East County Eater - Superb Sushi in Santee

East County San Diego provides a rich and varied culinary experience.  The East County Eater is on a mission to discover and highlight these gems. 

No back-country Bar and Grill is too remote, no specialty food restaurant tucked away in some tiny strip mall is too obscure for this voracious eater.

Food is my obsession and East County is my beat.  Traveling anonymously, sometimes with a group of eaters, I’ll leave no plate unturned to find and evaluate the wide variety of eating experiences available to our readers.  It’s hard work, but someone has to do it!

From the Mediterranean Bistro in Alpine to Oishi's sushi in Santee, East County’s dining establishments will surprise and thrill you. What do our many Indian Casinos have to offer?  Who has the best BBQ ribs?

Stay tuned – the East County Eater is on the prowl.

OISHII JAPANESE & THAI CUISINE  10251 Mast Blvd., Santee

619-596-4852

www.oishiisantee.com



September 1, 2009 (Santee) -- Santee Sushi?

 If you thought East County only has cowboy and biker bars, you must not have ventured east of I-15 lately where you will find a rich assortment of sushi bars sprouting up at prices far less than you’d pay at chi-chi sushi shops (down by the sea shore) in La Jolla or Del Mar.

I developed a love of sushi while living in Hawaii, where there’s no shortage of Japanese sushi chefs in paradise.  There I learned that sushi is not for the hoity-toity but instead simple food served in bite-sized portions artfully prepared to be pleasing to the eye as well as the palate in a fun and friendly atmosphere. 

Oishii Japanese & Thai Cuisine is just such a place.   Located in an inauspicious neighborhood shopping center in Santee I almost feel like I am betraying a “best-kept-secret.”   Families with their children, military men who learned to appreciate the delicate flavors of sushi while overseas and an assortment of friendly local regulars are always in attendance at Oishii’s. 

I always eat at the sushi bar,  rather than a table or booth, because I enjoy the friendly cross-talk (it’s as if we share a common bond in our appreciation of these delicacies) but discrete booths are there for more intimate dining or tables for larger parties.  

I was raised on meat and potatoes and love my burgers and fries, pizza and beer—and sushi.  For those of you who haven’t yet embraced the idea of eating some uncooked fresh fish – you have no idea what you are missing.

For the uninitiated let me describe my sushi experience.  I suggest starting out with a crispy cooked Softshell Crab Roll as an appetizer.  After which I always start out with sushi (fresh fish on a specially prepared rice ball).  Maguro (tuna) is a must as is the white fish (usually locally caught red snapper) then sake (salmon with rice vinegar and soy sauce called ponza for dipping) then the ultimate – hamachi (yellowtail) whose delicate buttery flavor just melts in your mouth.  Uni (sea urchin) is a little challenging for the first-timers but a little unknown fact is that the best uni in the world comes from San Diego’s waters and is prized in Japan and all over the world. 

With my craving for these traditional favorites satisfied I dive into one of the many hand rolls which resemble little cones filled with marinated or pickled vegetables, sprouts, rice and cooked or seasoned fresh fish. 

Maki is a combination of flavors rolled into a tube-like shape then cut into bite sized pieces.  One unique feature of Oishii’s offerings are the maki named after the customers who suggested them.  The Cindy Roll, B.J. Special and Scott Roll compliment the more traditional maki like the Caterpillar Roll and the Rainbow Roll.   The combinations are endless and sushi chef Mike Suwan serves them up custom made to your liking.    Take a look for yourself at www.oishiisantee.com/menu

For more on the art of sushi (with music) check out www.garden-gifts.com/sushiart.htm .

Oh and by the way I couldn’t resist sampling the daily house special: Oishii’s Thai seafood in red curry (photo).  This tasty and hearty cooked entree included salmon, squid, shrimp, mussels, white fish and scallops in a rich, spicy broth of coconut milk heated with red curry, along with Asian vegetables. 

A couple seated next to me clearly savored their food. “You’ve landed in the best sushi bar around, I know,” the woman said, beaming, “because I’ve tried them all.”

As a resident of Santee, I heartily agree—and count myself lucky to have discovered Oishii’s so close to home.