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I've been waiting for this day to come. The raw bar at Pok is open! I saw that some friends of mine had gone opening night and they said I HAVE to go. I was leaving for my Iceland trip that Friday and my schedule was quite hectic. But I thought, "I must make this happen!!!!" :P So I contacted the chef, Chef Jimmy Park, the next day and asked if the raw bar is open daily. He told me it's open for lunch and dinner, 7 days a week! Then he said to let him know when I wanted to come in and he'll order some special fish. Um, YES PLEASE!!! I was getting REALLY excited. So we scheduled for a Wednesday night at 6PM. I invited a friend to go with me. I knew she would totally appreciate this experience. Plus it's always more fun to dine with a friend. :)
Pok the Raw Bar
3699 McKinney Ave #306
Dallas, TX 75204
(214) 484-1139
www.poktherawbar.com
Price (for the raw bar): Varies
We arrived at 6PM and the place was quieter than I'm used to. I generally go during the lunch rush. It was nice... we had 2 seats open for us at the raw bar. It is only a 6 seater, y'all, so you gotta go early! There was already another couple there and a few minutes later, 2 more guys showed up. One turned out to be a blogger as well! @eatstyledallas writes about food, fashion, and lifestyle. I've definitely seen many of his posts on Instagram. The 4 of us hit it off and that made the dinner all the more merrier!
Chef Jimmy personally made every piece of food for us that evening. It was wonderful to see him work, the passion, and to be able to talk to him throughout the meal. He's a really fun guy and his love for his craft really shines through. We were all doing the omakase (or "chef's choice") so our fate was in his hands. Honestly, I think all of us would happily eat anything he put in front of us, no questions asked. :P
We started with some Edamame. This was served cold, sprinkled with a little salt. A lot of places normally serve it warm, but the cold temp actually was quite refreshing. The edamame were big and plump. It was a good snack in between the different courses.
Let's jump right in shall we? I have to apologize in advance if I misspell anything or mis-wrote my notes. I tried to take everything down as he was introducing them.
Hiramasa with Serrano (baby yellowtail). Gorgeous dish. It was fun watching Chef Jimmy assemble it. He has a very delicate hand. He advised us to either the berry before or after the dish. It is sweet and will cleanse the palate. I opted for after. The fish was so fresh and tender. I loved the heat from the serranos. And the berry was definitely a refreshing finish.
Yellowfin Tuna from Kauai?, Hawaii. Chef Jimmy aged this tuna for 8 days. Apparently fish can be too "young", I had no idea! But the aging process creates more depth in both the color and flavor. It was fantastic as well. We had several tuna preparations and it only got better from here.
Snapper with Asian Pear and Ume Salsa. Ume is Japanese Plum. I can't say I've ever had it in salsa form. hehe. This was a cute little bite. The nugget of pear wrapped in the middle was a nice surprise. The crunch and sweetness paired with the tender fish and ume worked together so well. I've definitely never had anything like this before.
Salmon Belly (with 3 year aged soy sauce; topped with sesame seeds). I love me some salmon. That's probably why this was one of my favorite bites. It was so buttery and melted in your mouth. And the sesame seeds brought this nuttiness that hits you at the end of your bite. The progression of flavors in that one bite was pretty spectacular.
Japanese Snapper ("Matsuhisa style"; yuzu, shiso, arashio salt). No idea what Masuhisa style is but it was delicious. haha. I have to admit, I didn't understand a lot of the terms and names the chef was throwing out. But I just wrote them down. hehe.
Akami Tuna. Check out the knife skills. The chef scored the fish so more sauce can soak into it. It looks cool too!
Hirame (cured in kombu). I believe this is a Japanese flounder. I actually saw a video on Pok's IG of the chef washing it while it was still moving. This is as fresh as you get, folks! We also got to try it plain, without the rice and soy sauce.
And I gotta mention the sushi rice... it was the perfect texture. Plump grains mixed with red vinegar and sea salt. And it was the perfect temperature. Sushi rice should not be super cold. Room temp is best. It was also not packed super tight. The chef was telling us a sign of good technique is if the nigiri "moves" as the chef sets it on the plate. The rice is slightly loose so you can see it settle. And the looseness of the rice helps you experience the bite, when it "explodes" in your mouth. I definitely felt this as he was explaining it. It's quite magical.
