels.  Can't go to a sushi restaurant without getting mussels...

If they ever provide this option as a part of the all-you-can-eat-deal, then I say get it.  This is the salmon belly.  What's great about it is, is that it's very much like salmon, it just melts so much more in your mouth.  You've got to try it if you can.

And the one fish I can never cheat on, white tuna.  My absolute favorite. 

Generally at all-you-can-eat places I leave a little room for dessert.  Goyemon's lychee sorbet dessert is one of a kind (to me).  It's not your regular sorbet, a little bit more on the sticky side as if you were chewing on mochi, but not as chewy as mochi.  That may not make any sense, but in a way it melts nicely in your mouth, sort of like soft, snow that is just falling down. 

If you plan to eat there, make sure to head there early in the day right before they open.  It's a little slow at first, but it quickly gets busy 15-30 minutes later.  It's so packed, people are just waiting out the door.  What's even more interesting is that the location isn't even that great.  It's a little off the strip (15 minutes away), but I love that about it.  It attracts locals and very few tourists go out there so you aren't bombarded by tourists even though you may considered as one. 

Already missin' you....

<3  Lina Chen

5255 S. Decatur Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89118

702.331.0333.   www.sushihousegoyemon.com