The sign hanging at 7443 Forsyth Blvd. still says Sekisui Pacific Rim, but that will be the final change as the Japanese restaurant in Clayton transitions into Ichigo Modern Restaurant.
The restaurant has changed ownership and the executive chef, who prefers the first name familiarity of chef Budi, has added a slew of signature East-meets-West sushi rolls to Sekisui’s old sushi menu. In addition, a full hot menu is set to launch next week and will feature entrées such as grilled red snapper marinated in a sweet soy-apple compote and served with corn relish, strawberry avocado salsa and sweet potato fries.
There are 28 signature Ichigo sushi rolls on the menu, including the colorful Is Ok!, made of shrimp tempura, avocado and cucumber topped with tuna, drizzles of eel sauce and spicy aioli sauce, sprinkles of green onion, crunchy tempura batter, and red-hued flying fish and smelt roe. The Oh My Suki is a vertical take on sushi: a tower of individual pieces – each made from lobster tempura, lump crab meat, cucumber, yamagobo (pickled burdock root) and avocado crusted with macadamia nuts – is affixed onto a chopstick, a square seaweed-wrapped rice ball serving as the foundation as it rests in a creamy béchamel sauce.
Looking to save a buck or two? Order from the $1 roll menu. You get three sushi pieces for $1. There are 14 items on that menu, and the deal is good at all hours.
– Ligaya Figueras
This article appears in Jun 1-30, 2010.