Unpretensious Sushi

I stopped into Matsu Sushi with my husband on a recent chilly, drizzly Sunday evening, the kind of night that requires a fast infusion of warm miso soup and some sushi rolls. Matsu Sushi, located at 1009 Farnam St. (former location of Tamam), was ideal with a complete lack of pretension. No uppity staff attitude, no who’s who crowd, and, no waiting. The place was lightly populated with three other groups of diners in a restaurant of approximately 15 tables downstairs. There is an upstairs dining area used on busy weekend nights. There were a handful of customers coming in for take-out as well.

We were seated quickly at a table near the sushi bar, giving us a great view of all the fresh fish. After perusing the fairly thorough Japanese menu, we decided to order a shrimp and vegetable tempura for an appetizer. The tempura came out piping hot and consisted of shrimp, broccoli, sweet potatoes and zucchini. The breading was crispy, and the shrimp and vegetables were not overdone and mushy as I have experienced before. I did not think I would like breaded and fried broccoli, but it was actually my favorite of the three vegetables. A lot of the rolls on the sushi menu were starred and when I asked the waiter about this, he said that the starred rolls were half-price and would be for the next month. 

An additional note, sushi rolls at Matsu are very reasonably priced as compared to some other Omaha sushi venues.  The half-price special was an added bonus.  We sampled a few of the rolls, the first was the Hanako Maki, which consisted of masago (smelt roe (eggs)), eel, crab, avocado, cucumber, cilantro and peanuts. The roll was wrapped with rice and dusted on the outside with masago, which gave it a textured crunch. We also tried the tender roll that had baked scallops, shrimp tempura, romaine lettuce, and avocado wrapped with soy paper instead of nori (dried seaweed). It was an excellent combination of flavors. Another roll we ordered was the Unagi Maki. Unagi is the Japanese word for eel. The Unagi Maki roll features marinated, grilled eel served over rice and wrapped with nori, then drizzled with a sweet soy-based sauce traditionally made with mirin, a Japanese rice wine. Unagi specialty restaurants are common in Japan and there is even a special day for eating unagi, traditionally the hottest day of the year, as Unagi is thought to have a cooling effect on the body.  

After the sushi course, our waiter brought out bowls of miso soup, which was warm and delicious in a delicately balanced way with cubes of tofu and slivers of green onion. After the soup course, we were nearly full before even ordering entrees.   It is so easy to over-order (and over eat!) when ordering sushi. We looked at the menu again and decided to share a Bento. A Japanese bento is a single portion take-out or home-packed meal in a shallow, black-lacquered box with compartments. A traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables as a side dish. Although bento is readily available in many places throughout Japan, including convenience stores, bento shops and train stations, it is still common for Japanese homemakers to spend considerable time and energy producing an appealing boxed lunch. 

Matsu Sushi offers several different combinations of bentos. The bento we ordered was a combination bento with soy glazed salmon and crispy boneless chicken breast. For dessert we ordered the obligatory green tea ice cream, called Maccha ice cream in Japan. It is made in the context of American ice cream with the addition of green tea powder. It was sweet with a distinct green tea punch to it. Very refreshing after a filling meal.

Our experience at Matsu Sushi was also refreshing. Not a lot of atmosphere, but the sushi was fresh, the waiter friendly, and it feels like a place where it would be easy to become a regular.

Dell wine sampling

The Dundee Dell will have a wine sampling featuring 50 wines from five different distributors on Saturday from 4-8 p.m. Just $20 gets patrons in the door and that fee applies to any wine purchases.

This will be the Dell’s final sampling of 2008.

For reservations, contact Monique Huston at 553-9501. The Dell is located at 5007 Underwood Ave.

More Tex-Mex!

Omaha has another Tex-Mex option, named Julian’s Tex Mex Restaurant, open in the space that used to house Caf» DiCoppia at 132nd Street and West Dodge Road.

Julian’s menu lists steaks, fish and fajitas among its specialites. The restaurant is open daily for lunch and dinner. Its official address is 721 N. 132nd St.

Aksarben dining options expand

Aksarben Place, already home to the new-but-popular Jimi D’s, will see the Blue Planet Natural Grill open Nov. 18 at 63rd and Center streets.

The healthy eatery will use eco-friendly supplies, organic produce, hormone- and antibiotic-free meats and cheeses in its array of sandwiches, salads, pizzas, pasta bowls, desserts and other menu fare.

The restaurant will be open 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.