Sushiyaki serves equal measures of casual comfort, solid Japanese fare

It wasn't too long ago that sushi was a rare commodity, something created by a select few men who had been initiated into the secretive ranks of sushi chefdom.

Nowadays, sushi bars are as ubiquitous as sports bars and coffee shops. Many, in fact, have supplanted beer and burger joints as the preferred neighborhood hangout.

Sushiyaki, in downtown Cape Coral, is a prime example of this new breed of sushi bar. Families arrive in vans and pickups. Employees from nearby businesses walk over for a quick bite. Singles linger at the sushi bar talking with the female chef over sushi and sake.

It's a neat and modest place with a select few accoutrements, a framed print here, a Maneki Neko (lucky cat) statue there. A television and large fish tank near the bar are the most prominent pieces of décor. The management focuses more on food and function, a fact brought home by the array of sushi boats arrayed attractively on shelves behind the bar.

On the beverage menu, there are four white and six red wines available as well as hot sake and about half a dozen cold varieties as well as an assortment of beers. There's nothing remarkable in the mix, which isn't surprising in a small, modest establishment of this sort.

PHOTO KAREN FELDMAN

As the name suggests, the menu is divided between sushi and classic hot Japanese dishes such as teriyaki, sukiyaki, tempura and katsu.

The sushi is an entertaining mix. There are the traditional items, such as maguro, egg or scallop nigiri and familiar rolls such as California and volcano. Sushi items are also available as sashimi, which is the protein minus the rice.

Then there are the signature rolls such as the Bonita (tuna, avocado, cucumber and smelt roe), the Naples (salmon, yellowtail, green onion and asparagus) and the Las Vegas (crabmeat, mayo, hot sauce and smelt roe).

To aid those less familiar with the cuisine, items that contain cooked fish are marked on the menu with a symbol resembling a lightning bolt.

We sampled the tuna sushi and two rolls, the Crunch and the Dragon. Our selections arrived artfully arranged on a small wooden sushi boat along with the requisite pickled ginger and wasabi.

PHOTO KAREN FELDMAN A mound of tempura features crisp shrimp and a variety of vegetables served with a sweet and salty sauce.

The sushi tuna was fresh and tender, with a fresh-from-the-sea flavor but no fishy taste or aroma. The Crunch roll contained smoked salmon, green onion, crabmeat and cucumber, the crunch provided by the smelt roe and tempura flakes with which it was topped. The Dragon consisted of fried shrimp, asparagus and avocado wrapped in rice and seaweed then topped with a dollop of spicy mayo.

Everything tasted as good as it looked, although the wasabi could have been a few degrees hotter.

Cooked entrees come with soup and salad. The miso soup was soothing and smooth, the broth flavorful and not too salty, with bits of seaweed and tofu floating about. The salad consisted of lettuce, carrots and red cabbage topped with a ginger dressing. On this occasion, the dressing was unbalanced; the vinegar so pronounced that the ginger was barely discernible. (On a previous visit, the dressing was much better.)

PHOTO KAREN FELDMAN The small restaurant's sign shines bright along Cape Coral Parkway.

An entrée of shrimp tempura contained several good-sized shrimp and an assortment of fried vegetables, all of which were crisp and properly cooked. The breading, however, was bland. The salty-sweet tempura sauce helped make up for the lackluster breading.

The beef teriyaki contained sliced beef cooked to a juicy medium-rare, topped with a well-balanced teriyaki sauce and served with white rice and vegetables. The meat's flavor was enhanced by the sauce.

It was a slow night and no one rushed us through our meal. Courses came out at a leisurely pace designed to allow us to enjoy each one at our own pace. It also allowed me to watch as people came and went. There was a bouncer from the bar next door (easy to tell from his size and the shirt that had SECURITY emblazoned on the back) who sat at the bar for a snack and a chat with the sushi chef. A man and woman shared sushi at the bar. A couple with two young daughters occupied another table and all appeared to be enjoying their meals. A few more people stopped in to pick up takeout orders and, judging by the conversation, appeared to know the staff.

The lone server took good care of us, making sure we liked what she served, keeping our water glasses full and cheerfully cleaning up and replacing a spilled glass of wine.

It was, in all respects, a pleasant, lowkey dinner, just right for a hot summer night. Although it's a bit removed from the neighborhood in which I live, the odds are good that I'll be finding my way to Sushiyaki again when I find myself yearning for well-prepared sushi without pretensions or high prices.