Remember, about 15 years ago, when sushi
had just hit South Africa?
Oh, we were so proud of ourselves. Those
who already knew how to use chopsticks, waved them about excitedly, discussing
the merits of dissolving wasabi in soya sauce, exactly how artfully the ginger
should be draped, how liking Japanese mayo was slightly infra-dig and how
yellowtail and butterfish were so much more inherently sashimier than mere
salmon and tuna.
Honestly, sushi was the hipster ‘nom nom’
macaroon of the 90s. It was all a little eye wincing.
Oh course, when we were obsessing about
whether to cleanse our palates pink and gingerly or to dissolve our contacts in
wasabi, as opposed to merely tearing them up… we were eating a lot less
sushi.
Unfortunately, those too young for these
pretentions have no such reservations.
“Can we eat at the roundabout? Can we? Can we?” Benj
squealed excitedly, as we were walking through the Waterfront the other day.
“Oh… all right,” I said, thinking that at
least I could get a little Omega3 down the picky little guy.
“Yay!” said Joe. “Hey Benj, do you think
they’ll have salmon and tuna sashimi? And maki? I love maki! And maybe rainbow
rolls? And…”
Andreas looked at me a little worriedly.
But not as worriedly as I looked at him, when we turned around after an
inadvertent 10 minutes debating whether to share a bottle of wine at lunchtime,
to discover that the boys had already racked up a veritable tower of empty
plates.
“Boys, boys… STOP EATING,” shrieked
Andreas. “At this rate, Mom and I are going to have to get evening jobs to pay
the bond this month. Don’t you want some chips or something? Something
unhealthy and stodgy to fill you up?”
The boys looked up at us, with their little
heads cocked… while we cringed in parental guilt.
And we’re not the only parents out there
who made the fatal mistake of allowing our children to sample sushi too young.
All over SA, there are children throwing back raw fish like seals, while their
parents feverishly do mental arithmetic.
Luckily for us, intrepid Restaurant Editor
Cath Shone has found some good, reasonable CT sushi joints for us… Active Sushi, Best of Asia and 1890 House Sushi and Grill are all FABULOUS.
But what about the rest of the country? Where do YOU go for good sushi, without
having to leave the deed to your house behind? Joburgers? Durbanites? Anyone in
Bloem or PE? Please guys, families like mine all over the country need your
help. Drop us an email with the restaurant details or simply post a review on Food24 or Tweet us!