JANUARY: Nori Handroll Bar

I'm finally back from a long break from blogging! My new concept for CHOMP! is that once a month, I will be featuring my favorite dining spot from the previous month. Since today is the last day of February, I gotta hurry up and post my favorite from Jan2019! I am also removing my "cookie rating" since these will all be my favorites. It'll get boring when all of them have 5 "cookies". Haha!

Technically I've been going to Nori since October of last year... and I've wanted to write about them ever since then (but life got busy and I was a little burnt out). But it's too good not to feature, so they're kicking off my 2019! Plus I did go to Nori in January. Ha!

I've been following Chef Jimmy Park since the days of Pok the Raw Bar (still my favorite poke place in Dallas). I had one of the best meals when the raw bar opened up there. Since Chef Jimmy left Pok, I've been WAITING for him to do something else. Finally Nori Handroll Bar opened in September 2018 in Deep Ellum!! Woohoo!

Nori Handroll Bar
2814 Elm St.
Dallas, TX 75226
(469) 436-6674
norihandrollbar.com
Price: $$-$$$$

I've gone numerous times since they've opened and every time the food is just fantastic. I expected nothing less from Chef Jimmy! Hands down my favorite sushi spot in Dallas, Nori has a great chef (duh!), a great team, and wonderful owners. Plus the decor (minimalist modern) and the music are great!

Chef Jimmy Park being his awesome self.

They specialize in handrolls (or "Temaki") which is a new trend in DFW. A few things to understand when eating handrolls...
1) The seaweed is very important. Nori's is custom made so it has that perfect crispness when you bite into it. Eat it quickly when they place the handroll in front of you so you can experience that perfect texture. The longer the handrolls sit, the softer the seaweed can get. (Mind you, it's still good if left sitting too long, but once you experience how it's SUPPOSED to be, you'll know what I'm talking about!)
2) The handroll chefs at Nori will wait until you have consumed one roll before making your next one. That way the handrolls are not left sitting too long.
3) This one is specific to Nori... their handrolls do not need soy sauce. AT ALL! I have never used soy sauce there because each roll is already so flavorful. I do get their wasabi relish to put on there though. YUM!

Aside from handrolls, Nori also offers complimentary tapas such as seaweed salad, octopus salad, edamame, shishito peppers, and more. 

Yes, complimentary. It's awesome. On the dinner menu, you can also find the full selection of hot dishes like their awesome brussels sprouts, hamachi kama (yellowtail cheek), etc. They have various sashimi dishes which sometimes changes depending on whatever fresh fish they have that day. They also have a sake bar at the front of the restaurant which is pretty badass looking!

Since I've been there so many times already, I'm just going to post a bunch of pictures and what they are. You can't go wrong with anything. I'd happily eat any of these again!

Yamaimo (japanese mountain yam, shisho, ume boshi) $5.50~ Gluten free and vegetarian

King Salmon (house cured ora king salmon, crushed sesame seeds, chives) $7~ Gluten free

Negitoro (fatty tuna, scallion) $9~ Gluten free

Negihama (yellowtail, scallion, crushed sesame) $7~ Gluten free

Nori Scallop (hokkaido scallop, tempura crunch, creamy spicy) $8~ This is a personal favorite.

Red Crab (red crab, garlic aioli) $9~ Gluten free

Baked crab... torched in front of you. Yum!

Baked Crab (red crab, baked avocado with creamy spicy) $9~ Gluten free. Another personal favorite.

Ebi Katsu (panko shrimp, ginger dressing) $8~ This is my absolute favorite!

Chef's Temaki Special: This changes, but I had Tamago (egg).

Lobster (lobster, butter ponzu aioli) $10~

Uni (uni, lobster roe pate, gold flake) $MKT~ Gluten free

Brussels Sprouts (fried brussels, parmesan, premium sauce, crushed sesame) $7~

Rock Shrimp Tempura (amazu ponzu or creamy spicy, yuzu) $MKT~

Hamachi Kama (yellowtail collar) $18~

Takoyaki (octopus dumplings, mentaiko sauce, bonito) $8~

Chicken Karaage (japanese fried chicken) $8~

Here are also some special bites that Chef Jimmy has made for me. I am honored to be considered his friend and can experience these wonderful creations! Disclaimer: Nori does not offer omakase (chef's tasting) on their regular menu. They may offer it on certain holidays so keep an eye out for that! They recently did one for NYE and Valentine's Day.

Hakami in homemade soy sauce

Salmon Belly nigiri

Home cured Japanese mackerel nigiri

Yellowtail in homemade wasabi soy sauce

Bluefin with ponzu

Kampachi with jalapeno dressing

Spear Squid nigiri

One last thing. Save room for dessert. It's not listed on the menu, but sometimes Nori will have this donut ice cream dessert that is just to die for. The donuts are from Detour Doughnuts in Frisco (they're seriously good at what they do) and topped with either a matcha or black sesame ice cream, with different sauces poured at the table. It's delicious. You won't wanna share. :P

Detour's custom Black Sesame donut with Black Sesame ice cream

Detour's Creme Brulee donut with Black Sesame ice cream and chocolate sauce

Thanks for always taking such great care of me, Chef Jimmy and Nori team! If this post doesn't convince you to go check them out... I don't think we can be friends. LOL! They just recently rolled out a new lunch menu btw. I'll be checking that out soon!


~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~

Pok's Raw Bar - Omakase

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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Value (we got a killer discount!):

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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~