The Other Great Entertainer
Fleeing the michaeljacksonmainstreammedia, I ducked into Ichiriki on Bloor East hoping to regain a measure of serenity.
And then I met the Other Entertainer.
His name is Riki. He’s the puckish fast-talking owner of Ichiriki who presides over the sushi bar.
Now I’d always thought a sushi chef was a monk dedicated to a lifetime calling. But then I’m a novice, preferring crunchy sushi (deep fried soft shell crab and Kewpie (mayo(.
Only when I decided to cut down on carbs was my consciousness raised about the culture of raw fish.
I was getting waterlogged by cold fish as I ate my way round the tourist nexus of Yonge and Bloor. Then I I hit on Ichiriki’s fifteen buck sashmi plate and Immediately recognized superior quality: salmon, tuna, scallop – fresh and clean tasting.
I wanted to know more, I needed a Yoda to take me further. Spotting Riki entertaining customers at the bar, I knew I’d found him.
Next time I went straight to the bar. Riki was absorbed. His hands were hovering like butterflies over a minute piece of pink fish which was subsequently shaved into a curl by his samurai sword of a knife.
I have to know his provenance. Yes, he’s Japanese. “Did you know there are 700 sushi bars in Toronto and only FIVE Japanese chefs.” He’s a 28 year veteran, trained with the master Kaji (Sushi Kaji 860 The Queensway).
Finally is the fish fresh or frozen?
It’s a loaded question because most fish is flash frozen at sea and connoissieurs say flash freezing diminishes the taste. Some sushi chefs tell me all their fish is fresh even though it often doesn’t taste like it.
But once I taste Riki’s Big Eye from Hawaii I believe it’s fresh. Its glossy and rich, springs back from the prod of the chopstick. No Bluefin ,superfatty Toro however. Too pricey at $75 a lb. He doesn’t have Red Snapper either. Again, too pricey.
Riki riffs on about the fish. Later I learn from Max, my Japanophile friend, that this is sushi protocol. “Sushi chefs are 40 % cooking and 60% talking.”
The fish is a slippery customer. The sushi chef doesn’t always know what’s going to be available so he must weave a story about what he has now and what he may have later, why the Bonito is sometimes a mackerel and sometimes a skipjack tuna. Max gets quite carried away about the poetic quality of raw fish and begins to sound like Riki.
I get the picture. Eating raw fish isn’t logical, it’s a romance. And you’ve got to trust your chef.
Riki hums on about the sea bream sometimes called sea bass. He chuckles at the vagaries of fish naming. I pick up a little slice find it delightfully delicious.
I’m distracted by the amazing spiciness of the ginger. Same goes for the Wasabi which Riki squeezes from a bag imported from Japan.
This evening he expects new fish, horse mackerel, perhaps herring.
I return later and find two fans from New York sitting at the bar laughing along with Riki and letting him dictate their dinner. Best place in Toronto, they say. Riki prepares a plate of horse mackerel, little pink curls with chopped spring onions $9 for 4 pieces. But I thought mackerel had to be preserved in vinegar because it goes off so quickly. No, that’s the other mackerel which is dun coloured and thickset. Good too. ($8)
Better still Riki drops a squiggle of yellow chrome pigment on the plate. It’s fresh sea urchin ($13) from Chile and melts in the mouth. Chopped Giant Clam ($14) is chewy cartilege. Finally, two sublime big eye tuna sushi ($6) draped over the softest rice, the kind you can actually cut with your teeth.
I invite Max for my last dinner at Ichiriki. He is at first skeptical. Once again, two fans are at the bar cheering Riki’s nuanced narrative. They come here every week because they trust Riki.
We eat big sardines ($8) lightly vinegared, meaty yellowtail ($13), big eye tuna, ($11) more sea urchins. After a duet in Japanese with Riki, Max says this is the best sashimi/sushi he’s eaten in Toronto.
A great eating week and I didn’t put on a pound.
***Ichiriki I120 Bloor St. E. (at Church St.) 416-923-2997. Wheel chair accessible. Not noisy. Food for two plus tax: $60
