Jimmy's Killer Prawns (Kloof Street, Cape Town)

Address: Corner of Kloof Street and Union Garden Street
Tel: 021-4260327
Email: kloof@jimmyskillerprawns.za.net
Web: www.jimmyskillerprawns.za.net

Jimmy's Killer Prawns - another well-known seafood franchise. Their specialty, is of course prawn and seafood dishes. They have also expanded their menu to include sushi and much to my girlfriend's dislike, a hearty selection of "Buffalo-Bill" portioned meaty (red meat) dishes.

We recently attended a birthday party at the Kloof Street franchise. Not everyone will appreciate the home-restaurant feel about the place and seating is sometimes a little awkward, especially if you are a party of more than 6 people. Finding parking is also at times an issue. The venue does feel a little cramped, or as some estate agents will debate, somewhat "intimate". Personally, overhearing echoes of personal gossip and insider-company information from my neighbours table is a little awkward. Made me wonder if they in turn, could hear my imaginary shrieking with respect to the red wine a particular group were savouring with their garlic-buttered prawns. A sinful combination really. But folks, my apologies, I digress as our primary concern here is the quality and presentation of the sushi at Jimmy's Prawns.

The Jimmy's selection of sushi platters is fairly broad and well presented. Unfortunately no particular platter bowled us over with much excitement. We decided to add a bit of "pizazz" to the standard platter by opting for additional complimentary orders of salmon roses, salmon rainbow rolls and salmon sashami. Yes, that's quite an omega boost for one evening - I'm sure my friends at Men's Health would have been proud, or disgusted with the excess kilojoule intake. But hey, "tis the season..." as the saying goes.
Our sushi arrived in good time and was very well presented on a large round wooden serving board. As hungry as we were, we took a moment to appreciate the intricacy and effort that was taken to prepare such an eye-catching, tasty feast. Our excitement was shared by the rest of our party, who sat and stared in awe of our sushi delights. If dining protocol was unfounded, the lesser reserved would have stopped what they were already eating to order a similar main dish.
The sushi and sushi rice was very good. The salmon and prawn was of course very fresh. However, the salmon lacked a little of that "melt-in-your-mouth" quality that is often followed by an explosion of fresh, tasty, deep-sea, woody aroma's, all concluding in a buttered avocado aftertaste. Notwithstanding, the sushi overall were quite good, and the prices were fairly reasonable.
For some reason, it appeared as if the sushi-items as offered by the platter we ordered had more salmon and prawn portions as opposed to equal tuna portions. This could have been from the influence we may have had on the Sushi-Chef due to our additional "side" orders of salmon sushi. We have to mention that the tuna portions we had, were not the best. It tasted somewhat lumpy, and its texture was far too soft.

Presentation and condiments are often overlooked by many sushi bars and restaurants. We already gave praises for Jimmy's presentation, however when it comes to condiments, they were somewhat lacking. In my opinion, we had just about enough pickled ginger for the entire platter, which we already started using sparingly since the first bite. The surprise to our condiment-selection included mayonnaise and needle-strip sliced cucumber. The only other sushi bar or restaurant where I have seen these "extras" is at Balducci's Royal Sushi Bar.

After enjoying some good sushi, we still felt as if something was missing in terms of the overall experience. It took us a while to figure it out, and that was that we had no view or contact with any of the Sushi-Chefs. At most sushi bars and restaurants, patrons would have some direct or indirect contact with their chef. This we believe adds tons of enjoyment to the overall experience. Regardless of if you strike up a conversation with the Chef or not, or if you quietly and tentatively appreciate the skill that goes into the preparation. This is certainly an oversight on the part of Jimmy's management in terms of their floor planning. Every Sushi-Chef, whether they want to admit it or not, wants patrons to appreciate their skill and experienced hand. Critics would argue that watching an experienced Sushi-Chef at work, is certainly a performance of fine art.

After enjoying some good sushi, why not treat yourself, or preferably your better half to an exhilarating head, neck and back massage for R30 (10 - 15 minutes long) from the resident masseuse. Try ignoring the stares and grins from your jealous neighbours, as you will be receiving an enjoyable, rejuvenating massage.

Overall Jimmy's managed to serve up some good quality sushi, barring the poor sushi tuna portions we had. Their sushi menu is passable and their prices are very reasonable. On the evening, and thanks to a well presented platter, we managed to baptise some more friends into sushi-lovin-newbies. Jimmy's Killer Prawns in Kloof Street should definitely be on your shortlist, amongst all the other, ever increasing sushi-establishments in Cape Town's central business district - Grant

P.S. Someone should inform Jimmy's website administrator that he/she has the wrong Cape Town area code for the Kloof Street contact details. Hope he/she is reading.

Noodlebosch (Long Street, Cape Town)

Address: 192 Long Street, Cape Town Central Business District
Tel: 021-4230569
Email: longstreet@noodlebosch.com
Web: www.noodlebosch.com

Noodlebosch, the somewhat new kid on the block. Neatly situated in the ever buzzing and clubbing Long Street. Founded in 2005 at the University of Stellenbosch. Noodlebosch is certainly one of those establishments that has popped out of nowhere, much to the surprise and liking of many Cape Town sushi lovers. Dine in the restaurant or peruse their take-away menu, and you get the distinct feeling that here lies quality with a degree of authenticity.

