Last night we had dinner at Sushi Zen in San Jose. The menu is expansive and the food is wonderful. We only discovered this restaurant a few months ago and already it's one of our favorite for consistently good Japanese food.
Sushi Zen
1305 N 1st St
San Jose, CA 95112
(408) 453-1070
read reviews
Joe is a big fan of raw fish, so a large bowl of Chirashi makes him instantly happy. He had already started to dig in when I stopped him so I could take this picture. The dish look even nicer and not as sloppy as it looks in this photo. Essentially, Chirashi is a bowl of rice and vegetables topped with different types of raw fish.
Unfortunately, Sushi Zen was out of the skewered grilled chicken skin, so he ordered the baby grilled squids instead. Personally, I have a policy (or hesitation) with eating any animal still in its full form. Tender and flavorful, the little squids disappeared quickly. The menu contains a sizable grilled section of grilled dishes and next door is an izakaya restaurant with a larger focus on these dishes. I think they are sister restaurants.
The Sushi Zen menu consists of the grilled items as well as teas broths and numerous types of sushi. I'll admit that I'm a fan on less traditional sushi rolls, but often they contain added calories due to creamy sauces or deep frying. So tonight, I had a spicy tuna roll and a California roll. I really don't care for California rolls and I'm not really sure why I went in that direction ... call it an off night.
When we finished eating, our table was cleared promptly and we were given what I call 'orange lollipops'. Peeled orange segments are served in a orange rind bowl with skewers to pick them up. I wrote about this previously and show step by step instructions on how to recreate these little gems.
Overall, it was another good meal from Sushi Zen. The restaurant consistently receives high ratings and I've found every dining experience to be a good one. It was pouring rain last night so the restaurant wasn't too busy and service was prompt and courteous as always. If you live in the San Jose area, I highly recommend trying it out.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Dinner at Sushi Zen in San Jose
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Sunflower Caffe in Sonoma, CA
This past weekend we decided to get out of the house to enjoy the long weekend. We decided to head north to explore Guerneville near Russian River. The weather was cold and damp, and we discovered quite quickly that Guerneville isn't really a day-trip destination. And since it was nearing Noon, I realized that we needed to find good food fast (i.e. being around me when I'm starving is not advised).
So, we opted to head over to nearby Sonoma for the afternoon. We walked around the main square only realize our favorite cafe was no longer there. We decided to vist the Sunflower Caffe which seemed to be a popular choice given the line at the counter. With seating on the sidewalk, inside, and in the backyard patio, we had plenty of choices and chose to sit inside.
The menu had many sandwich and salad choices, with snack plates of Lox or assorted cheeses. I made a healthy choice and went with a half order of chicken breast on the garden salad. Joe ordered the Smoked salmon on mixed greens. 
The smoked salmon salad came with a piece of baguette and a wedge of triple cream cheese ... sinful. The portion of salmon was quite large. My salad was beautiful, with tender and flavorful chicken breast arranged on top. I also received a baguette, crispy and chewy ... which I immediately handed over to Joe (i.e. those dang carbs are not nice to me, but I did have a little nibble -- Yum).
We took our time eating and people watched. It was a casual place to enjoy some good food. I expected the prices to be much higher, but the smoked salmon was only about $10 and the chicken breast salad $6. So, if you visit Sonoma, swing by the Sunflower Caffe for a tasty bite to eat. Their website doesn't seem to be fully built, but they do state their main offering, "Delicious food made from scratch and with love..."
