Mix and Match Sushi Heaven
TLDR:
Brilliant new Japanese fusion sushi bar on Swords Main Street that brings a really nice different, exciting cuisine to an area littered with the 'same ol same ol'. Huge portions, extremely high standard of food, great staff, lovely venue, very fair prices+a team of brilliant sushi chefs,+lovely waiting staff. Fresh+exciting, definitely worth a trip to.
Unabridged:
Swords is finally home to a Japanese restaurant, something the area was sorely lacking.
For those who know J2 Sushi in Dublin City, this is a welcome treat,+for those who do not, this new Japanese fusion restaurant in Swords will be a pleasant surprise.
BF+I opted to go for a later dinner on Thursday evening, having discovered that the restaurant was up+running after a few weeks of seeing the premises being fitted out. Upon arrival, I knew we had made a good call.
The restaurant was immaculate, the interior bright+unfussy,clearly inspired by Japan. Nice sized tables, well placed with ample space to allow customers have a sense of privacy, and the bathrooms were extremely generously sized with very mod cons. Music was great+not too loud, which I really appreciate as I am partially deaf.
The staff were attentive -we later on discovered we were actually their FIRST customers. With that in mind, I think it's important to stress just how welcoming but not over eager the staff were, something that's very important for a new business or franchise. Too 'in your face' can be quite uncomfortable, so it was lovely to encounter a business where the staff had a brilliant balance of being attentive but also actually leave you alone with your friends,+leaving you to enjoy your meal. And what a meal it was!
We opted for miso soup, a vegetarian bento box (inc another miso), a rainbow roll, a volcano roll, a prawn monster roll, an Alaska roll and a J2 daily special, 'Sushi on Fire', which happily for me was spicy tuna (something J2 do brilliantly).
Unfortunately Yelp is currently acting up so I will have to upload photos later on but for the moment, allow a 1000 words try to convey what the photos would have.
The miso.
Both bowls of miso soup were generously filled+one of the most authentic tasting ones I have had. There was a lot of tofu+scallions, the taste had a perfect umami flavour well rounded+'layered' with not too much salt. Far superior to any in Dublin City Centre, such as 'The Drunken Fish' or 'Sushi King'. 5 stars.
The veggie bento included perfectly cooked vegetable tempura, generous portions of asparagus, sweet potato+aubergine, which was a very welcome change from the typical battered carrots+broccoli you'd get in other restaurants. Gyoza were perfectly cooked, crispy- not too oily- much enjoyed. There was no wakame (seaweed) salad, but this could possibly be to ensure no one gets a 'culture shock' when they 1st try J2. BF really enjoyed the bento box+it was VERY good value (€12) for what you got.
Rainbow roll was brilliant, I don't think I have ever been served such a generous portion of salmon or tuna in previous restaurants. The chefs use extremely high quality sushi grade fish (but don't make the customer fork out crazy money for the privilege!). The avocado in the roll was also perfect, not too ripe+not underripe, just a perfect creamy but still somewhat firm texture,worked brilliantly with the variations of fish we can treated to. 5 stars.
Volcano roll was actually an accidental order I had mixed it up with the prawn monster roll, but the staff were understanding about it+even the chef himself had popped out to us to find out what roll I had confused it with. Really friendly+genuinely wanted to help solve the mystery of what I had meant to order. Not at all intimidating like you'd expect when a chef goes to your table! He helped me figure out that I had been thinking of the prawn monster roll+was very kind throughout.
Volcano roll- Prawn tempura, crab meat+avocado sushi topped with grilled eel-turned out to be a happy accident of an order,+the first time I have EVER enjoyed eel. The flavours worked brilliantly+again, generous portions+unbelievably high standard. I would recommend it if you're feeling adventurous, somewhat spicy sauce on top but this doesn't detract from the flavour+ ties everything in perfectly,+the avocado offsets the spiciness of the sauce.
The prawn monster roll - volcano but with cucumber+prawn in place of avocado- freshness and coolness of the cucumber worked brilliantly with the spicy sauce, the contrast between the crispiness of the prawn tempura against the soft prawn topping was brilliant; the initial softness of the shelled prawn giving way to a still warm 'sinful' deep fried version of itself ensuring every bite was followed by an internal 'mmm!' of delight. 2nd favourite thing on the menu.
Word count won't allow me say more! EVERYTHING we had was just bloody fabulous! (get the 'Sushi on Fire!'. read more