Worthington: Otani Sushi

Otani Sushi is apparently a legend in Columbus.

Tucked away in the outskirts of Worthington, you wouldn't think that Otani was anything special.  I actually was quite afraid to try it...sushi in an office building, really?

Anyway, Friday night I headed up to Otani with some friends. Surprisingly, the parking lot was pretty full; I guess there is quite the loyal following for Otani as there are for most restaurants in town.  

Um, may I just say, that the most amazing thing about Otani is? KARAOKE!

Wednesday through Saturday, Otani has karaoke in its front bar.  I was a little skeptical at first, but after a saketini, I was  brave enough to belt out Billie Jean and bust out my sweetest Michael Jackson dance moves.  The song book is pretty extensive at Otani as people were singing songs from country to Destiny's Child.

We sat down at a cute little booth and ordered an appetizer: potstickers.  Potstickers are pretty standard fare at Asian restaurants.  Some steamed, some seared, some vegetarian, some filled with meats I can't eat, these gyoza were actually pretty tasty and set the tone for the meal.  Small, great searing on the outside, and not greasy, these potstickers were filled with pork and different spices.  The dipping sauce was also equally amazing, and it wasn't salty at all. Definitely would recommend these.

Miso Soup: is miso soup the way to judge a sushi house? it may be so.  And I must say, Otani's miso soup was really tasty.  A lot of places have very salty miso soup which is rage filling.  Especially because I've been trying to watch my salt intake.  And, there are extra bits of seaweed in it which is very tasty to me.  Check plus for Otani's miso soup!

Sushi: lately, my number one spot has been Kooma, in the Arena District.  The Miahuru roll is phenomenal, you should definitely go try it.   Anyway, last night at Otani,we stuck to the basics: Spicy Tuna roll, shrimp tempura roll, Philly roll, and California roll.  I feel that those rolls are good standards to judge a sushi restaurant by.  I mean, if it's sold at Kroger, then it's a pretty universal roll.

The rolls were pretty small, actually.  Although, they were a nice change from Haiku's collassal rolls that break after one bite from your chopsticks.  The spicy tuna rolls had some funky tasting sauce though. Check minus for the spicy mayo.  But the philly rolls were really tasty.  

Nigiri: nigiri is really a nice change from the rolled sushi.  especially for people that really do enjoy fish, but not enough to take the plunge of sashimi.  Otani offered a nigiri dinner with three types of fish: tuna, salmon, and whitefish.

This is the first restaurant that I have seen lemon slices next to the salmon.  It definitely added a nice complement to the salmon.  But the real deal on this plate was the tuna.  Um, delicious, fatty, toro tuna. Beautiful and pink.  So tasty.  I would back just to get pieces of this fish.

CONCLUSION:  I am definitely going back to Otani and I hope that my friends will join me on stage for karaoke.