sushi is my comfort food- i miss home

i've always been independent. i moved away from home at the age of 17 and over the years, i've lived in various places. from california to new york city, and the gambia to western china.

near or far, wherever i moved to, no matter what.... i always found myself feeling like a part of my heart still remained at home.
kauai is where my heart remains. i grew up on this beautiful island in the middle of the pacific.
13 years since i first moved off of the island, i still feel myself dealing with waves of homesickness from time to time.

i miss my ohana. i miss my rock in the middle of the sea. i miss the lush mountains. i miss the beautiful flowers. i miss calling everyone "aunty" and "uncle."

i miss the beach. i miss the fresh papayas for breakfast. i even miss the annoying wild chickens that used to wake me up at 5 in the morning!

out of everything i miss about kauai, i especially miss my dad's sushi.

my dad's sushi deluxe platter.

my dad is a sushi chef. he owns and runs a restaurant on kauai. he takes pride in his sushi and has been doing this all his life. he left his home in hiroshima when he was just a teenager, to become an apprentice for a chef in osaka. miles away from his family, he studied the art of japanese kaiseki and learned how to make sushi. 

whenever i feel home sick, i try to comfort myself by eating sushi. of course, my dad's sushi will always be the best to me. nothing else out there can compare. 

tonight just to feel closer to home...

t and i went to our usual sushi place in arlington.

endo sushi is run by endo-san, a japanese man i have gotten to know over the years. i always greet and chat to him in japanese. i think he appreciates someone that speaks his mother tongue. 

he reminds me alot of my dad. 

endo-san is a hard worker just like my dad. both about the same age, and immigrated to the USA about the same time. endo san to washington dc, where he met his wife. my dad to hawaii, where he met my mom. endo-san also has a daughter, except she is a bit younger than me.  

t and i like going to endo sushi because of the service and the no-frill sushi they serve. the sushi isn't overpriced and it is delicious. we usually order ala carte sushi and enjoy them with a hot cup of ocha (green tea).

check out endo sushi in arlington and say "konichiwa" to endo-san.

...and if you do make a trip out to kauai, say hi to my dad at sushi katsu japanese restaurant.

-mai

mishka rating:

Endo-san and his team are sweet and so nice. The sushi is fresh and authentic. You know it's a good sushi place when they cook their own egg omelette for their sushi and the rice is not too firm, not too soft.