By Anni Caporuscio

The Bushido and the Butter Me Up rolls are for ahi lovers. The Bushido, topped with dried smoked fish flakes, is a bit spicy, but still keeps it cool due to the ginger-marinated ahi. The Butter Me Up has salmon on the top, torched butter drizzling down the roll, and is filled with warm and sweet mac nut-crusted ahi.

The Bushido and the Butter Me Up rolls are for ahi lovers. The Bushido, topped with dried smoked fish flakes, is a bit spicy, but still keeps it cool due to the ginger-marinated ahi. The Butter Me Up has salmon on the top, torched butter drizzling down the roll, and is filled with warm and sweet mac nut-crusted ahi.

Let’s be honest. Japanese food, to the uninitiated, is a mysterious event.

It’s beautiful, almost heartbreakingly so, and then you chomp it all up but you don’t really know what it is.

And for my whole life I’ve been OK with that.

I eat for color and texture and temperature. I applaud the showmanship of the chef with his clever use of knife and torch. I test my own dexterity with chopsticks, making little dangerous decisions about how to get the food actually into my mouth.

It’s a full-sensory visceral experience. A sushi night has everything: danger, mystery, beauty, flare.

Sushi Bushido arranged an exquisite meal for us, proving their flexibility, from cooked fish to raw sashimi layered into roses — I didn’t even know that was possible — and savoir-faire with flavor.

Every plate contained opposite combinations of tastes that kept me guessing. I was impressed. It is a learning experience for the beginner, but it’s not pedestrian at all — they offer a sexy and full meal, a must-try for light, healthy yet complex, summer dining.

Sushi Bushido is at the Dragon Building in Old Kapa‘a Town, at 4504 Kukui Street. They’re open for dinner every night, and for lunch Monday to Friday from 2 to 5 p.m. Live music is on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights.

Visit www.sushibushido.com or call 822-0664 for more information.

  • Anni Caporuscio is a food lover and can be found daily at her Kapa‘a business, Small Town Coffee.
Sushi Bushido owner Victor Heresa, right, and manager Grant Holcomb invite guests to experience a non-traditional setting and unique dining experience. ‘Bushido is a family restaurant and the customers are our extended family,’ Holcomb said. ‘Japanese culture can be austere, but we achieve an intimacy with our service and atmosphere.’
The Potato Shrimp is one of their most popular appetizers. String potatoes wrapped around shrimp and drizzled with wasabi aioli produce different textures and temperatures. Success!
Kama Sutra and Nigori Momo are opposites. Kama Sutra, made with vodka, is tart and sweet. Nigori Momo is a fusion cocktail using unfiltered sake, DeKuyper Peach and fruit juices, making a gentle and mild cocktail.
The Gyoza comes with delicious dipping sauces.
The Bushido and the Butter Me Up rolls are for ahi lovers. The Bushido, topped with dried smoked fish flakes, is a bit spicy, but still keeps it cool due to the ginger-marinated ahi. The Butter Me Up has salmon on the top, torched butter drizzling down the roll, and is filled with warm and sweet mac nut-crusted ahi.
The Bushido and the Butter Me Up rolls are for ahi lovers. The Bushido, topped with dried smoked fish flakes, is a bit spicy, but still keeps it cool due to the ginger-marinated ahi. The Butter Me Up has salmon on the top, torched butter drizzling down the roll, and is filled with warm and sweet mac nut-crusted ahi.
The Bushido Boat is an off-menu item served as a showpiece for variety. It has something for everyone, served during weekend specials and events. Comes with tempura shrimp and veggies, grilled ahi, California roll and sashimi roses.
Sashimi roses are made with lightly torched salmon, ahi and super white tuna. You might think that fish roses aren’t that romantic, but I will disagree forever, be still my beating heart.
The Hana Hou, a deep fried green tea ice cream, coated in pound cake and rolled in panko, is a juxtaposition — fried and ice. And it totally works!

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