I often think of Noodlebosch as the "Polka" of sushi bars, because of their simple, unpretentious, yet very colourful and unique theme and menu on offer. You know you going to get good sushi at a good price and that's that. This is of course, not a bad thing. They offer good noodle dishes, however we were only interested in the quality and expansiveness of their sushi menu, of course. Their sushi is very good!

My favourite is the salmon fashion sandwiches, salmon California rolls and salmon nigiri. The sushi is always fresh, and the sushi rice is quite good as well. I am certainly very pleased to notice that their portions are hearty, and you always feel satisfied after an average sushi meal of 10-15 sushi portions. Another positive point is that their prices are very reasonable, and certainly is value for money. Added to that the choice of either 4 or 8 pieces of sushi per sushi-dish.
Noodlebosch do not skimp on their condiments of pickled ginger, wasabi or
soy sauce, including packaging (for take-aways). I have always had left over condiments after a good meal of sushi.

On the topic of organics and chemicals, Noodlebosch's commitment to serving fresh ingredients with no preservatives or MSG is certainly a very, very welcomed and well-worthy bonus (We hope other Sushi-Chef's and Restaurant-Owners take note of that fact). This is more than enough reason to lure any grass-eating Kauai-patron to their doorstep.

As mentioned, Noodlebosch is quite a small venue. The downside of being that good and small (or customer-focused as the intellectuals call it) is that the Sushi Chef is always busy. Noodlebosch, as the name eludes to, is primarily an establishment offering noodle cuisine. The addition of a sushi offering, which in my opinion far outsells their other dishes, does place significant pressure on their staff to keep a reasonable consistent pace with serving customers. That said, it may also explain why our orders are sometimes a little late (approximately 20 minutes in the restaurant and at least 1 hour when ordering take-away). It could further explain why they only receive take-away orders
during certain business hours.

Regardless, Noodlebosch has been quite an impressive and pleasant surprise to our review. We can understand why Capetonians are going "noodles" for Noodlebosch. This one is definitely a "keeper" and they are quietly making their way up the Cape Town Sushi-Leaderboard, as long as they continue doing what they do best, providing good quality sushi at value-for-money prices - Grant

Tong-Lok (Voortrekker Road, Parow)

Address: Parow, Don Centre, Voortrekker Road
Tel: 021-9304791
Email: tak@mweb.co.za
Web: www.tonglok.co.za

I have long since been skeptical of the Tong-Lok franchise, however we decided to treat our taste buds on what they had to offer. Tong-Lok is considered a household name as far as take-away sushi goes. The Goodwood venue was not the best, nor was it the cleanest that I have seen, even considering that it is really a take-away restaurant. A very dirty and poorly maintained back-end kitchen could be seen through the serving windows. The venue was tacky and is in serious need of cleaning and maintenance to the decor. Personally the red on yellow theme doesn't really do it for me.

I always find it a bit weird when a predominantly Chinese restaurant serves sushi on their menu. Politics and authenticity aside, we ordered prawn and salmon california rolls, together with salmon and tuna nigiri. Much to our disappointment, we were told that they were low on sushi rice, and we would have to wait 30 minutes in order for them to prepare more rice. Yes folks, like you, my initial thoughts were, how would they prepare sushi rice, which normally takes 1.5 hours in 30 minutes?...Our response was for them to do the best that they can do with what they had available. I wish that they would have taken us up on our offer. I was further disappointed to see that the rice was stored in an empty ice-cream bowl in the fridge. It made me wonder how old or how long this rice had been stored.

Regardless, we ignored that fact that a lethargic-looking sushi chef prepared our order. He at least was well dressed in the appropriate attire, keeping to tradition, and his fairly skilled and experienced hand was well noted. And at least he washed his hands and used clean utensils and kitchenware. At this point, we were still fairly optimistic as what would be produced.

In terms of pricing, Tong-Lok is value for money. In other words, if you looking for average sushi at a good price, then their menu would always be found on your refrigerator door or close to the telephone. However, this is not a place where you will find premium quality, artistic perfection and cultural authenticity.

Our order arrived in 25 minutes. A bit late in my opinion. However we paid our respects to the chef (always good etiquette I believe, regardless of any issues).
When we arrived home to savor on the raw delights, we were found ourselves wanting. No, I don't mean wanting more, but rather a wanting of disappointment. The sushi rice was undercooked and cold. The salmon and tuna were "sweating" and quite limp. A sign that it had been standing out for too long. The only item that met a reasonable standard was the prawn california roll.
The portions of pickled ginger, avocado, prawn, salmon and tuna were small in proportion to the sushi rice it was served with, giving us a distinct impression that the franchise was skimming in order to increase profits. The soy sauce supplied was very, very salty. I personally prefer the light sauce.

Overall, I was left very disappointed in what this well known local restaurant had to offer in terms of sushi. They definitely do provide you with a value for money sushi meal, but at a great cost to quality. Therefore do not expect any customer satisfaction from this establishment. I would not recommend the Goodwood Tong-Lok to any of our sushi-lovers out there.

Lastly, the Goodwood franchise can learn a lot from its "big brother", Tong-Lok in Long Street with whom I am somewhat impressed with. Look out for my review on the Tong-Lok Long Street restaurant - Grant