Highland Umami: Unique Flavors Collide At Sushi Cafe

Sometimes as a reviewer, I wish I didn't have to move on to the next place. But with a weekly deadline, I must keep moving, circling Renton like a hungry shark. , you make me want to be a regular. And by the end of our meal, seated at the sushi bar, we felt like part of the family.

If you go prime-time on a Friday night, you may need to wait for a seat if your party is larger than two. Had I known... Sushi Cafe has a deal going with neighboring wine shop, . I was surprised to see so many bottles of wine on diner's tables--but in a friendly partnership, you can bring over any bottle from All Things Wine without being charged any corkage. Now THAT'S neighborly!

An order of pork-vegetable-stuffed Lumpia ($3.95) is crisp gratification while your sushi is being crafted. Korean Poke Salad ($8.95) is a fusion-salad for those who love spice and cubes of blushing tuna. Sashimi-quality Ahi is embellished with sesame oil and Korean chili sauce, then prettily placed on a throne of nori and fresh cucumber rounds, a little pink Mount Fuji sprinkled with sesame seeds and scallion curls.

As far as sushi goes, the menu is broken into seven sections. Sashimi refers to raw sliced seafood served without vinegared rice. Nigirizushi means "grasped" or "squeezed" and is the basic style of Edo sushi. Gunkan maki is a unique style that resembles a kelp "battleship" which is filled traditionally with large roe. Then there's Special Cooked Rolls & Special Raw Rolls. The cooked section is perfect for those uneasy about raw fish, the raw roll menu incorporates all aspects.

A little sushi etiquette, should you care... Number one, do not rub your chopsticks together--it indicates inferior quality chopsticks and is an insult to the restaurant. When consuming nigiri sushi, dip the fish side into the soy sauce--that's what you're  aiming to flavor, not saturating your rice. And regarding the wasabi, a skilled sushi chef has already seasoned the rice for you, so try tasting before you load on the green stuff.

But aside all this culinary-correcteness, Sushi Cafe's offerings are so good, I wanted to savor the flavors the chef created, rather than muddle them with my own additions. Theirs is an impressive list of creatively flavorful rolls.

The Bloody Mary ($10.95, 8 pieces) is rated two chile peppers, meaning this roll is best meant for spice lovers. Seared thin slices of white tuna ride on top a spicy tuna roll, plated on poke sauce and topped with scallion curls. Hella Hot ($7.95, 5 pieces) ranks 3 peppers and is a saucy number with extra-spicy ahi tuna, tempura scallions, and Sriracha mayonnaise. G-REX ($13.95, 10 pieces) is a godzilla-sized roll with deep-fried soft-shelled crab, tempura shrimp, eel, crab meat and sprouts all wrapped in soy paper. This is the Elton John of sushi flamboyance.

The Stripper ($7.95, 8 pieces) delights with strips of beef flank steak, wasabi mayo, fresh scallion ribbons and house sweet sauce. Our server cautioned us about the Magneto ($6.95, 5 pieces)--tempura asparagus, cucumber, avocado, scallions, ponzu, and marinated mackerel--as mackerel is a strongly flavored oily fish that's not to everyone's liking. My two dinner dates devoured this in a heartbeat. Next was a Spicy Scallop Gunkan ($4.50, 2 pieces): our little battleship sailed down the gullet nicely.

I highly recommend sitting at the sushi  bar so you have a chance to interact with the chef, and his son. Feeling pretty stuffed, we asked Chef Lei to select one more roll for us. The Sunset ($9.95, 6 pieces) it was. A great place to finish, or start, as Chef Lei suggested because of its subtle refreshing flavors. Tuna, yellow tail, salmon, crab mix, yamagobo are wrapped by a thin slice of cucumber rather than nori. And then fresh oranges arrive as a palate cleanser, doing a little top-hat bow.

I bow to Chef Lei for creating some of the most memorable food I've eaten in Renton.

4605 NE 4th St., Site 5
Renton,WA 98059
425-988-3650

Tues-Thurs Lunch: 11:30 am - 3 pm
Dinner: 4:30 pm - 9 pm
Fridays Lunch: 11-30 am - 3 pm
Dinner: 4:30 pm - 10 pm
Saturdays 11:30 am - 10 pm
Sundays 11:30 am to 9 pm

Free delivery during dinner hours and on weekends for purchases of $30 or more