Shauna Eats Sunnyside

Ariy-NO-shi and a Guinness at the Gaslight

(photo via sunnysidechamber.org)

i’m going to be perfectly honest… Ariyoshi Japanese Restaurant used to be the prime sushi destination for my former Roomie and me for passable sushi rolls and affordable Sapporo and sake specials, like, 3+ years ago.

(The $42 Bon Voyage boat for two, which we’ve often joked about inhaling but have never actually attempted…)

now, Ariyoshi’s still packing in the same crowd, though i’m really not sure what kinda eats these folks are settling for. Sixteen-ounce Sapporos ($6 each) and the $3.50 large hot sake remain a decent bargain in this neck of the woods, though that would be the ONLY redeeming factor of this particular Japanese destination…

B had a soccer game tonight, and the Sunnyside-based Roomie was back in town following a month-and-a-half-long departure, so mama took Rooms out for birthday dinner to catch up and consume raw fishies and sake. We met on 41st St. and headed over late-ish, and I’m always surprised by the local Ariyoshi crowd occupying considerable seatage in the duplex space. You’d think popularity would speak for quality, but in this case I presume that they’ve all been duped…

Part of the reason I went to Ariyosh with Rooms tonight is because B won’t stand for it. With higher-quality options like TJ’s, Hanami, and hell, even Yeti hard-repping the ‘hood, why settle for grueling chewbacca bits like Ariyoshi?? But the Mets-endorsing Rooms is a fan (as are, apparently, many locals in this ‘hood), and it holds sentimental sake-bonding time for us as a coexistent duo, so I felt I owed the sushi spot a quadrillianth chance at redemption.

But the fish factor would soon speak for itself…

We started the night with the reliably party-worthy Sapporo/sake combo and a seafood salad appetizer. A modest, chaw-fest concoction of faux crab, avocado, seaweed strands, orange roe, scallion rings, raw salmon hunks, and wands of octopii in a gingery cream sauce, the seafood salad is far from memorable but meshes together nicely in the shadow of a few effective sake bombers.

Main course consisted of Rooms’ fave the cajun (spicy tuna) roll, a spicy crunchy shredded scallop roll, and a sashimi eel roll wrapped in cucumber slabs. My impression of Ariyoshi sushi has always been that of complacency. Rice is mealy, rolls are half-sized, and no flavor is palatially astounding. The cajun roll was, as per usual, cajun-y. As an Old Bay fanatic, mama can appreciate. The spicy crunchy shredded scallop roll was a tad sweet and leaned toward the slippery/spongy side. All affordably edible, given the boozing focus of our outing… but the sashimi eel roll was really the deal-breaker of the night. Cucumber was crisp and fat, encircling faux crab (um, overkill?), wads of roe, avocado turds, and this plebeian brown sauce dousing the eel, which was so stank and fishy that even Rooms, the ever-optimist, had to wrinkle his French-Canadian nose in disdain.

In an attempt to salvage our dinner (or, rather, purge the sea-sewage flava from our tongues), we split a scoop of red bean ice cream for dessert. which was, good…creamy, even. but again, far from memorable. throwing a bone: Ariyoshi now has handy wipes.

(photo via yelp.com)

Our post-dining festivities consisted of a Guinness in the youth-infested Gaslight Bar pub garden, surrounded by snogging couples and barnyard themery. The foliage was lovely and the heady pour was spectac… though it’s hard to erase a traumatic sushi experience from one’s reality.

When I came home, B, the saintly Sunnyside enthusiast that he is, arrived bearing the fruits of a post-soccer El Vagabundo drive-by. Carne asada tacos aplenty, and my dining momentum was officially righted. Thank you, taco men, for keeping it real with pickled jalapenos. And for future patrons of Ariyoshi, please avoid the eel.

—————————————-

Ariyoshi Japanese Restaurant
41-13 Queens Blvd (b/w 41st and 42nd sts)
Sunnyside, NY 11104
718-937-3288

The Gaslight Bar
43-17 Queens Blvd (b/w 43rd and 44th sts)
Sunnyside, NY 11104
718-729-9900

El Vagabundo Taco Truck of Queens Boulevard
Queens Boulevard at sunset (on the corner of 41st St)
Sunnyside, NY 11104
(347) 276-4522