Green Eats: Scouring the Mission for Vegan Sushi
By Catherine McCulloch
Vegan sushi isn't exactly the first thing on a San Franciscan's mind when making a foodie pit stop at the Mission. But maybe it should be! Forget the frijoles y riz for just a second (good as it is), and check out these two vegan sushi joints that tickled my taste buds this week:
CHA-YA
762 Valencia St.
Chef Katsumata opened his first vegan Japanese restaurant in Berkeley about 8 years ago and has since opened another location on Valencia Street. When I asked the chef why he decided to open a completely vegan place he responded: “3.5 million people are vegetarian this is (a) big market,” he then added another reason- his wife is a strict vegan.
A more causal version of its Berkeley counterpart, the new location on Valencia has a simple and traditional décor. However, the menu is anything but simple. Katsumata gives a modern rendition to traditional Japan cuisine. Most of the dishes served in Cha-ya are original Katsumata creations. I sampled the chef’s favorite dish, Soba sushi (Instead of rice this sushi roll is made with buckwheat noodles) served with soba dipping sauce. It contains: spinach, atsuage tofu, asparagus, cucumber, pickled burdock and seasoned kampyo gourd, and shitake mushrooms. The soba noodles made the roll lighter and the combination of all the ingredients, particularly the pickled burdock, with the soba dipping sauce gave the sushi a delightfully sweet taste.
As a vegetarian, I have to confess that it is really nice to go into a restaurant and know that I can eat anything on the menu. There are absolutely no animal products in this restaurant, no meat, no dairy, no honey, nada! Having such extensive vegan options was a real treat
The prices are decent, about $10 for a roll and $4 for a small roll, the food is good and the wait won't slay you. Definitely worth revisiting.
MINAKO Organic Japanese Cuisine
2154 Mission St.
San Francisco-born Minako Hismatsu opened this hip neighborhood fusion food joint in 2000. Owing to the Japanese cook, who happens to be the owner’s mother, the restaurant retains its authentic Japanese flavor.
Though the cuisine is not completely vegetarian there is an impressive volume of vegan dishes and all of the sauces/soups are vegan. The Spicy Green sushi roll looked exceptionally tantalizing: cucumber, leafy greens, radish, sprouts, spicy miso, takuwan, avocados and sesame seeds. There is also a wide variety of vegan specials. For instance, the specials on Wednesday were: Corn Fritter tempura, Almond encrusted tofu, Yam tempura with cucumber sauce…..is your mouth watering yet? My mouth certainly was as I watched plates of beautifully presented Japanese cuisine coming out of the kitchen.
Minako, the owner, hugged customers as they came in for dinner. She seemed to know everyone eating in her restaurant by name. The pages of the menu were littered with doodles and notes that the customers had left for her. Cartoon drawings were displayed on magnets on the refrigerator. I have to applaud the owner for creating a chic hole-in-the-wall sushi place with a cozy vibe.
As I shared an organic cigarette with Minako outside her restaurant I had to ask her why she chose the Mission? She said that in San Francisco the Mission District is the only place where such a quirky little restaurant could be.
Side Notes:
Produce at Cha-ya comes from Berkeley Bow, and a produce market called Stanley Produce.
The City Discount Market Produce at Minako Organic Japanese Cuisine comes from farmers markets in the area, and ,depending upon the season, some ingredients are imported from Norway and Japan.
Other Vegan-Friendly Sushi Places in San Francisco:
HAIGHT:
Hanabi Sushi
509 Haight Street
CASTRO:
Harvest Ranch
2285 Market St.
Osaka Sushi Restaurant
460 Castro St. between Market and 18th Sts.
FINANCIAL DISTRICT:
Medicine Eaststation
181 Sutter Street
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