Japan Japan: In Givat Shmuel, it's a proper restaurant - review

Although we went to Japan Japan Restaurant for the sushi, we never got to eat it there. Japan Japan is a chain of kosher restaurants that range from simple sushi-only counters in malls to proper restaurants with full menus and table service. 

Japan Japan in Givat Shmuel is one of the proper restaurants. The calling card of the restaurant is the sushi, which was the reason for our visit. Though the restaurant is not in our backyard, for good sushi, we travel. 

We were pleased to find a nice clean restaurant with comfortable seating and convenient free parking. The menu had so many delicious-looking dishes, we wanted to order all of them. We almost did. But we were careful not to allow all the enticing dishes to spoil our appetite for the sushi.

What to order at Japan Japan

We like to start our meal at Asian restaurants with a bowl of Kimchi pickled vegetables (NIS 19). While munching on the vegetables, my companion perused the menu as I observed the dishes on the different tables. The room was a sea of beautiful sushi platters looking more like works of art than food. 

“I’ll have what he’s having,” I said, dating myself to the waiter who was probably in diapers when When Harry Met Sally was released. 

How can we come to an Asian restaurant and not try the egg rolls (called spring rolls in the last decade or so)? One order has two rolls, so we surely won’t be overdoing it if we share one order between us. Out came an attractive plate with a set of two spring rolls (NIS 32). 

“Are you sure you want yours?” I asked my companion.

After the first one I could have eaten the second, but I reminded myself about the sushi to come.

I ALSO loved the mushrooms in Teriyaki sauce. We ordered one between us to leave plenty of room for the sushi. A generous bowl (NIS 45) was more than enough for the two of us. We planned only to taste the dish but it was so good, we polished it all off!

As the restaurant is called Sushi & Wok, we decided to taste something from the wok. The Malaysian Wok dish (NIS 73) was a blend of vegetables with salmon and noodles. It was a full meal in a bowl and after eating all of the above we were done.

“Do you still want the sushi?” The doe-eyed waiter asked.

Yes! But who could eat it?

So we packed it up for home.

Sushi eaten in a restaurant is completely different from the sushi that you take home. At the restaurant, the sushi is freshly prepared and tastes fabulous, something which is lost in transit. Sushi lovers eat with their eyes, and a big part of the pleasure of the sushi experience is the beautiful presentation. At home, it is just rolls in a box with a plastic cover. Nice, but not it. 

So we learned that Japan Japan Sushi & Wok is a restaurant that requires more than one visit. One for the sushi and another for everything else on the menu. B’teavon!

The author is the founder and CEO of eLuna.com the premier English-language website for kosher restaurants in Israel.

Japan Japan Sushi & WokAmy Boutique Center15 Mota Gur St., Givat ShmuelTel: 073-340-2199Kashrut certification: Rabbanut Givat Shmuel Mehadrin BadatzOpen Sunday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-11:00 p.m.; Friday, 10:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. After Shabbat till midnight. Closed Shabbat.

The writer was not a guest of the restaurant.