Restaurant Name: Ikko
Cusine: Sushi
Location: Costa Mesa, California
Company: My mother, Aunt Kuelee, and Quinn
Overall Experience: Different, worth returning to when I have more more money (:






We started the night off with fresh oysters that we decided to pair with sea salt and lime. It was interesting. I had never eaten fresh oysters that were shucked out of their shells. Although Ikko's out-of-the-shell approach was easier and cleaner, merely use your chopsticks to pick up the oyster's flesh rather than making an embrassing slurp, I felt that their approach took some flavor away from the oyster. The shell provides a convenient bowl for the briney water that accompanies the oyster, which was lost when the oyster flesh was taken out. Nonetheless, the freshness of the oysters was undoubtedly there.






Next we had the monk fish liver. It was extremely different than Angotei's presentation. I thought that this dish exemplified how Ikko is completely different from any traditional sushi bar. While upholding the quality of the fish, Ikko relies heavily on the flavors of its sauces while incorporating a fusion aspect. This means plating and presentation are sophiscated and ostentatious, exhibiting both the sushi chef's mastery of the knife as well as creativity. The monk fish liver was smothered under a mouse of some sort and paired with a gel and cucumbers. The monk fish liver itself was not at the peak of its season, as noted by its lack of orange color and creamy texture. However, the dressings with the monk fish liver were both interesting and unusual. Maybe I've been spoiled by Angotei's humble sauce paired with the monk fish liver, but I did not feel that the flavors that Ikko accompanied with the monk fish liver were good complements.





Next came the Seared Ahi Tuna Salad and Sea Bass Cheek. The salad was nothing extraordinary. The greens were good, the peanut dressing was good, but none of the components were extraordinary. The web-like cap on the salad was some sort of deep fried noodles(?) They added a crunch factor and provided aesthetics but did not carry much flavor. The seared ahi tuna was undoubtedly delicious, but without much flavor. Well, Ikko did give the fish flavor by slathering a peanut dressing on top, but I felt that it did not do justice to the fish. It overpowered the sweetness of the fish, and brings back Ikko's focus on the sauce rather than the fish. However, the sea bass cheek was succulent and juicy. The cheek was as juicy as a sea bass steak from any fine dining restaurant, melt-in-the-mouth goodness.






The sashimi was fresh and delicious, but if only the sauces didn't completely overwhelm the natural sweetness of the fish! (Can you tell that I am very passionate about this point?) We tried belt fish, lightly simmered little neck, spanish mackeral, hamachi, whelk, and seabass. What I thought was interesting about Ikko in comparison to any other sushi restaurant that I've eaten at, is their variety of fish. Not only did they have amazingly fresh typical fish (including spanish mackeral and hamachi), they provided a menu full of fish that I have not heard of. The lightly simmer little neck was part of a clam and had a fresh and clean clam texture to it. There was also unagi which was typical, nothing extraordinary, but still extremely delicious. I do not remember too much of each individual fish, except that each had a very clean and fresh taste to it. The quality and freshness of the fish spoke loudly with each bite.





The beef tongue was interesting. There was a slightly poached egg in the center that we did not know quite to deal with, which made for an interesting experience. After trying a piece of beef tongue with and without the egg, I came to the conclusion that the beef tongue was better without the egg. For some reason, at least in my mouth, the two ingredients did not bode well together and I tasted the beef tongue and egg separately rather than as one entity. However, what made this beef tongue different was the black truffles that accompanied it. It added another dimension to the beef tongue. While the beef tongue itself was not heavily seasoned rather than its own natural flavors, the black truffles added a slight smooth, smoky, homey, salty feeling and taste to the tongue. It is difficult to describe the effect that truffles have on a particular food item or dish because it is to unique and special. However, the flavor of the truffle overwhelmed the true flavor of the beef tongue.




Steamed egg with sea urchin=SUPER DELICIOUS. I think that out of all of the dishes and sushi that we ordered this night, the steamed egg with sea urchin was the absolute best. As Winter quarter was coming to an end and finals week approached, Jenn Chen and I experimented and made batches of steamed egg. However, our steamed egg was typically four eggs scrambled and I added napa cabbage to mine. Our steamed eggs never came out as creamy as the one that Ikko served. Perhaps it was the sea urchin that provided an ocean sweetness or the method of beating the eggs that allowed Ikko's steamed egg to be absolutely perfect and smooth. There were no air bubbles to disrupt the smooth consistency that resulted. It was so good and although I was extremely full at this point, I could not find the power to stop my spoon from going in for just one more bite!





For dessert we got vanilla soy bean ice cream with black bean and green tea flan. The ice cream was interesting and had a generous helping of tofu powder on the top that reminded me of something that ate during my childhood, but couldn't pinpoint what it was exactly. The flan was good, but nothing to report. Overall, their desserts were on the good side, but not the great side.



If I had the money, and if I had to choose between Angotei and Ikko, I would definitely go to Angotei. As previously mentioned countless times before the in the description of the dishes that we had ordered, Ikko has phenomenal fresh and interesting fish, but it focuses too much on its sauces that overwhelms and takes away from the fish. Everytime I visit Angotei, I order essentially the same thing, thus I already know what I am going to eat and can anticipate the flavors. This is not too good because then I get more tired of Angotei easily. While Ikko does offer a nice variety of fish and other sea creatures that I can experiment with, the way that Ikko sauces the fish is too strong to enjoy the natural sweetness and flavor of the fish. For the same price, Angotei would be my choice. However, if Ikko was slightly cheaper, I believe that I would find myself at this joint more often.

Note: For those of you that are not familiar with Angotei, it is another Japanese sushi restaurant that I visit more.