A couple of quick bites for you, today!
Speedy Sushi and Hibachi Bowls
I tried to snag a picture of the menu board, but it’s not super-clear.
While I’d resigned myself to depending on Publix’s seafood department for our local sushi cravings, a little bird told me that Masato might just be another option.We stopped by one Friday evening to check it out. Now, I point out that it was a Friday night, and one where a high school football game was going on down the street, because the first thing we noticed was how empty it was. Usually a sign for concern, but we decided to give it a go anyway.
In Tallahassee there are a couple locations of the chain Sumo Sabi, and Masato reminds me very much of this sort of “fast food” sushi–think the Chipotle of sushi. I suspect they have the same sort of rice sheeter in the back. though I could, of course, be wrong about that. Either way, the sushi isn’t anything amazing, but it does hit the spot. The first time here I think I got the Thomasville roll (or some southern-town-named concoction) as well as a small hot entree. We’ve since been back for another round and their tuna roll was at least as good as your average quick service shop.
Masato Entrees–despite the side-by-side, my bowl on the right was less than half the size of Todd’s on the left.
On the “hibachi” side of things you can get all manner of proteins in a variety of sauces over rice. Todd prefers to get one of the shrimp dishes while I got what I believe was the Yakisuba (?) Beef. It was good on its own, but they’ve got a delicious mayo-based sweet and spicy sauce that reminds me of the “yummy sauce” you get at a Japanese Steakhouse. It’s pretty much amazing on everything.
While there are several amazing reviews on their default Facebook page, I’d give them a solid “reliable” on the awesome scale. I’m glad to have an easily-accessible source of simple sushi rolls, but it certainly doesn’t take the place of Kiku back in Tallahassee!
When Fair Food is Too Dicey
I had high hopes for the South Georgia Fair that came to town this past fall. Growing up, our small town of Ponchatoula was known for it’s annual Strawberry Festival–we may have been small but the festival was mighty. Small towns sometimes do these sorts of things best, you know? Unfortunately the same could not be said for ours, and the plan to splurge on some Fair Food for dinner was foiled by lack of both options and atmosphere.
So off we went, looking for somewhere else to eat, approaching 8pm on a Friday night. If there’s one complaint I have about Thomasville, it’s their tendency to roll up the streets after dark–we saw several interesting places only to see that they were in the process of closing. At 8pm. On a Friday night!
While we were a go for fair food, fast food just didn’t strike our fancy, and we finally ended up at Rick’s Oyster Bar and Grill–a place I pass daily since it’s on the way to or from the edge of town. Rick’s has a country and western/sports bar vibe, and on this night they were setting up for some live music the entire time we were there. I also noticed the business was for sale on Craigslist not 2 months ago, though it’s still open while they look for a new buyer. I say that only because I don’t know what, if anything, new management might do to the place.
Still in the “fair food” mode, we started with an appetizer sampler that got me some fried pickles (and a hitchhiking fried oyster–delicious!), while Todd took care of the mozzarella sticks and jalapeno poppers.
Todd went for a somewhat reserved hamburger steak, expecting sawmill gravy and was more than a touch disappointed that it was brown gravy instead. Which tasted straight out of a can. Once he scraped that off he said the rest was good–take what you will from that. For my part I felt like eating like a 6 year old, apparently, and ordered the bacon wrapped hotdogs with a side of coleslaw. I’ve been on a bit of a coleslaw kick for the last few months, and theirs was okay, but I’ve had better in town. While not something I’d make a habit of, the hotdogs (I skipped the buns–the breading on the fried pickles was enough of an indulgence for one night, I figured) were tasty in the moment.
I suppose they can’t all be winners, right? But don’t worry, the next one up for discussion is one of the Big Deals here in Thomasville, and it’s where we went for our anniversary dinner: Liam’s.
