Austin Sushi News, October 6th, 2000


OPENING ALERT!!!

Sushi Sake's owners say that their grand opening
is either tomorrow night, Friday, October 6th, or
Saturday, October 7th!  [They're still not certain]
Sushi Sake is located in the Gateway shopping
center near the CompUSA store on Research Boulevard.  In
fact, it's right in front of CompUSA in that little block
of stores in the parking lot.  So far, it looks like they spent some money on
the decor, but we're only interested in the finished product, right?
The address is:  9503 Research Blvd, #500.
CALL BEFORE GOING!!!
Telephone: 527-0888


WHAT'S UP AT MUSASHINO?

At Musashino (currently, our top-rated sushi bar),
where there is a 1 hour wait for a table on some nights,
it's common to go upstairs to Chinatown Restaurant and wait
at their bar. Well, that bar is being remodeled, with a small
sushi bar being added, and will serve a
limited sushi and appetizer menu.  It's expected to open
by the beginning of November.


VEGETARIAN SUSHI

The first tuesday of each month is vegetarian sushi
night at Casa De Luz. This macrobiotic and vegan eating establishment
is known for their fabulous (and sometimes bland) vegetarian
food.  The veggie sushi rocks, however. This place is tricky to find if
you've never been
there. It's located off of Barton Springs Road near the corner
of Lamar Blvd and Barton Springs Road.  Note:  Dinner is from 6-8pm.
The address is: 1701 Toomey Road
476-2535.

[Whole Foods plug: We also enjoy the vegetarian sushi that's in the
refrigerated section
at Whole Foods grocery at 6th and Lamar.  Their ready-to-mix
miso, which comes in several flavors, is also quite good.]


EDAMAME!!!!!!!!!

Jonesin' for Edamame?
Frozen bags of Edamame (young soybeans), a popular appetizer at
Japanese restaurants, are available at Whole Foods and Central Market.
You can buy them both shelled and unshelled. Pop them in the microwave,
or boil them slightly on the stove, and you can pretend you're at Nobu or
Hamano.
Some of the frozen Edamame comes from
Sea Point Farms:  http://www.seapointfarms.com
If you're curious about Edamame, here's some background material:
http://www.tasteforliving.com/eatwell/ingredients/edamame.html


THE OTHER NEW SUSHI BARS

1. Umi Sushi Bar And Grill
Expected grand opening:  late October
Located on the southbound frontage road of I-35 at the Stassney
Lane exit, Umi is still under construction.
Saga-san, former co-head sushi chef at Musashino,
is the brains behind this new sushi operation.  Expect this sushi bar to
offer some delicacies that aren't available at your typical Austin
sushi venue. The owner says that they are currently dealing with city
permits.
Telephone:  383-8681  (this number will probably give you a "disconnected"
message until they get closer to opening)

2.  Kenichi.
Expected grand opening:  late February, 2001
We're expecting Kenichi to raise the bar for sushi in
Austin. They've leased 4,700 square feet next door
to Delaware Subs, at the southeast corner of Colorado and West Fifth
streets.  The space had been occupied by Thai Soon restaurant.
Dick Clark Architects are managing the new decor.
Meanwhile, you can salivate over the pics at www.kenichi.com, the
web site for their current Aspen, Colorado, location.


WIRELESS APPLICATION PROTOCOL ACCESS

As always, if you've got a WAP (www.wapforum.org) compatible cell phone (look
for an application called "minibrowser"),  point it at our list of Austin
sushi bars (www.marystreet.com/s.wml).  Push a button to automatically call
your
favorite sushi bar. Handy!