Wednesday Tio Franco and I went to lunch at Itto Sushi on Chicago’s north side. I’ve always liked Itto Sushi, mostly because it is one of the few Japanese owned restaurants with a Japanese sushi chef. They also have Japanese cooks in the back. The fact that their restaurant is often frequented by Japanese nationals is also testament to the authenticity of their food. My dad knew Junco, the owner, which is how I came to know about the restaurant.
We both started out by ordering gomae, which is spinach that has been blanched with the water squeezed out of it and then chopped as you see. The sauce is a combination of sesame and miso and soy sauce. I’ve had some pretty bad gomae, but Itto Sushi does a nice job of theirs so I always try to order it. By the way, if you ever try to make it at home, you will find out that there is a LOT of spinach that goes into that little amount you see in the dish!
Tio Franco ordered the tempura dinner, which comes with rice, miso soup, and an appetizer. Good tempura is not oily and is so light and wonderful!
I ordered the tempura apetizer, which was less tempura. I had wanted gyzoa and I knew I’d never finish both with the dinner portions.
This is the dipping sauce. Good tempura dipping sauce is not overly sweet, and has a hint of horseradish in it, and their’s was excellent.
Four pieces of hamachi, perfectly sliced and extraordinarily fresh!
Gyoza with their own dipping sauce. Perfection!
News Flash, I some of my family wants to have lunch with me next month at Itto Sushi. Yes!!!
Itto Sushi
http://www.ittosushi.com/
2616 N. Halsted
773 / 871-1800
