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| Larry and Vickie in front of the Rio Rancho NM Maki Yaki |
11/3/2012 Maki Yaki 36
https://www.facebook.com/makiyakirr
4300 Ridgecrest Dr. SE, Ste 0, Rio Rancho,
New Mexico (505)892-3554
http://maki-yaki.com/web/index.html
This was my second
encounter with a store-front takeout serving sushi and Japanese themed foods.
The first was OEC Japanese Express in St Petersburg, Florida and now this one
in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. Whereas OEC Japanese Express seems to be a unique entity,
Maki Yaki would be part of a larger franchise headquartered in California, this
being store number 36. Established in 2004, most of the stores are located in
the Southern California region but apparently the store plans expansion through
the rest of North America, South America, Europe and Asia. Ambitious since one
of the proposed sites is Tokyo, Japan.
The best that I can come
up with for the name is Maki – rolled (as in makizushi) and Yaki – grilled
broiled or fried (as in teriyaki or teppanyaki). ,Maki Yaki or Rolled and
Grilled would seem to be an appropriate name considering the fare offered. What a fun way to learn to speak Japanese.
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| Clean and bright |
Arriving in the late
evening, the store was brightly lit. It had a clean, bright appearance. Even in
the dark, with reflections, the windows were clear and not a smudge to be seen.
The inside was spartanly decorated. The tiled floor had recently been swept and
mopped as there were few signs of traffic on its shiny surface. The store,
roughly divided in half, featured a dining area with basic tables and chairs
for eating in up front and the rear half with the counter and kitchen area.
Strangely, it did lack the traditional sit-at sushi bar; perhaps a manifestation
of the restaurant’s bare-bones appearance. All of the food preparation was done
in the back kitchen. The walls were decorated with a large lighted picture menu
board and some poster art depicting “pretty as a picture” foods; the art work a
standard corporate supplied item.
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| From Top Clockwise: Eel Special Roll, Baked Scallop Roll, and Spicy Tuna Roll |
Tables are in two sizes,
small for two people and larger for four persons. The three of us were quite
comfortable at a larger table but if there had been a fourth person it would
have been quite cozy. Tables are set with a napkin, disposable chopsticks and a
bottle of soy sauce.
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| Left: Boston Roll Right: Spicy Tuna Roll |
We were warmly greeted quickly
on arrival and shown to a table. Menus were passed and a beverage order taken.
Most of the beverages came from the self-serve style refrigerator cabinet against
the far wall; a back to basics touch. Our order taken, we could see a flurry of
activity behind the partial curtains setting the kitchen apart. It seemed that
the courteous woman who greeted us took care of the dining room, the counter
and the register. I could only discern a single male in the kitchen. It was
slow at the time we were there and the two of them were able to handle the
traffic effortlessly. I would think, however, that they would need additional
help for busier times. While waiting, we were all served a bowl of miso soup.
It is an extensive menu
featuring many Japanese dishes other than sushi. With so many good things
offered it was hard to finally decide on what we each wanted. Larry and Vickie
do a little mix and match across the table and can sample many items with a
minimum order; sometime an order just to share. Vickie ordered an assortment of
sushi items. These included a spicy tuna roll (Spicy Tuna Roll $5.95), eel special
roll (Eel Special Roll $10.95 in: crab meat, cucumber, avocado out: baked fresh
water eel) and baked scallop (Baked Scallop Roll $9.50 in: spicy tuna,
cucumber, avocado out: baked scallop).
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| Combo Plate: Chicken and Beef Teriyaki |
Larry ordered some sushi
items. He chose a spicy tuna roll (Spicy Tuna Roll $5.95) and a Boston roll
(Boston Roll $8.50 in: crab meat, cucumber, avocado out: shrimp tempura). He
also ordered a Teriyaki Combo Plate ($7.95 Chicken and beef teriyaki served
with steamed rice, vegetables and miso soup).
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| Bento Box: Mixed Tempura, California Roll, Salad, Steamed Rice, and Teriyaki Beef |
Larry and Vickie both
thoroughly enjoyed their selections. Suffice it to say there was no need for
any take-home container. My bento box had a lot of good things. The salad was
made of crisp lettuce mostly, a cherry tomato and some pickled onions. The
salad was good but the pickled onions would not be my favorite. There was an
inverted bowlful of steamed rice with a toasted sesame garnish. Rice is rice
but this rice was cooked to just the right consistency to pick up with chopsticks.
With the bento box that is important because you can’t just raise the bento box
under your chin like a small bowl of trice. The California roll was good, the
ingredients fresh. The artificial crab picks up flavors very quickly and if the
crab has been sitting around any time it will take on some of the surrounding
fish flavors Even with a dunk in the soy sauce you could taste the crab, avocado and cucumber; a
good roll. The tempura selection was good, the batter the classical thin and
crispy. It was very good. Even though my favorite is the bento box for its varied
selection, I almost wished I had chosen a tempura platter instead. The tentsuyu sauce was excellent, just the
right saltiness to accent the flavor of the tempura. There was a nice serving of teriyaki beef. It
was quite tender and lean beef in teriyaki sauce with toasted sesame seeds
garnish. The sauce had cling without being too thick; you could coat with as
little or as much sauce as you liked each bite. The sauce had a good flavor,
slightly sweet, slightly soy that did not interfere with the taste of the beef.
All in all, I enjoyed my bento box very much - well, perhaps the pickled onion
I could do without.
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| Maki Yaki Wall Menu |
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