Sebo, oshi-kata! Finger lickin' good!

[K K]

Took a day off to spend Mrs KK's birthday in SF, where the objective for the end of the day, was having sushi for dinner. Ino crossed my mind, and had thought about heading towards home during dinner at the tried and true places, but I quickly came to the decision of giving Sebo a sorely needed try (and review). And plus it was time to return Porthos the favor on this one (since he did Anzu a while back).

This was our first time in Hayes Valley area, and was quite surprised that this Fillmore and Haight esque strip had so much local flavor and character to it. Lived in San Francisco for so long and NEVER treked to this part of town before, until after I had moved out. Shame on me. So a side note, if there are neighborhoods like this I'd love to know! (Aside from Chestnut/Steiner which I've been to).

Sebo has several tables and chairs but the best seats in the house are of course the highly coveted 6 seat sushi bar. Owners Danny and Michael are indeed legends in their own right. This place has the vibe of a true neighborhood sushi bar, but in a very cozy upscale trendy atmosphere, and a majority of the patrons are easily locals and regulars. We counted no less than 8 people who came in at random parts of our meal to greet (and hug) Danny and Mike.

They are also great conversationalists and no question is too private or secret (especially regarding the restaurant, receipes, fish sourcing, fish themselves). I even went as far as asking how he came about getting his counter for the sushi bar, which he had a very nice story to tell (more later). I haven't had such a wonderful conversation with two sushi chef owners in a long time. Then again, no language barrier issues, no awkward moments. The classical old skool chef might keep the conversation levels to a minimum to avoid excess spittle on raw fish (on the extreme side).

Turns out they're closed on Halloween, simply because they felt most of the regulars/patrons will be busy clubbing the night away, or at some exotic nasty skanky ball using saran wrap in ways you and I both don't want to know. So fish selection was a tad bit limited tonight. For one thing, no toro, and they didn't get in any bluefin. But despite that, everything tonight was spot on.

I have to say I was extremely impressed at the whole operation. Everything was great, although I felt the pacing was rather slow (and hampered even more so due to the loquacious patron(s) nearby, and at times making the chefs talk even more to the point of a bit more slow down).

Nigiri pieces were surprisingly compact (then again it could have been the result of ordering omakase vs a la carte), and fit in one's mouth comfortably in one bite (unlike Sakae where for a little more money you get humongous pieces). Unfortunately as the meal was paced a bit too long, with small pieces of nigiri in between, we basically left the place hungry after 1.5 hours (had we more time for the evening, would have racked up a bigger bill, and still leave with enough room to eat a hamburger, which conveniently there was a gourmet burger joint down the street!)

Knife skills were generally above average I say (we sat in front of Danny, though next time I'd love to have Michael prepare our food to compare) although some nigiri pieces seemed a bit inconsistent with the amount of fish vs rice. Sushi rice had several interesting textures and flavors to it, a bit savory, a bit sweet, and as a friend who nailed down the description, nutty. The rice receipe is definitely different from other places, and some of the grains seemed rather chewy or undercooked(?). But in general they complemented the fresh fish very well. Danny revealed that they make their own sushi su (vinegar for sushi rice), unlike places that use a premade batch. Their su is make from sake lees, and as a result the rice appears off white and slightly darker (couldn't really tell since the lights were rather dim inside Sebo). But you can certainly taste it. The rice receipe could be improved I think.

The omakase meal:

Wild shimaaji from Japan - 5 pieces of very thinly sliced (almost paper thin) belly cut sashimi in a bowl of shredded daikon, some kaiware, garnished with a little yuzu juice. Very different from the shimaaji's I've had elsewhere. Really good

nigiri course:

x1 aji - one of the most flavorful aji's I've had. Their is from Japan. Way better than even the freshest pieces at my favorite local joints, which makes me wonder if other places source a cheaper kind or breed.

x1 iwashi - great, but not oily or fatty.

x1 sanma - Danny seared this then added a pinch of salt. A nice refreshing way to enjoy this. A standout.

x1 saba - Japanese saba, marinated in house. A very light marination and probably for a short time. From Southern Japan. I asked whether it was from Kyushu and I think Danny nodded. Simple garnish of scallion did the job (as with other silvery shiny fish). No need for grated ginger. We repeated this order later

x1 ankimo - Bloggers and CH's never really went into descriptions with this, even though I kept asking ok so why is this place's ankimo better than Ino or if not. Well luckily yours truly came here tonight. I still say Ino's is the best, but these guys come close with their version. It's not as creamy and thick, but the flavor is there. A really wonderful receipe, and they do it the "French" way of steaming it but practically turning off the heat once they put it in, and wrap it up while steaming. Oversteaming with sake of course will mess the whole thing up, so they have to find the right proportion and steps. Apparently Ino is the only other place that does ankimo this way (I forgot to mention if they knew Hamako/Tetsuo-san and his receipe, not that I've tried it). Repeated this order again later.

namadaco (raw octopus) sashimi with marinated ikura on top - most people cringe at tako or octopus, whether cooked or raw. Danny emphasized that theirs came from Hokkaido from the deep seas, and only that particular breed and type was qualifiable to be sashimi grade (and meeting their approval). I cannot tell you how great this was, you just have to try it when they have it. Toothsome, soft, and not chewy. The ikura was a great complement flavorwise.

