San Shi Go

The jewel of a town Laguna Beach has about six sushi bars between north and south Laguna to satisfy your sushi desires. The one that has my heart is “San Shi Go” and my family and I have been loyal fans of San Shi Go for the past twenty-one years. The restaurant is located on the third floor in a three-tiered shopping center at the corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Oak Streets. In addition to a full sushi bar menu, San Shi Go offers a complete traditional Japanese lunch and dining menu.

Yuji-San, our sushi chef for this particular evening, has been behind the sushi bar serving his customers for fourteen years and we were pleased to have him wait on us that night. Folks, don’t get me wrong…all the sushi chefs at San Shi Go (Koichi, Taku, Yoshi and Jimmy) are wonderful each with a special creativity and at times it is difficult deciding which sushi chef we want to serve us.

My traditional favorite dish is the “Spicy Seafood Salad” with fresh ginger dressing (a top secret recipe). This refreshing salad is a pleasant mixture of crispy romaine and iceberg lettuce layered with slices of salmon, yellowtail, albacore tuna, octopus, shrimp and crab meat then sprinkled with thinly sliced Thai chili peppers, crispy radish sprouts and drizzled with the famous house ginger dressing. I have had ginger dressing at other Japanese restaurants but San Shi Go’s ginger dressing tops them all due to the hearty flavor and lack of heavy oils in the ingredients.

Another favored of mine is the “Cajun Salmon Roll” which is filled with lots of veggies, crab meat, shrimp tempura, avocado, cucumber and a tad bit of spicy mayonnaise then rolled with Cajun seared salmon slices. This cut roll is then drizzled with ponzu sauce then topped with either slivered green onions or crispy fried onions and both toppings add a pleasant, distinct flavor. I could sit here and choose the perfect adjective to describe this cut roll, but you would have to experience it for yourself to get my drift.

The sushi chefs are so creative, any vegan or vegetarian can easily dine at the sushi bar counter and the chefs will make up all kinds of non-fish cut and hand rolls. Although, if you are a veggie head or vegan, you may want to dine in their dining room and save the sushi bar for the serious sushi and sashimi eaters. In any case, all you have to do is have the sushi chef eliminate the bonito flakes from the shishito pepper dish and omit the side of spicy calamari rings from the wonderful spinach salad and you have a dish fit for vegans and veggie heads alike!

A local favorite amongst the non-fish eaters are the “Shishito Peppers” which are vibrant little sweet-hot Japanese peppers. At San Shi Go the peppers are served two ways…one wrapped with seared albacore tuna and the other sautéed and topped with bonito flakes. For those with tender palates, do not let the peppers keep you from ordering them since they are only mildly spicy (humm…could that be an oxy-moron?).

San Shi Go offers a wonderful “Spinach Mushroom Salad” consisting of fresh spinach leaves which have been gently sautéed with sliced domestic and Portobello mushrooms. Crispy thin julienned potatoes and a special dressing are the finishing ingredients for the spinach salad. Occasionally, my spousal unit has an order of Spicy Calamari pieces added to the salad…a nice crunchy bite.

As sushi dishes go San Shi Go has all the traditional fare but another favorite of mine is the “Kampachi Sushi”. Nice size pieces of yellowtail (a firm white fish) are sprinkled with uzu zest (Japanese citrus) then topped with a special black pepper paste. It is a brilliant blend of lemon and pepper and very refreshing.

I had no room for dessert but San Shi Go serves up a good looking “Tempura Ice Cream” which is ice cream wrapped in pound cake then tempura battered and deep fried. This sweet, crispy dish is served to you with a mound of whipped cream…dig in!

This dining establishment has been doing great business in my little town since they opened their doors due to the fact that they have very fresh sushi, creative chefs, great service, an outdoor patio dining area for those sexy summer nights, sake, beer, wine and $great prices$.

In conclusion, two generations of my family have thoroughly enjoyed San Shi Go and, the restaurant is also a favorite local dining spot for the cast members (when they're back home for a visit) of the former MTV reality show, ”Laguna Beach”...bring your autograph book! Thanks San Shi Go and see you tonight for my sushi fix!