Hokkaido Scallop. I think I've only had a scallop nigiri once in my life, and I don't remember much of it. This particular scallop had a sweetness to it. You can definitely taste it. And the scallop was as tender as can be. It was a great bite.
Homemade Shrimp. This is not frozen. The chef cleaned, prepped, butterflied the shrimp and boils it with a secret ingredient. I never order shrimp when I go to sushi restaurants because it's just not great. This was different. The texture was plumper, firmer, and definitely very fresh. The color was also vibrantly red.
Aged Tuna (marinated in soy sauce for 72 hours). Melt in your mouth tender. You can really taste the soy sauce.
Snow Crab. It's real crab, y'all! Not that imitation stuff. Expertly removed from the shell. And like the shrimp, you can tell the freshness just from the texture of the meat.
Fatty Tuna from Spain. We had this 2 ways. The first was sashimi with a little bit of sauce and I think some sort of garlic topping on top?
I can't remember anymore... I was kind of in a glorious stupor at this point. And I started taking less notes... haha. :P But I do remember that this was also one of my favorite pieces of fish. The 2nd preparation was in nigiri form. One of my favorite bites of the night.
Uni. Yaasssssssssss! I love me some uni! I just never order it in Dallas because they're usually super expensive and just quite disappointing. But you guessed it, this one did NOT disappoint. Uni has a specific texture and is an acquired taste. It's very creamy which I love! But sometimes it can get quite fishy tasting. This was fantastic. Everyone was oooh-ing and quite literally moaning. hahaha.
At this point, Chef Jimmy says "are you guys ready for round 2?" And went off to the kitchen. We all looked around at each other, really hoping he wasn't joking. We've already had so many spectacular bites... is it really only half way? OMG. I think we all became really giddy. :P
So he started us off with the more traditional sashimi and nigiri. And now he's getting more modern and fusion.
Spicy Tuna Taco (fried gyoza skin shell). When we all saw the taco shells we got super excited. This was so much fun. And just delicious. The shell was perfectly crisp, the tuna was seasoned and sauced perfectly, and the chilies on top added a little more kick.
Tuna on Lotus Chip (ponzu truffle mayo?). I'm not sure what all he put on there. But the truffle was very evident which was great. The lotus chip is not only pretty but added that crispy element. Such a cute bite.
Torched Crab Handroll (in sesame rice paper). When he first started prepping this, we had no idea what to expect. He put the shredded crab in piles on 2 plates and topped them with a spicy mayo. We were like "how do we eat that? Scoop it with our hands maybe?" haha.
But then we saw the blow torch. YAAASSSSSSSSS!!! Fire! We're gonna torch some food! It was a great show too. Big flames and we smelled the crab bake and char. Drooling!
Then he started prepping the paper. It was white and studded with sesame seeds. I have never seen this kind of rice paper before. He layered rice, some green onions, the torched crab/mayo, and eel sauce. ooOOOOoooooo! The rice paper was surprisingly soft but held everything in so well. If I had to choose, this was my favorite of the night. But only if I HAD to choose. haha.
Tuna Hand Roll. We all thought this was the last thing. But just you wait!
He ended the meal with this green berry looking thing for everyone. I still don't know what it is, but it was sweet and very tasty.
It was so amazing. We were all on cloud 9 and just chatting with the chef and chilling. Then he goes "do you want one more thing? Dessert?" Sure! But then we saw the blowtorch again and he began to prep eel?
Japanese Sea Eel (the eel was used to make the eel sauce too). Eel for dessert? I can dig it.. the sauce is usually a littel sweet anyways. hahaha. :P The sauce glistened on the torched eel. It was sooooo good. A wonderful finale.
But then... as we sat around and chatted some more. The waitress brought over actual desserts for all of us. It's kind of like an Asian Ice Cream Sandwich.
