LITTLE ROCK — Potato salad sushi?
That Hanaroo includes such a roll - the Little Rock ($7.50), formed with a freakish combination of not just spud salad, but cream cheese crab stick, avocado, asparagus and rice that is deep fried and topped with sweet chili sauce - among its nine-page inventory says something about its sense of adventure.
That the roll is actually strangely tasty says something about its aptitude.
Snugly situated in a shady stretch of Capitol Avenue, Hanaroo is a hidden sushi haven. It’s the kind of cozy, capable ethnic eatery that one expects from a New York neighborhood, and is delighted to discover in downtown Little Rock. Seating in the small dining space, which has minimal Asian decoration, a sushi bar and a seemingly unused covered bar in the back, is at thinly padded wooden booths and cafeteria chairs.
For a small place the menu is huge. For a huge place the menu is huge. And diverse. Not only does Hanaroo offer sushi - and lots of it, more than four full overwhelming pages of nigiri, sashimi and rolls - it serves other Japanese specialties, from salad, soup and appetizers to tempura, teriyaki and tataki, as well as assorted beef, pork, chicken and seafood dishes, and some Korean fare. And then there are desserts like cheesecake and tempura ice cream that Hanaroo lists first after lunch and drinks.
(Note, we found out while checking facts for this review, that some menu pricing would be changing this week, so figures might be different.)
While it’s long on offerings, the sometimes confusing menu can be short on description. How big is, say, the chicken teriyaki ($6.95) - lunch size or dinner size? And does it come with anything? (We’d say the slightly sweet saucy skillet of chicken sprinkled with sesame seeds is somewhere in between, yet no rice is included, so order some on the side whatever the time of day.) What is in the bento boxes ($8.50-$10) besides the main event? The menu never specifies. (It varies. Likely a salad. Maybe gyoza dumplings and a spring roll. Maybe edamame.) And servers can’t always assist because there might be a language barrier.
On several visits, we ordered not always knowing what to expect, but always feeling pleased with what arrived. Butone time, we were disappointed with what didn’t arrive: We had our heart set on Kalbi, or grilled beef short ribs, $8.95, but the restaurant was out.
As for starters, we liked the crisp, appealing Sweet Potato Tempura ($4.95), the piquant Kimchi ($2.50) and a chilly, refreshing Wakame Salad ($4.50) or sesame-studded seaweed salad over a garden salad with tart ponzu dressing. We were less impressed by the Stuffed Tomato and Cuke Salad ($7.25), featuring decent crawfish in a mild cream sauce stuffed in the aforementioned vegetables. “Enjoy the tomato as well,” encouraged the menu. We would have, had it not been anemic; there’s no excuse for pale, tasteless tomatoes this time of year.
Hanaroo’s sushi doesn’t disappoint, with creations that taste fresh and feature more fish than filler. Keep it simple with sashimi or floppy pieces of fish over rice (prices range from $3 to $4.95 for two to three pieces). Or order sushi in the form of a lunch special ($8.95) or dinner ($12.95-$16.95) or some - there are more than 50 choices - of the more elaborate rolls ($3.95-$13.95).
Of the rolls we sampled, favorites included the unusual Spicy Scallop Salad ($6.95), including a good amount of supple shellfish in a light mayonnaise sauce with avocado and lettuce; the balanced Harris ($9.50) filled with spicy crab salad and topped with cool avocado, yellow tail and sweetly sauced eel; and the feisty T.N.T. ($5.29) with tuna, yellow tail, salmon, scallion, avocado and zippy wasabi mayonnaise sauce.
For those who prefer their food fully cooked, Hanaroo serves traditional entrees ($4.95-$14.95) from Pork Fried Rice to a breaded and fried Chicken Katsu, Fried Softshell Crab to Beef Teriyaki.
“A favorite among regulars,” the menu bragged about the Beef Tataki ($8.95), a plentiful plate of thinly sliced seared steak soaked with the aformentioned ponzu sauce, and we understood why.
Sushi lunch specials - five fat pieces of nigiri and a roll or two rolls for $8.95 - are a good deal. A cup of subtly salty miso soup - or better yet this time of year, a cold salad with a tangy ginger dressing - comes with it.
A better deal might be the bento boxes, which come with miso soup. In addition to tasty, moist fish, the Salmon Teriyaki box ($8.50) contained a salad, a little spring roll, two perfectly fried gyoza and big heap of rice. The Tuna Tataki box ($10) contained tender tuna on shredded cabbage, edamame, a salad, some sashimi and a roll of choice (the Double Punch of shrimp, avocado, cucumber and hot mayonnaise sauce was good,even if the tempura-flake topping was a bit much).
Our bento boxes also contained a dollop of a white substance we couldn’t identify, so we asked our server.
Oh. More potato salad.
Hanaroo Sushi Bar & Japanese Restaurant Address: 205 W. Capitol Ave., Little Rock Hours: Lunch 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Monday-Friday, dinner 5-9:30 p.m. Monday-Saturday Cuisine: Japanese Credit cards: V, MC, D, AE Alcoholic beverages: Full bar Reservations: Large parties Wheelchair accessible: Yes Carryout: Yes (501) 301-7900
Weekend, Pages 31 on 08/19/2010