Kyoto - 3 Turkeys

One of my big worries when we moved to Cincy from Boston was how long I could go without seafood - primarily sushi.  I had come to crave it weekly in Boston and was sure that there would be no restaurant that had sushi grade fish.  I mean it's Ohio...a Landlocked state.  However, every time I turn around I am hearing of another Thai/Sushi eatery popping up.  My friends had kept recommending that I try out Kyoto in Mason but my prejudices held me back up until last month.  Since going last month with a good friend I have been 4 more times - most recently taking a client to lunch.  


Walking into the restaurnt it feels very comfortable - similar to every other sushi joint I've visited.  We are seated quickly and given both the lunch menu and sushi menu.  The one thing with there menu is there are TOO many choices.  I compared it to NYC.  All of my friends up there haven't really settled down (dated for more than 6 months) except for one.  I credit this to the fact that there are millions of people living on that island so the mentality is there is always a better "fish" rigiht around the corner.  I have trouble comitting to any rolls at Kyoto.  All of them sound good but also very similar to one anohter. This caused the waitress a lot of distress...she came no less than 5 times to check on us.  We hadn't even picked it up by the 3rd time.  She was a bit overly attentive for my taste. 


We decided to go for the Dragon, Rainbow, Fusion and Futomaki rolls.  We instantly had a salad and bowl of miso soup.  I don't really like the salad but the miso soup is decent.  I'd like to see more seaweed and tofu along with some more seasoning.  The rolls is really what keeps me coming back.  With no help from our waitress (she said she was new and had no idea which roll was which) we figured it all out on our own.  The Futomaki and Fusion rolls were almost the exact same - those I couldn't tell a differnece.  Both were fried in tempura.  The best roll there is the Dragon - it's shrimp tempura, cucumber, eel, eel sauce and avocado.  It reminds me of the "Alligator" which I got all the time in Boston (no place around here makes it).  The biggest differnece is the lack of tempora flakes on top.  You could easily have them add it to the roll if you wanted.  I personally think it makes the roll.  


The rolls were all very large...for those of you that have been to Dancing Wasabi these rolls put those to shame.  They are generous chunks of fish.  Each piece barely fit into my mouth.  I had to cover my mouth with my napkin every bit I took since I was with a client. 


The House Special rolls (Rainbow & Dragon) are the more expenisve ($8+) but the other rolls are usually part of their Half Price or Happy Hour specials.  Our lunch topped out at $37 before tip.  I will definitely keep coming back.  

Score: 34 points

Ambiance (2), Tastiness of Dishes (8), Menu (3), Drink Selection (3), Cost (7), Accessibility (4), Service (4), Location (3)