Sebo - San Francisco, Ca

I operate my life on two basic principles:

1. Inconvenience others as little as possible.
2. Be as productive as possible as quickly as possible.

When principle 1 and 2 are in conflict, 2 trumps 1. This sometimes causes problems for coworkers and loved ones.

Going out to a sushi bar and ordering omakase is the only way I can think of to dine out and fully and completely abide by these principles.

You show up, you sit down, somebody brings you a few drinks, and then the sushi chef starts sending out food. He doesn't have to ask you what you want, you don't have to pore over a menu. And then when you're done you pay your bill and leave. It's liberating. The chef makes food, the eater eats. No middle person. And by eliminating the stresses of ordering food and dealing with waiters, your meal will be just that much more goddamn tasty.

I started reading The Zen of Fish recently and as a result I developed a serious craving for some reasonably authentic Japanese food. Girlfriend Charlie and I were out shopping in Hayes Valley when I noticed Sebo's unassuming storefront. Why how fortuitous! We returned right when it opened at 6pm and grabbed a spot at the sushi bar.

Omakase was the name of the game and pretty much the only way to eat at an upscale sushi bar like Sebo. The courses came steadily. First was a tender marinated octopus appetizer followed by a mountain vegetable salad. Excellent. Next up were steamed clams in sake, simply but tasty. The first round of sashimi was really nice. Your usual suspects, but all impeccably fresh. The nigiri was similar, though the uni, ama-ebi (with accompanying grilled shrimp head), and tamago were all strikingly good. The rice was warm, loosely packed, and well seasoned. We also snagged two of their rolls--one was a fresh blanched asparagus roll, the other was a deliciously refreshing combination of daikon sprouts, tuna, avocado, lemon, and sea salt. Last dish was a vegetable and shrimp chirashi sushi topped with broiled eel.

So yeah, the food was pretty fucking good. Great, even. And pretty reasonably priced for the quality. That being said, Sebo was a slight disappointment for two reasons. First, they didn't offer anything distinctive, with the exception of the one tuna roll which was still pretty straightforward California sushi, nor did they offer a particularly big selection of sushi staples. Second, in my (admittedly limited) experience with omakase, the chef traditionally offers up a course or two that isn't typically available from the a la carte menu. Sebo's omakase was simply a collection of menu items presented in a logical order. That's like finally scoring a date with a porn star, but you only ending up doing missionary. It's still good, sure... but it's disappointing. You can get any chick to do missionary.

So near as I can tell Sebo's as close to traditional sushi as you can get outside of Japan and it was effing tasty. I just wish it pushed the boundaries a little bit. Even the best sushi bars in Tokyo allow for a degree of fluidity and whimsy. It's the nature of the beast--tradition colored with faint touches of iconoclasm. Sebo felt a bit rote. Deliciously rote, but rote nonetheless.

Sebo
571 Hayes St.
San Francisco, Ca 94102
415-864-2122
Reservations: No.