Kasumi and Chotto: Predictable Japanese Food Gets Playful

Comments (0) By Jonathan Kauffman Wednesday, Feb 23 2011

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Lara Hata

Meal on a stick: scallops, pork, and chicken.

Location Info

Map

Kasumi

2608 Ocean
San Francisco, CA 94132

Category: Restaurant > Japanese

Region: Lake Merced

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Chotto

3317 Steiner
San Francisco, CA 94123

Category: Restaurant > Japanese

Region: Marina/ Cow Hollow

Details

Kasumi
2608 Ocean (at Woodacre), 586-8800. Lunch 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Tue.-Sun.; dinner 5-10 p.m. daily. Muni: K, M.

Chotto
3317 Steiner (at Lombard), 441-2223, www.chottosf.com. 5:30-11 p.m. Sun.-Thu., 5:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m. Fri.-Sat. Muni: 22, 28, 30, 43, 76.

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Along with the skewers came respectable versions of standards like ohitashi; thin-skinned gyoza; rare steak tataki anointed with garlic chips and ponzu; and pan-fried, salted mackerel. The most memorable was the chazuke ($6). We poured a pot of dashi over a mound of crisped rice crowned with shredded salmon, orange pearls of salmon roe, and a thatch of shredded seaweed, and watched it slump as it soaked in the broth. The brothy rice was a humble dish, its salt bursts and sea-swept smells serene rather than flashy. And yet I kept spooning into the dish as if it were made of truffles and foie gras.

Next to our table was an older couple who hunted up and down the menu for kara-age and tempura. One finally exclaimed, "I don't recognize any of these dishes!" In three or four more years, I predict, they will.