Waraku, Japanese, Braddock Rd-Twinbrooke , Japanese, sushi

[thistle]

Adding my most recent dining experience-after taking Lizzy to GMU orientation on June 22nd, we met her brother at Waraku, a newly opened restaurant in the Twinbrooke shopping center on Braddock Rd.  It's new, we were all exhausted, the kids got various sushi & rolls, Tom got a poke bowl, & I couldn't decide & got Thai fried rice w/ shrimp- we all agreed mine was the best.  Service was a little scattered, but the food was pretty good. & then I tried to take my leftover fried rice home in a weird clamshell bowl & crunched the bottom of it...

[Kibbee Nayee]

Five of us stopped in for a sushi meal on Friday evening. We sampled the sushi for 2, the sashimi for 2, and another sushi and sashimi platter. There was just enough between these three selections to feed all five if us, and we threw in two bottles of wine as well.

First observation -- The crowd on a Friday evening was a bit sparse. To me, that means that turnover of protein is not what you want in a sushi restaurant.

Second observation -- There was a distinct language barrier at the point of taking orders. For example, one bottle of wine was remembered, while the other was forgotten. There were frequent interactions between the waiter, the sushi bar chefs, and the table patrons to clarify orders.

Third observation -- When a place isn't at full capacity, and the table of five orders three major sharable platters, but the kitchen only sends out three miso soups and three salads...?

Fourth observation -- Slices of sushi and sashimi proteins were Korean-sized. Some were hard to get into the mouth with one bite. This isn't a complaint, just an observation.

Fifth observation -- There were some hits, like some genuine caviar on a few slabs of white fish (maybe albacore?) and nicely scored and rolled large squid. The slices of tuna and the salmon were perfect.

For suburban Korean-owned sushi and sashimi, it wasn't bad, and it wasn't great, but I'm not sure what that means in today's post-pandemic restaurant market. All in with tax and tip was almost $250, so an expectation for a slightly better overall experience is not out of line.