Cheers!


Open Daily Serving Lunch and Dinner

"O" So Good

Friends, a new restaurant has moved into our lovely town. “O fine japanese cuisine” (yes folks, that’s the correct spelling) is located in the Albertson’s shopping center at Pacific Coast Highway and Wesley Drive in South Laguna. “O” is an off-shoot of a small chain of Japanese restaurants based in Irvine. Upon entering the eatery, behind the blue beaded curtains, you will find a small dining room which offers traditional Japanese cuisine and a lovely sushi bar that has a warmly-lit countertop which is filled with pretty cut blue glass. The ambiance with soft mood lighting, sushi bar countertop, beautiful hanging hand blown blue pendant lights, along with comfortable seating, is very inviting!

When my husband and I walked in we were graciously greeted by a smiling staff, seated and immediately served a nice amuse-bouche (a single, bite-sized hor’doeuvre, different from an appetizer, not ordered by the customer and selected by the chef as a pre-dinner treat). Our amuse-bouche was radish slices which were marinated in sesame oil, soy sauce and sprinkled with sesame seeds. Very tasty and a nice change from typical soba noodles or marinated cucumber slices.

Our meal consisted of:

Hamachi Belly Sushi;
Yellowtail Kampashio;
Crunch Salmon Tataki Roll;
Yellowtail Hand Roll;
Steamed Asari Clam Soup;
Mountain Potatoe w/Umei (Chef special treat);
Yellowtail Bones (ribs) Baked w/Garlic Chips; and
Mango Pudding w/Seasonal Fresh Fruits

The pieces of fish for the sushi were very large and very fresh. No skimping on fish at “O”!! My Crunch Salmon Tataki was a visually gorgeous cut roll filled with crab meat, crispy tempura shrimp and white onions (we had our sushi chef add asparagus for some veggie) then rolled with salmon slices that had been dredged lightly in cornstarch and quickly seared on the outside. The final result was a delicious roll which was topped with ponzu garlic sauce and red tobiko (flying fish eggs). I also tasted a hint of smokey flavor, very nice. Yes sir…may I have another!!

A wonderfully refreshing treat was the Yellowtail Kampashio. Small cucumbers cut into delicate flower halves were filled with a generous portion of sliced yellowtail sashimi then topped with jalapeno slices, tobiko and pickled wasabi. I have never had “pickled” wasabi and found it to be a little hot and spicy…just the way I like it!

For all you clam lovers out there you must have the Asari Clam Soup. The soup is a very simple but tasty light clam broth with an over abundance of fresh clams which flavors intensify over time. Delicious.

Mountain potatoes anyone? Prior to my maiden voyage to “O”, I had never heard of these little taters. The julienned potatoes were served sushi style in nori surrounded by a quail egg; shiso leave and umei (salty plum paste). When I popped one of those babies in my mouth the raw quail egg exploded and the crunch from the mountain potatoes and salt from the umei blended very well together. Obviously, raw quail eggs are an acquired taste but this chef’s surprise was a delight!

My evening concluded with the Mango Pudding which was topped with fresh fruit (diced strawberries, blueberries and kiwi). When I tasted the pudding I could only think of an exotic summer day…very light, refreshing and not too sweet. The pudding and ice cream are made fresh every week.

As for the booze menu, “O” stocks 24 (yes, 24!) premium sakes, including, but not limited to, Hot Plum Sake, Grape Sake and Yuzu Omoi Sake (with a citrus scent from the yuzu oranges). They also carry traditional Japanese beers, red wine, white wine and champagne.

As a local in Laguna for over 20 years I have been a loyal fan of the same sushi bar in town. I must admit I enjoyed stepping out of the box and trying a different sushi restaurant. O fine japanese cuisine is splendid, the chef is very creative and the sushi extremely fresh. I highly recommend “O", they definitely have my seal of approval. Welcome to Laguna Beach “O”!!



Open daily – lunch too!
Convenient parking and good $price$ point
Shelley Teng (owner)