The outside shell is similar to a cake cone texture. I've had many of these when I go overseas. Different shapes, filled with different flavors and fillings. This had vanilla ice cream inside and was served on a pool of honey. As I held it up to me, I saw there was a layer of something dark on the ice cream. I thought it was going to be red bean paste but it turns out to be a thin layer of hardshell chocolate. Even better!!
We were all moaning and oooh-ing again. hahaha. It had been a very foodgasmic experience for sure! And finally, we ended on a spectacular bite. I kept secretly hoping if we linger around some more we would get even more food though. hahaha.
The whole dinner took almost 2.5 hours. A fantastic 2.5 hours! It was nice to just sit there and enjoy every aspect of the meal... Chef Jimmy's love and talent for what he does, the exquisite quality of all the ingredients, and the journey he took us on from beginning to end. My friend said he has truly ruined all other sushi experiences for her. haha. I'd have to agree. I can't think of a single place in Dallas that does what Chef Jimmy is doing with the raw bar. To have a dedicated chef making you course by course... it really brought me back to my trips to Japan.
And the price point? It's killer. If you get "The Pok", it's $35 and you get some amazing things. The "Trust Me" omakase will be varied by market price and number of pieces, but it will still be a great deal and totally worth it.
Thank you, Chef Jimmy, for taking us on this gastronomical journey. I CANNOT wait to see what else you bring for us in the future!! And thanks to our waitress, Tina, who kept us hydrated the entire night, constantly replenishing our water glasses, and clearing our dirty dishes. :)
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
**FYI. Their Grand Opening is tomorrow (2/18/17). From 11:30AM-10PM. Complimentary Matcha. Specialty Sake Shots. Raw Bar Teaser.**
I have a new obsession you guys... My favorite new place of 2017. Pok the Raw Bar in West Village. Since discovering it at the end of January, I've been there 4 times in the last 3 weeks. And living in Rockwall and working close to Richardson... this is not a neighborhood that's remotely close to me. However! On the weekends I sometimes go workout in the Highland Park area. I've been taking advantage of that whenever I can! And since I'm working out, I deserve a treat, right?
Pok The Raw Bar
3699 McKinney Ave #306
Dallas, TX 75204
(214) 484-1139
www.poktherawbar.com
Price: $$
This place just makes me happy. From the bright and modern decor to the quality of the food and drinks. They are super busy all the time though, so you gotta be patient. But trust me, it's worth it.
They have a very specific focus: poké bowls and matcha, so they can get the best ingredients and deliver the best quality. Their ingredients are sources from local farmers and the fish is flown in daily. I can taste the freshness in every bowl I've had so far. Their sushi chef is Chef Jimmy Park, originally from Nobu.
They have a small menu... which is good for people like me who can't have too many choices. I would want to try everything! But they also have a BYOB (build your own bowl) option, so you can pick exactly what you want. I've always built my own bowl. I'm slowly working through all the different sauces. Oh btw,everything here is gluten free. :)
First Visit: I got my order to go because I told my husband I would bring some back for him.
While waiting for the food, I started chatting with the bartender, Emilio, and he was giving me info on the restaurant and the matcha. It's sourced directly from Uji, a city in the outskirts of Kyoto, Japan. They actually know the people in the village so they get the matcha powder directly. How much more authentic can you get?!? I also met one of the owners, Francois, who was just super nice! I've seen both of them on every visit so far and it's awesome that they recognize me and I'm able to chat with them. It makes the waiting so much more enjoyable. :)
I got 2 drinks because I wanted to try different things. I had every intention to give one to my husband but I started drinking both while waiting for my food. :P I liked both of them.
The Ceremony (pure whisked matcha) - iced $4~ I don't think I know anywhere else that does pure ceremonial matcha. It's literally water and whisked matcha. I get it unsweetened because I absolutely love the natural flavor of matcha. But if you want some sweetness they add raw honey so it's still super healthy.
