Exit: light
Enter: night
Take my hand
We’re off to neba-neba land
Neba-neba is the term to describe slimy food like natto, yamaimo, and okra. “Enter Sandman” always pops into my brain in moments like these.
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Holy shlit. Standing ovation.
P.S. “Enter Sandman” is a bizarrely great karaoke song. A friend unexpectedly performed it the other weekend during a ktown karaoke marathon and brought the house down.
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I can totally imagine your friend bringing the house down with “Enter Sandman.” So awe-inspiring! 
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She slayed indeed. Go forth and do likewise.
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More evidence to my assertion that live uni is often a gimmick invented to separate money from your wallet.
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As much as i would love to murder more live uni, i have to agree.
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Seki saba - line caught Saganoseki mackerel murdered ikejime style
The fish had a firm texture and very mild clean taste, fantastic. It’s ridiculous how good the sashimi is here.
Asajime 
thigh
Portabella stuffed with Asajime Ground Chicken
Butter sauteed scallops with soy sauce
Grilled hamachi belly
So tender, crispy, and salty
ears
Enoki mushrooms wrapped with bacon
Iberico pork
pork cheeks
Fatty porky goodness with just the right about of smoke from the binchotan
Buri daikon - braised winter yellowtail
This was a miss, the fish was dry and overcooked. Next time I’ll order the braised yellowtail hold the braise.
live uni udon
I wanted to give this dish one more shot and i still don’t get it. I watched them make this and saw a pre-made broth poured into the shell and topped with two pieces of prepackaged uni. Not sure how this is “live.” Unfortunately, like last time the broth was watery (I’m thinking this is how it’s intended), didn’t taste like uni, and barely clung to the udon. The two pieces of prepackaged uni and udon were fine but not worth 30 bucks. I feel like i got gypped out of some 'nads.
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Hi @PorkyBelly,
Great writeup and pics as usual. 
Grilled Hamachi Belly looks amazing! I need to check and see what Toro / Belly are being offered when we go (I forgot to check).
We love their Sashimi as well as you know.
Uni Udon - So sad! The first time we had this last year, it tasted super fresh, and the sauce didn’t look as watery as yours. 
I agree, if they’re using pre-packaged that’s definitely not live (although, to be fair, maybe it’s better quality control since we know how hit-or-miss live uni is, maybe they switched it up). Either way, it’s not worth $30 if they’re doing that for sure.
But overall looks like a great meal you had.
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Thanks @Chowseeker1999, yeah definitely try the belly next time. The hamachi belly was so good. The salmon was also tender, crispy and salty but way fattier (in a good way). If you’re looking for something light get the hamachi belly, if you want something fatty and rich get the salmon.
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I’m guessing the live uni must have been used to make the broth somehow, but they just watered it down too much.
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Had a great dinner at Raku with another couple Saturday night. We ate so much food, i would post pics but we ordered about 20 different items on the menu and i only took pictures of 15 of them.
i have to agree on the Live Uni Udon, i didnt think it was that good, Just OK. Highlights were the Sashimi platter, Agedashi Tofu,The Buta Kakuni, Tsukune, Beef Tendon, the Crispy Asparagus (coated with Arare)
Here’s a pic of the Sashimi Platter.
Raku can end up being very expensive and we didn’t even order Sake, just a pitcher of beer and 2 extra glasses of beer. (we did order a shitload of food though)
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Love that fucking sashimi. I agree it can get pricey if you’re ordering off the specials menu. I wish they would list the damn special prices instead of having to ask about each one. I’m suspecting that’s intentional though.
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Yes and yes. Without the kobe beef special, my lunch w/ a friend who’ve been almost reasonably priced (given the quality, which was outstanding).
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fried tofu skin
shima aji
spot prawn
head
do i need to tip extra for getting a little head at dinner #askingforafriend
tofu
belly
thigh
breast
wing
skirt
tendon
Oyako Bowl-Asajime Chicken & Egg
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Dang - the sashimi and spot Prawn - way too pretty to eat. Nice line-up.
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Looks delicious as usual! Thanks for the report back.
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Okay, now see… I was not offended or being rude. I just didn’t get this shout-out until today 
.
In answer to your question: Some things should be mutually beneficial.
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Oh yeah… and great looking meal 
.
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Hope you enjoyed your birthday dinner there, looking forward to your report.
I am still just an Aburiya Raku bystander. My cousins hijacked my birthday… they do that. They took us to Locanda Veneta on 3rd / Robertson. Not exactly what I had in mind. But who complains about folks wanting to spend time with you? We had a lot of fun.
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