Skipping the sushi at a sushi restaurant

By Frank Whitman

“This place is unbelievable.  Let us know when you go and we’ll come with you,” wrote our friends Robert and Robin, eager to share their new favorite spot for Japanese food.  “We’re not Japanese food savvy, so you’ll have to help us.” Marsha responded. “No problem! We’ll be your guides.”

Menu meeting

So there we were at Sushi Jin in Westport on a lovely June evening ready to learn. The restaurant has an Omakase option – an opportunity to “Leave the details up to the chef” and enjoy a custom tasting menu ranging across the restaurant’s offerings. 

We didn’t do that.  Instead we placed ourselves in the hands of Robert and Robin to pick favorites that encompassed the broad reach of the multi-page menu. In consultation with our server, Mia, they crafted a tour of more than a dozen tasty dishes.  The picks were constrained by a prohibition on raw fish – no sushi, no sashimi. 

Seaweed salad

Even so, the range of flavors and textures was astonishing. 

The first wave of shared plates, all hot, started with Beef Negimaki, rolls of tender beef surrounding scallions in a rich teriyaki sauce – the polar opposite of raw fish, but a great introduction to our tasting experience.  Agedashi Tofu, slices of delicate, gently-fried melt-in-your-mouth tofu, accompanied by a flavorful stock-based sauce, had an unforgettable, creamy texture.  Equally mouth-melting slices of intensely-flavored Eggplant Miso were dusted with sesame seeds.  

A pickled seaweed salad was a refreshing contrast to the first three very-rich dishes and a welcome break in the parade of flavors. 

With the colorful plates crowded on the table, it was an act of will to resist rushing from one to the next.  Each deserved a moment of consideration and some discussion of the unique flavors before moving on.

Duck pancake

The second wave of plates began with Taco Nori, a unique offering at Sushi Jin.  Nori seaweed replaces the traditional flour taco in these two-bite flavor-bombs. The custom-built wooden taco holder held Robert’s four choices: Eel Cucumber; Salmon Yuzu; Seared Salmon Truffle and Toro Scallion.  Each was crafted to bring forward the character of their main ingredient. 

Next, a brace of pancake wraps overflowing with tender Peking-style strips of duck were a standout.  So good, that we ordered another round before the meal ended. 

The Westport Roll was our lone nod to traditional Japanese restaurant seafood offerings. Filled with tuna, salmon, yellowtail and snow crab, the accent flavors included scallion, avocado and daikon radish. 

Beef tacos

The penultimate dish in our self-directed Omakase was a quartet of Wagyu Beef Tacos.  We each had our own of these hearty, beefy, well-sauced morsels.  A selection of light crisp Tempura was the finale.  Shrimp, sweet potato, mushrooms and okra were all lifted by being flash-fried in a delicate, crisp batter.

There was plenty of what you might expect to see in a Sushi restaurant circulating through the stylish, theater-shaped dining room and on the outdoor patio. At the next table, a trio of first-timers were digging into a boat-shaped display of sushi, sashimi, and rolls while sipping sake from an elaborate chiller.  I was able to waylay a waiter and snap a picture of the armloads of sashimi he was carrying to an outdoor table. 

A cadre of white-hatted chefs were crafting the fresh seafood offerings at a bar just beyond the entrance. A lucky few got seats there to watch them work. 

Signature cocktails included my Yuzu Pearl, a refreshing herbal blend of gin, yuzu, lychee, and Wildmoon Lavender liqueur. Marsha’s Jin Margarita, was not made with Gin as it sounds when spoken, but instead a well-made mix of the usual ingredients that was a surprisingly good fit with the cuisine. 

Prices are typical for Westport, but good value for the quality. The food was all expertly prepared and beautifully presented. When you go, stray off the beaten path and try some of the unfamiliar offerings. If, like us, you’re timid, invite Robert and Robin, they’re good guides and good company.