Restaurant: Wasabi Japanese Steakhouse and Seafood, Charleston, South Carolina
This past weekend, I found myself enjoying my time in South Carolina. Not just anywhere though…but the beautiful and historic city of Charleston. I was going there to run in the Charleston Marathon…and then explore with Cathy (my roommate), and my friends Amanda (roomie’s sister) and Richie (Amanda’s hubby). Now, I’ve never been to Charleston, South Carolina…but this is Amanda and Richie’s favorite place to spend their time. So when they have time…this is their stomping grounds. When they originally heard that I was running the Charleston Marathon, they were very helpful in suggesting things to do while in Charleston. And shortly after leaving their home, Richie called and said they just booked a room at the resort and would be going with us. I was elated. Nothing like going somewhere with people who know the city. I was so excited.
So, we arrived late on Friday night and had to do a bunch of pre-race stuff. Saturday I ran the marathon. Afterwards, I usually can’t stand to stomach anything for a little while. My insides are just all messed up. I mean, come on, running over 26.2 miles will do that to you. So, I went back to the hotel, showered, and then Amanda came over. We settled in as I gave some Greek yogurt a try (for the protein). That stayed down…so I knew I could safely do something for lunch…as long as it was easy to digest and not too heavy.
We had mentioned sushi…and that sounded like something I could handle. And, literally just across the street and up a block was the place we went for said sushi…Wasabi!
We stepped inside and were greeted by the hostess, who I think at the time was unwrapping a snack in the nearby closet. She apologized and picked up three menus, carrying them over to a booth near a window that overlooked the street. We settled into the table and began to peruse said menu. I am BIG on vegetarian sushi. Cathy…not liking much fish in sushi was also looking at vegetarian options. Amanda…she was just trying to decide on what classic roll to get. She’s the non-vegetarian traditionalist who isn’t afraid of some fish in her roll. I asked how many rolls we were getting. Amanda, the regular, said she usually got two. So, I began making decisions based off of that. But the more they talked, the more it sounded like everyone was getting one roll. And Cathy seemed interested in the same one as me. HA! Knew that was going to happen.
Then, Amanda came up with a great suggestion…we could all get one roll each and then split the roll Cathy wanted to try three ways. Amanda is brilliant like that, for real. So, when our waiter returned and was prepared to take our order, we had an idea of what we wanted.
Amanda chose between the two she was eying and ended up ordering the California Roll ($5.00). With the decision made to order an extra roll of the one I had my heart set on, Cathy went off the beaten path and ordered the Calamari Tempura Roll ($6.00). As for me…I went with the Avocado Maki Roll ($5.00). Then, we ordered a second Avocado Maki Roll to split between the three of us. Order was in…now we just sort of sat at our booth and talked about the city and what Amanda had in store for us.
Pretty soon, our sushi rolls were arriving. And we were more than happy to dig in. There was nothing stand-out or noteworthy of this sushi just looking at it. It was perfectly rolled nori, surrounding perfectly packed rice and our filling. Cathy commented that her calamari was giving her the finger…so she set out to devour it before it could insult her further. HA! That’s what happens when your food has appendages and the like. By the steady stream of “Mmmm”…we definitely enjoyed what we were having.
I must say…the 8 slices of the Avocado Maki Roll I had from Wasabi Japanese Steakhouse and Seafood were absolutely delicious. A little creamy with the fullness of the rice and the texture of the nori. Mmmm…seriously good. I topped each of my slices of with some of the pickled ginger and a touch of the wasabi offered on the side of the plate. It was sheer perfection in roll form. Honestly…amazing. I mean…nothing that any other good sushi place couldn’t do…but it had been forever since I had sushi…and this settled perfectly into my marathon stomach. Lots of flavor and great texture. The avocado was perfectly ripe. It was a heavenly slice of sushi roll for sure.
I was so happy with this place. Amanda had recommended it because it was gluten-free friendly. And it left me wanting to go back for more. I, sadly, didn’t have enough time this time around, but when I return…it will definitely be a stop. If you’re visiting Charleston, South Carolina…and you love sushi…go and try Wasabi Japanese Steakhouse and Seafood!! Simple food, but done really, really well!
The Celiathlete 