Matcha X Coco (coconut milk) - iced $5~ Emilio was telling me that they make their coconut milk and almond milk in house. I got it just barely sweetened so it was still really pure. I loved the light hint of coconut with the matcha. Plus the layers of color were aesthetically pleasing. hehe. Did you know that dairy (cow's milk) negates all the benefits of matcha? I did some research and found out that other milks don't... (soy, almond, coconut, etc.) so I wonder if that's the reason why Pok doesn't offer dairy as an option. Most people think they're getting all sorts of nutritional benefits when they get a typical matcha latte... buuuut it's really just green milk and sugar... XP
Small BYOB $8.95~
Base: Bamboo Rice
Top: Salmon
Sauce: Spicy Aioli
Add Ons: chopped kale, seaweed salad, pickled ginger, micro greens
Large BYOB $12.95~
Base: Bamboo Rice
Top: Tuna
Sauce: Classic Sauce
Add Ons: edamame, seaweed salad, cucumber, pickled ginger
These bowls are absolutely gorgeous! Packed with bright colors and really fresh ingredients. I totally love their bamboo rice which they explained is rice grown in bamboo so it is fortified with extra vitamins and minerals like chlorophyll. And it's green, which makes the bowl even prettier. I fell in love as soon as I dug in. You can taste all the individual ingredients and the quality of it all. I thought the small bowl was quite small but it was surprisingly filling. My husband loved it as well.
Second Visit: I went on a weekday, after a noon workout. I realized it wasn't the best idea since it was super packed and I had to wait quite a while to order and then wait for my food. Oh well, that just means I'll get back to work a little later. haha. But if you are looking for a quick lunch, this isn't it.
This time I got the Matcha X Macadamia (macadamia nut milk) - iced $5.50~ This is the only milk they don't make. But they use the Unsweetened macadamia nut milk from Milkadamia... which comes from free-range trees in Australia and is free of dairy, soy, GMO's and gluten. This was my favorite milk with the matcha so far. It's creamier than the other two and just feels a little more like an indulgence. It also has a light natural sweetness. So no additional sweetness needed for me.
Small BYOB $8.95
Base: Bamboo Rice
Top: Salmon
Sauce: Spicy Yuzu (a mix between Spicy Ponzu & Sweet Yuzu)
Premium: Avocado +$1~
I added avocado this time. It's in the premium add on section which is $1 more. It also adds more substance so I was happily full after I finished eating. I also tried the Spicy Yuzu sauce... which for some reason is only in their Signature Poké Bowls section but not under BYOB. But I requested it. I found out it's basically their Spicy Ponzu plus the Sweet Yuzu sauce. I love yuzu, and you can definitely taste the citrus tang. It just gives it an extra zing to the flavors. Love!
Third Visit: I actually dined in this time. It was a Sunday, I brought a book, and just took my time. I'm glad I wasn't in a rush because they were soooo busy. It took about 20 minutes before I got my food.
I got The Ceremony (pure whisked matcha) - iced $4~ Emilio gave me a double shot of matcha. :D It was amazing. That extra matcha flavor was perfection.
Small BYOB $8.95
Base: Bamboo Rice
Top: Salmon
Sauce: Spicy Ponzu
Add Ons: chopped kale, seaweed salad, pickled ginger, lotus chips
Premium: Avocado +$1~
I went with just the Spicy Ponzu this time and added lotus chips. The chips made for pretty toppings. I also like the additional crispy texture. I really should venture out and try some of the other bases: cauliflower rice, citrus kale, or kelp zucchini slaw, but I just love their bamboo rice so much!
Fourth Visit: I didn't have time to wait for food this time as it was a weekday... but I was in the area so I just stopped by to get a drink. I also found out that for every matcha drink purchased on a Monday in Feb, you get a free class to SoulCycle which is just 2 stores down. Free workout? Heck yea! I went with the
Matcha X Coco (housemade coconut milk) - iced $5~ The drinks are soooo pretty!!
I'm counting the days until I can go back. I can't remember the last time I was obsessed with one restaurant. Yes, it's a little pricey. But for the quality of food, I'll just shut up and throw all my monies at them. hahaha. Plus it's healthy! So that's something right?
If raw fish is your thing... definitely go check them out. And if you love matcha... then you really have to go. This place is legit. And I hope they stick around for a really really long time! :D
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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~
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