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Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24: Sushi Love

Three words to describe Rochester, NY in winter time: grey, snowy, unpredictable... but we weren't about to let any of these things stand in the way of our New Year's sushi-love party! A special thanks to Foodbuzz 24:24:24 for hosting our gluttonous meal of unique sushi delights!

Even though snow is not a foreign concept to Rochester... somehow the streets are still not the best after a big storm (like the one that came through last night). Luckily the parking lot outside of Village Gate was well plowed. Converging from work and, for the lucky ones, home, we all managed to make it to California Rollin in one piece, with empty bellies and eager mouths to try a plethora of new twists and takes on sushi. Bacon? Pesto? BBQ sauce??? Yes, you heard me right, not traditional... but OH SO GOOD!


California Rollin is not a traditional sushi place: the chefs are clad with tattoos and piercings from all walks of life. Now don't go thinking this means they don't know what they are doing; they are all amazingly trained and skilled in their craft. Here's a sampling of some of the traditional and unique combination's (descriptions taken from California Rollin's menu).

Crunchy Spicy Tuna Roll: Our fresh made secret spicy tuna mixed with onion crunchies - spicy tastiness filled with texture.

That tempura fried roll to the right... it's called the Dancing Diablo Roll: Salmon Diablo tempura'd with Dinosaur BBQ - a spicy BBQ throw down! Yes that's right, it's slathered in BBQ sauce... and it tastes like heaven :) Don't be afraid, you wont regret it!

Mistletoe Roll: Fresh Salmon, avocado and honey topped with sesame seeds - just like getting an X-mas kiss.
Pisces Roll: Fresh spicy tuna with yellowtail, scallions and a touch of lemon - phenomenally fantastic.
Wosa Roll: Spicy shrimp and tempura shrimp rolled in onion crunches - simply shrimptastic!

To the right we have the South Wedge Roll: Smoked Salmon, cucumber, bacon and wasabi mayo explode! On the left is the Killer Eel Roll: The ultimate Eel roll: Smoked Eel, avocado, Japanese mayo, cream cheese, and scallions.

Spicy Shrimp Roll: Shrimp mixed with Celery in a devilishly hot sauce makes mouths water - a fierce flavor and popular choice.

Anyone for a little edemamae to start? The sea salt makes it so good! Just don't eat the outer shell... unless you are in serious need of fiber :D

Tuscany Roll: Thinly shaved Squid tempura'd to tender perfection in our fresh basil pesto - a must try! Matt ordered this one and I have to say it was one of my favorites!


Killer Shrimp Roll: Tempura Shrimp, avocado, cream cheese, scallions and Japanese mayo - the ultimate tempura Shrimp roll.
Dream Roll: Steamed Shrimp, avocado and cucumber.
Atlantic Ocean Roll: Steamed Shrimp, bacon, and garlic give your taste buds long lasting satisfaction.
D-lightful Roll: Crabstick and Shrimp get close with a succulent slab of bacon rolled in onion crunchies.
Trio Roll: Steamed Shrimp, Crabstick and Smoked Salmon

The aftermath - total destruction.

Of course we couldn't forget dessert, Tempura Ice Cream : vanilla ice cream inside a crispy tempura shell topped with our chocolate-hazelnut sauce ... taste the forbidden!


Some rolls to add to the "try next time list"
Louisiana Roll: Crawdads in our spicy Cajun/Vietnamese sauce.
Bourbon Roll: Tempura crawdads, Japanese mayo, hot sauce, cream cheese, bacon topped with CRUNCHIESs
Spank Me Roll: Snowcrab with wasabi mayo rolled in wasabi Tobiko eggs - embrace the light, taste 10 seconds of Nirvana!
Boss Hog Roll: Soft-shell crab, eel, Japanese mayo, avocado cucumber, bacon topped with eel sauce.
Albino Roll: Banana and Raspberries in a roll, tempura'd then smothered with chocolate and coconut - anyone for ecstasy?

YUM!!

Needless to say we left with full and happy bellies! Again, thank you so much foodbuzz for making this event possible!!!!!

18 chews:

Meg said...

What an amazing sushi event! Love all the names for the rolls, especially the Mistletoe roll.

Sophia Lee said...

wow, I never liked sushi that much, but reading your posts makes me want to fly over there, RIGHT NOW! haha...

CB said...

Omg best NY ever. I love me some sushi. Is Albany near Rochester? Next time I go out to NY to visit my brother I totally have to look you up for some sushi! Man I am craving sushi now. I need a crunchy roll ASAP. Darn you.
/Clara

Special K said...

I LOVE your site and follow it (check out mine)...and this gave me an idea to have a make your own sushi roll potluck again!

stephchows said...

Meg the mistletoe is one I always order! love it!

Burp, sushi sometimes takes awhile to love, but it's worth it!!

CB, I'd love to take you out for sushi!! Albany is 3.5 hours to the east though :( upstate is bigger than it looks haha. But if you are ever in the area don't hesitate to let me know!!! mmm sushi... mmmmmm now I want to go get more

Special K, so happy to hear you love the site!!!! you have no clue how happy that makes me, I'll go check yours out now! and you should totally have a sushi potluck!!

Kelly said...

Mmmmm. I'm salivating. There is nothing better on a cold night than a big feast of sushi. You have me craving it right now.

Anonymous said...

OMG, is it truly true that there's no California Rollin' in CA?! We live in LA, and trust us, if there were a place, we'd be there. Please convince them to go West Coast! Nice Foodbuzz 24 post. We did one too, and it's fun to read them all. :)

stephchows said...

Kelly I'm so glad you think it all looks good! It is my favorite sushi place ever!!

duodishes, can't wait to check out your post! And it's true california rollin' only has two locations here in Rochester... not sure how they got here or what the story is but I love them! :)

Marlow said...

These look SO YUMMY!! Great pictures!

Anonymous said...

Yummmmmmm I love sushi and these ones look and sound really interesting and different. Who would have thought sushi with pesto?! Great photos too.

Anonymous said...

I like sushi, but have never been able to get creative with it - your post looks a lot like inspiration!

stephchows said...

thanks Marlow!

Gail, it's so true! I'd never tried the pesto one and I'm so happy my friend ordered it, it was amazing!

Sid, awesome!! If you end up doing a post about your unique sushi make sure to send me a link! :)

Claudia said...

Thanks for visiting my Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24 post. Wow, your dinner and non-traditional sushi sounds amazing. Different and delicious!

Love the "aftermath" shot.

So, all you ate were rolls? Do they serve nigiri in this place?

stephchows said...

I love that shot too! They do serve Nigiri but we wanted to highlight all of the interesting and non-traditional combinations they use in their rolls :)

Sid Khullar said...

I like sushi, but have never been able to get creative with it - your post looks a lot like inspiration!

Gail said...

Yummmmmmm I love sushi and these ones look and sound really interesting and different. Who would have thought sushi with pesto?! Great photos too.

duodishes said...

OMG, is it truly true that there's no California Rollin' in CA?! We live in LA, and trust us, if there were a place, we'd be there. Please convince them to go West Coast! Nice Foodbuzz 24 post. We did one too, and it's fun to read them all. :)

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