Kai Sushi - Don't Love It? You Sake!

I refuse to apologize for the pun in this title. If Mr. Takei can get away with it... Nay, if he can get people to love puns, then I am certainly not above them. Anyhoo, I know I'm late reporting on the newest sushi restaurant in downtown Everett. In my defense I work in Seattle now. So, I only get to hang out around this magical food hub once a week at most. I would write about the restaurants I've been eating at in Columbia City, but in all reality I've only gone to two regularly. Seriously, my new workplace lunch buddy is a creature of habit. He's killing my Instagram feed. Thankfully, this past Friday night I was able to convince my son that he wanted Chicken Teriyaki. He doesn't eat sushi. This way the rest of my sushi loving family could enjoy themselves, and we three agreed on the relatively new and exciting Kai Sushi. They opened in October of 2016, and I have had no less than 5 close friends highly recommend that I try the place. No worries Katana, I still love you!

I'm not going to mess around. Let's start with the reason for all of this. Look at those gems! If you don't love sushi, no worries. There are pictures below that you may enjoy. Keep scrolling. For those of you that do love the buttery softness of raw fish, allow me to introduce you to the Nigiri Sushi Omakase. I am so grateful right now that I blog, because I would have butchered that pronunciation. Everything about this sampler was perfect, even the octopus, and octopus requires a lot of chewing. Confession time, I'm a lazy eater. I prefer foods with minimum chewing required, mashed potatoes, and mac n' cheese to name a few. That said, I still loved those octopus suckers. I shared this sampler with my husband, and did wish they had two of each so it was easier to share, but we also both agreed that would be too much sushi. My advice, share with someone you really like.

I have recently discovered that I love unfiltered sake. I was surprised, because I typically drink dry red wine. That said, I like to be adventurous. I tried a sake flight at Blue C Sushi, and realized that unfiltered sake tends to be sweet and delicious. I love it! It's certainly not something I would drink on the regular, but it is a special treat. Plus it goes well with the salty/spiciness that my sushi tends to become, because you better believe I put generous quantities of wasabi in my soy sauce for dipping.

For an appetizer, we shared the Chicken Karaage, which is basically popcorn chicken served with two dipping sauces: sweet chili and spicy mayo. It was exactly what you'd expect, nothing too impressive, but definitely satisfying.

As stated previously, my son ordered the Chicken Teriyaki. Any surprises here? No, but I want you sushi lovers to know that you can go out to eat with your squeamish family and friends. Don't let picky eaters bully you into not enjoying the foods you love. Not every meal can be Taco Bell! Moving on...

In thanks for my son's compromise, and in celebration of my daughter's own adventurous eating, I decided the kiddos needed dessert. Also, I was buying time so I could continue savoring my sake. We weren't sure whether we'd be excited by the dessert menu or not, but lo' and behold, they had Tempura Fried Ice Cream. "What?" you ask. It's fried ice cream. You don't need to ask questions. Have you been to a State Fair? Have you eaten fried foods? Then you get it. It was wonderful, and everyone left satisfied. Thank you Kai Sushi. We will be back.