Try some food to make you smile at YO! Sushi
As a self-confessed fan of YO! Sushi, I felt it best to take along a non-biased sushi virgin to help me taste test the latest restaurant to arrive in Princesshay.
Ever since we published the news that YO! Sushi would be opening in Bedford Square on 22nd November, there was a flurry of excitement and anticipation both on Twitter and The Exeter Daily website. Many have experienced the brand before in places such as London's Paddington Station, Bristol Cribbs Causeway and Milsom Place in Bath, and so it is testament to the perception of Exeter as a city worthy of investment that we can now enjoy it on our doorstep too.
People who already love YO! Sushi will not be disappointed, however, I am pleased to report that my companion, who was a self-confessed sushi virgin and had always shied away from sushi in the past, was as impressed as I was with the wide choice of dishes on the menu, both hot and cold, meat and seafood and vegetarian.
On our server, Helen's, recommendation, we started off with the Miso soup - a deliciously warming but at the same time cleansing dish with a sprinkling of chopped spring onions on top to add a touch of crunch - and at only 56 kcal a bowl, you can't go far wrong. We also ordered a jasmine tea, which acted as a perfect palate cleanser between each of the dishes and gets refilled as many times as desired.
So what next? No matter where you sit in the restaurant, there is a constant stream of tempting dishes chugging along beside you on the conveyor belt, all super fresh due to the stringent health and safety standards YO! Sushi insists upon - no dish is on the belt for more than two hours. And if you don't fancy the look of anything, just don't pick it up - it's as simple as that.
From the conveyor belt we chose Pumpkin Korroke (similar to a pea fritter but with a sweet, mildly spiced pumpkin filling), Vegetable Gyozo (a tasty vegetarian dumpling with soy and vinegar sauce), Chicken Katsu (crispy fried chicken in Japanese bread crumbs, with a mildly spiced fruity sauce) and Prawn Korroke (crispy Japanese breaded prawn and potato croquettes with kimchee mayonnaise sauce). All were delicious, but the Pumpkin Korroke was a particular delight.
The selection of food was very good on the conveyor belt stocked with a constant supply of a range of dishes both hot and cold as well as of the sweet variety - in other branches I have sometimes had to wait for a while before the perfect dish came my way - but you can also order dishes to be cooked from fresh if something appeals on the menu.
We ordered Duck Gyozo (tasty morsels of what in essence are duck dumplings with moromi miso sauce), prawn Katsu curry (which comes with a sweet, sticky mild curry sauce), Beef Tataki (a beautiful beef dish with rare beef seared on the outside and served with a sweet coriander dressing and cucumber) and the Sesame seared salmon (we chose this because the coriander tuna wasn't available, but I'm glad we did, as it is a super fresh dish using quality Scottish salmon with the lightest of seasoning to ensure the fish's natural flavour comes through).
The absolute stars of the main dishes for my guest and I were the totally irresistible Hairy prawns (my companion's favourite dish), which are wrapped in kadaifi pastry (vaguely similar to Greek baklava) with wasabi mayonnaise, and the soft shell crab hand roll (my favourite): smoky-flavoured tempura fried soft shell crab, with rocket, pickled radish, yuzu tobiko and sweet chilli mayonnaise all wrapped up in a seaweed (nori) cone.
I have never been tempted by the desserts in the past, but in the name of research we felt we better try them out, and we were both pleasantly surprised. The Mochi - soft Japanese rice cake ball with a sweet filling - I have to say were rather strange. My companion wasn't keen, but after I had got over the slightly odd texture, I actually enjoyed them. The Dorayaki - Japanese pancake with custard filling and raspberry sauce - also surprised me by how much I liked them. However, it was the chocolate ganache cake - layered chocolate mousse and ganache with a crunchy meringue centre - that was the piece de resistance, leaving us speechless, and what is really surprising is that the dish is only 177 calories!
The interior of the Exeter branch of YO! Sushi is one of the best I have seen, with a fresh, modern look that makes you feel you could well be in Tokyo or transports you instantly to the inside of a Japanese sushi bar. You can either sit at the bar on stools, watching the action in the kitchen, or in smart new booths reminiscent of a 1950s diner.
We spoke to YO! Sushi Exeter's restaurant manager Richard Goldsmith about how things have gone so far. "We have been extremely busy ever since we opened. There is usually a lull after the first couple of weeks, but that has not happened yet. We currently have 29 staff, but we'll have to increase our level of staffing at the rate we're going, possibly to as many as 40."
Our server Helen was brilliant, enthusiastic and very knowledgeable about each of the dishes on the menu. Having dabbled with life in London, Helen has returned to her routes in Exeter and is loving her new role. Her recommendations were spot on, which shows what good training each of the staff members receive. Each dish is colour coded to allow you to tot up exactly how much you are spending, but beware, as it is easy to get carried away with all the tempting treats on offer. Blue Monday offers the perfect opportunity to try out the restaurant, with all conveyor belt plates charged at the price of £2.40.
So, what are you waiting for, try it out for yourselves and let us know what you think about YO! Sushi (or any other Exeter eating establishment ) by posting a review at http://www.theexeterdaily.co.uk/node/add/article
For more information about YO! Sushi Exeter visit YoSushi.com
