Finding a good sushi provider is an important foodie goal. When it goes wrong, it goes very wrong indeed. Luckily in Gungahlin, Mr Sushi will sort you out for all your sushi related needs. I have been visiting for years and it is a great venue for when you want a quick and cheap, but super healthy lunch. Weirdly there are also franchises in Darwin, which seems a bit random. So what is on offer? Well despite what you may have heard, sushi is not limited to raw fish and frankly there is something to suit everyone’s tastes.
Firstly there is a large selection of sushi rolls, ranging from at their simplest, a plain avocado roll, to the indulgent, such as the special california roll comprising avocado, caviar, crab and mayonnaise. Crispy and crunchy cooked versions include soft shell crab, tempura prawn and chicken schnitzel. Marinated meats include chicken teriyaki and peking duck. Of course there is a huge range of vegetarian versions including tofu and, my personal favourite, seaweed salad. I know it doesn’t sound appetising but seaweed salad (also known as wakame) is a spicy gem that you should definitely try. It is also super good for you. The sushi rolls are the perfect on-the-go lunch and a bargain at around the $3 mark each.
You can also get extras such as inari, which are deep fried tofu purses, filled with rice and either lobster, squid, crab or octopus salad. Nigiri consists of a small ball of rice, smeared with wasabi paste and topped with grilled salmon, eel or scallops. The inari and nigiri are a bargain at $2.20 each.
Sashimi is what most people think of when they think of sushi. The ingredients are simple, rice and raw fish, so there is little room to hide. It requires amazingly fresh and high quality seafood handled by deft hands. Variation is produced by using different types of fish, such as salmon, tuna or kingfish. You can purchase a sashimi set (at around the $9 mark), or mix it up with the cooked sushi in a Bento box, which varies between $9-$16.
Personally I love Bento boxes because I like to eat all the food and they provide a great selection of different tastes and textures. They are essentially the Japanese version of a lunchbox, albeit much fancier than your typical vegemite sandwich. My favourite is the Tobiko sushi box, with fresh salmon, caviar, avocado, mayonnaise and cucumber. I usually get this with a side of seaweed inari and a miso soup. My kids will happily munch away on a crispy chicken sushi roll. What can be safer with kids than chicken and rice? They even love unwrapping the seaweed coating and eating it by itself.
Mr Sushi provides a great selection of Japanese sushi at a reasonable price. This is food that is not only delicious and but good for you. Get it in your belly!
Mr Sushi
Hibberson St, Gungahlin ACT 2912
Open 8 am – 9 pm seven days a week
(02) 6262 4303
Mrsushi.com.au