Shogun Japanese Steakhouse offers full menu of sushi and more

ALBANY — As a small town in a rural pocket of Georgia, Albany has a fair amount of restaurant options. It’s not a large number, and locals sometimes have to go to other cities to experience different kinds of cuisine. Luckily for diners looking for a good plate of sushi that doesn’t come inside a plastic box, we do have a few options, among them Shogun Japanese Steakhouse.

Lately, I have been trying foods and ingredients that I never imagined myself trying. Eating cactus at Casa Tapatia is a prime example. This leads to my confession: I have never had sushi made with raw fish. I know. I know. How could this be? I have been getting away with my fear of uncooked fish and ordering the avocado and cucumber option for too long, but it is time for a change. I’m a grownup now. I can do this. I can eat real sushi.

Just mentioning the name Shogun had people around me excited. Is it really that great? My curiosity was piqued. I asked for the chef’s two best rolls and an order of tempura vegetables. The chefs wanted to confirm that I was good with anything they picked, whether it was raw or not. Gulp. Sushi chefs will always know more about fish than I do, so I would not let myself be a backseat itamae. I could do this.

First arrival was the basket of veggies.

The vegetables were piping hot, which I am a fan of. I’m glad that someone didn’t just grab a handful of fried zucchini out of a warming tray and drop it onto my plate. The vegetables were not greasy at all, and they still held their crispness. Included was one asparagus, two large bulbs of broccoli, an onion ring, a squash medallion and one surprise that made my eyes bulge out of my head so hard the waitress came over to see if I was OK.

I can comfortably say that I’ve been to more than 100 different restaurants in my life, but this was the first time I was ever completely shocked while eating something. It made me second-guess that which I hold most dear — my taste buds. Did I … did I just eat a banana? Did I really just, with my own mouth, eat a tempura fried banana? Yes, yes I did. After going through every completely rational response to eating a surprise fried banana, I came to realize that I cannot go on with the rest of my life without more tempura bananas. Apparently they even serve it as a dessert option. Shogun, you know what you’re doing.

Two very large plates of sushi appeared, and they were gorgeous. I was so happy to see these simple, delicate rolls that would be deceptively filling because sushi doesn’t need 15 different sauces and toppings to be great. At its core, it needs fresh fish and someone who knows how to prepare it.

I’m usually a serial dunker when it comes to sushi. It’s unhealthy how much I enjoy the umami flavor of soy sauce, and I get a cheap thrill out of accidentally mixing in so much wasabi that dragon fire comes out of my nose. Fortunately, this trip to Shogun saved me from preserving myself from the inside with salt and allowed me to enjoy these little bites of fresh fish as they were meant to be tasted.

I started with the double trouble, the most visually unassuming of the two. What drew me to this particular roll was not its extra dose of avocado, but (and I’m a little embarrassed to admit this) it was how the pink and green colors of the ingredients were layered on each piece of sushi. It reminded me of a cute cartoon watermelon, and I knew this was a roll I could trust. This was happy sushi.

So how did the happy sushi taste? As someone who has never had sushi that wasn’t completely made of plants, I was shocked that the sushi here had absolutely no fishy taste. This roll was so pleasant to chew that it felt like comfort food.

The verizon roll was a savory tower of seafood. This roll was more refined and mature — business sushi, if you will. It was elegant but simple, which was exciting. The verizon roll comes with spicy tuna and avocado rolled inside with two kinds of tuna, raw eel and raw snapper layered on top. Holy Mackerel that was a lot of fish.

With one big bite, I was able to taste the flavors of the sesame and soy sauce up front with the light flavors of the many kinds of fish folded in. The hint of spice from the tuna was really nice. Sushi veterans will love the verizon roll. It is refined and packed with the flavors of Japanese cooking.

When I go back (and I will), I will definitely be ordering the double trouble roll again with as many tempura bananas as Shogun will let me get away with.

Shogun Japanese Steakhouse is located at 629 N. Westover Blvd. in Albany.

Gypsy CrowGypsy Crow

Gypsy Crow