Forever Sushi – Mashiko Goes Sustainable
Hajime Sato, chef-owner of Mashiko Japanese Restaurant
Hajime Sato, chef and owner of West Seattle’s Mashiko Japanese Restaurant made the switch to serving only seafood that is sustainable on August 15th. A few (darn few!) sushi joints have opened their doors as sustainable, but Mashiko will be the first established, successful sushi bar (*) in the world to make the switch, and Seattle’s first fully sustainable sushi restaurant.
“I have always had so much respect for the oceans. Learning about some of the common fishing methods left me no other option – Mashiko had to go sustainable.” Chef Sato continues, “The process has been so inspirational. Instead of just cutting things from the menu, there are now more unique options than before.”
With information available from so many sources, Chef Sato’s sustainability education will be ongoing. He has put his head together with the Seafood Watch department at Monterey Bay Aquarium and is in close contact with the experts at Select Fish, the seafood division of Whole Foods Markets. He is also consulting with noted fisheries analyst Casson Trenor, author and “sustainability guru” for San Francisco’s groundbreaking Tataki Sushi & Sake Bar.
“The sushi industry draws from some of the most depleted fish stocks on the planet,” Trenor said recently. “The five most popular sushi items in the United States – long-line tuna, farmed salmon, imported shrimp, farmed freshwater eel (unagi), and farmed Japanese amberjack (hamachi) – are all generally unsustainable.”
Vowing that this is no green-washed marketing ploy, Chef Sato will make Mashiko fully responsible. He says, “Sushi lovers will be surprised how delicious sustainable choices can be.”
Sushi done conscientiously can include B.C. spot prawns, domestic albacore tuna from the North Pacific, hand-lined yellowfin tuna, farmed California striped bass, suspension-farmed Hokkaido scallops, farmed almaco jack (kampachi) from Hawaii, farmed Washington State Coho salmon, and much more.
Mashiko, well reviewed and thriving since 1994, is known not only for its classical sushi but also for Chef Sato’s innovative departures. The menu is one of the most interesting and unusual in Seattle.
Mashiko Japanese Restaurant
4725 California Ave SW
Seattle, WA 98116-4412
(206) 935-4339
www.sushiwhore.com
M-Th: 5:33pm-9:30pm
Fri: 5:33pm-11:00pm
Sat: 5:03pm-11:00pm
Sun: 5:03pm-9:30pm
* See comment: http://www.bamboosushipdx.com/
As an avid business traveler (between SF, Seattle and PDX) and sushi lover, I have to say that this article is incorrect. Bamboo Sushi in Portland, Oregon, was the first sushi restaurant in the world to convert from a previously successful sushi bar (Masu East) to a sustainable sushi restaurant.
Thanks for the comment & correction. I’ll make a note in the post.