Ikura no shoyu zuke - these guys are hardcore enough to marinate their own salmon eggs (from Alaska salmon). The receipe is very sake oriented, and it shows. Probably really good quality sake too, I could taste that depth, and in fact can be too overpowering for some. Too many of these in a gunkan maki (even though a small portion) can be a bit overwhelming, but eating these sac by sac might be easier. Each egg bursts with flavor, good good stuff. I now have a hard time deciding on which place does my favorite rendition.

uni - cream of the cream of the cream of the cream of the crop of A++++++ grade Santa Barbara uni. Haven't had this kind of quality of uni in such a long time, it was that good. Almost like a very fine nut butter, but no fishy or iodine like flavor/aftertaste. Clean, firm but supple lobes from their box. Plus I believe season is right on (as I recall in the past around this time).

katsuo - Not as pristine as the piece I had at Sushi Zo in LA, but it seems like this is the "first flush" equivalent or start of fall season katsuo. Delicious nonetheless and definitely trumps Sakae's version by far (which they have to rely on sesame seed, scallion, momji oroshi pozu to bring out the flavor). Minimal handling was needed at Sebo for better results.

kamasu - barracuda - I think Porthos would be proud! It reminded me of a very fresh silvery fish (like belt fish/tachiuo) although searing brought out the flavor even more. A pinch of salt sealed the deal. Very enjoyable.

unagi shirayaki - virtually identical to Kaygetsu's sushi bar version. Japanese unagi (no seasoning), baked in toaster oven for a bit, then nothing applied except for salt. I believe Toshi-san at Kaygetsu uses a pinch of yuzugosho (yuzu flavored pepper spice), but salt did the trick here too.

anago - A very nice toasty rendition. I learned that their nikiri (the anago sauce they brush on top) is seasoned in house, although they start off with a pre-made/vendor bought neutral flavored sauce. Definitely trumps Ino's anago which is salty and dry, but doesn't seem to have that natural sweetness. A nice verison.

On the menu tonight also were medai (butterfish), Hokkaido scallops,shiro ebi, torigai.

A few other random notes:

The huge block of mahogany wood required some extensive searching and help to locate, to carve into what is now the 6 seater sushi counter of Sebo. This was done by a commercial real estate contractor they knew who took on the project for them. The refrigeration unit was partly from Japan with the rest being custom designs (local). This counter is a sight to behold in itself, does not look like your average sushi bar version.

Some patrons got a custom creation of:

nori sheet, thinly sliced kyuri sheet on top (Japanese cucumber), kaiware (sprouts), and uni, then made into a cylindrical handroll. Looked good.

The guy next to me lived in LA for years and between me and Danny and him, talked about different sushi places, and we compared our notes of dining at Sushi Zo in LA. He gave Sebo the thumbs up and basically we concluded this place comes close, but there were quite a few missing links. For one thing Sebo's ankimo blows Zo's away (Zo unfortunately likes to serve his ankimo piping hot, and the flavors are not there) but Zo's got this finger licking good konbu shoyu nikiri (and yuzu juice at the end).

Sebo's atmosphere is definitely like that of a Cheers bar. I don't think there were any new customers in the house other than us two.

No wonder a few of you write 100 word reviews of this place and never go into details with me when I ask offline. Then again even before this review this place was already getting busy. Dare I say that the bar even gets full before the place opens :-/

So now I invite the great Sushi Monster and the honorable Porthos to come try this place and give their two cents.

To SM, this place opens only at night, 6 pm and after. Closed Monday.

[Porthos]

Yes. We are now even for my Anzu visit. How much per person did the omakase end up costing? Roughly judging, how many types of fish did Sebo carry that night? Fresh wasabi?

IF I'm ever back in the bay area again, I will do Sebo...maybe with you and SM at the bar...speaking of which, SM should be making his Sushi Zo visit any time now.

[K K]

Fresh wasabi, they imported from Japan, but they did not grind it themselves.

They did not have the common low end tai, hirame, cooked ebi, practically everything was from Japan.

I even kept the menu,

katsuo
kanpachi
hamachi (wild)
shimaaji
sanma
iwashi
aji
saba
kamasu
medai
shiro ebi
torigai
uni
ankimo
hotategai
tobioko
shoyu ikura
unagi shirayaki
anago

I went on a night where selection was considered small, since they were going to close for Halloween, so no cooked food available (they admitted they didn't order veg). But this was representative of a good average night.

Of course it's no Zo, but for SF it is easily one of the best, if not the best.

Price wise, on par with Kaygetsu but cheaper if you 1) order omakase and 2) pace yourself and cut the meal short, fish averaging the $7 to $8 mark for Toshi sized nigiri. If you want to come out full, eat a burger before you go.

Mrs KK liked Sebo way more than Sakae, although fish quality wise they are close. I think it was the overall package.

[Melanie Wong]

Here's some news in the email announcing the Halloween closing:
"another note, we will start opening on sundays, probably the second week of november, the 11th. we will keep you posted on the details as we get closer to the date.we will not be serving sushi ( ! ) but traditional izakaya. we are also working on featuring a single sake for each sunday evening's menu."

I've not been to Sebo yet myself. I was a fan of the cooked dishes at Michael's previous gig, so this is great news and fills a gap in the SF food scene.