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Sakura, Southsea
Sakura, Portsmouth's only Japanese restaurant, has hit the ground running.
It opened a mere five weeks ago and word has quickly got around about where to sample the likes of sushi and sashimi, those well-travelled delicacies from the land of the rising sun.
I bagged a table early one evening and the remainder in the smallish restaurant were taken up in nanoseconds. The front door's screen print was constantly flapping with new, expectant arrivals.
But Japanese food is not just sushi and sashimi, however delectable the seaweed-bound rice with fishy or veggie additions or the raw fish artfully draped over rice.
Sakura (it means cherry blossom), which attracts many Japanese to its simple red banquetted, bannered premises, goes in for more homely food.
Ramen (noodles), gohan (rice), salada (yup, salads) and teishoku fill the pages of the small book of menus. This is veggie and fish heaven with the likes of yaki udon (thick white wheat noodles), maki mono tuna or salmon rolls, futo maki (cucumber, crabstick, beancurd and egg roll sushi) and tempura oysters in breadcrumbs, pricing sensibly under the fiver mark for sushi. Set menus are around 10.
Yaki niku teishoku, beef strips in a garlic onion sauce, with fried calamari, miso soup, sushi, pickles, salad and rice is just one of the 10 set menus (10.95).
Judging by two tiny Japanese girls who tucked into dish after dish with chopsticks next to me, it was abundantly plain that the Japanese love food.
Part of Japanese DNA is presentation, even when it comes to less expensive food. My tempura rolls - hot tiger prawns in sushi bundles - were placed on a glazed pottery rectangular dish with delicate strands of mayonnaise, pickled ginger and wasabi, that addictive green horseradish paste. And they were ace.
Service is quick, accommodating and charming.
The set menu dishes come on a black and red tray with yet more glazed pottery for the main dishes - black painted bamboo-like covered bowls for the peripherals, soup, rice and salad.
The kitchen here has a knack of cooking onions in a sweet, caramel yet savoury way. They are the strong backdrop to the tender beef in the yaki niku dish.
Good crisp calamari and more sushi equally found a willing home. But the miso soup was a tad over-strong and the rice and salad didn't reach other dishes' higher standards. A small pottery jug of warm sake helped the authentic experience along, as did the loud Japanese music.
Green tea ice cream and mango in syrup are two possible desserts. Sakura is a highly welcome addition to Southsea - inexpensive, quick, charming, smart and authentic.
Sakura, 9 Albert Road, Southsea (023) 9275 1103.
Open: Mon-Thur Noon - 2.30pm, 5.30pm - late, Fri-Sun Noon - 11.30 pm
Food: ****
Service: ****
Atmosphere: ****
Disabled access: Narrow door, steps up to the toilets
How to get there: The restaurant is virtually opposite the Kings Theatre in Albert Road. Parking is on-street. What more do you want? My bill came to 17 not including a tip.
Japanese will please
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Weather for Portsmouth
Wednesday 23 May 2012
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