"maxine in ri" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> While walking to our favorite pasta and pizza place, we noticed that
> the "OPEN" sign was lit on the restaurant that has been trying to open
> for almost 2 years. Yoko Bistro. We figured upscale non-traditional
> sushi.

I am quite jealous but thoroughly enjoyed your post. It's nice to find
something a little different and delicious. Sounds like it is well worth a
return.

Cindi
Not in RI so I will have to live vicariously

>
> The menu calls it Novelle Cuisine. There is a sushi bar, and the
> woodwork is basswood in the Asian style, but the menu? Novelle
> Asian.
>
> After we were seated, the chef brought out a plate of spicy dressed
> cabbage. Cabbage chunks, sesame oil and vinegar dressing with just
> the right amount of hot pepper. Would this be called an amuse bouche?
>
> We ordered the California roll with pacific slaw appetizer. Really
> good wasabi--it had flavor, not just heat--and the slaw reminded me of
> "health salad."
>
> A basket of fried chips with duk sauce arrived before we had finished
> our appetizer, much to the delight of our daughter. Not at all
> greasy, and too good to leave alone.
>
> A platter of Chinese egg rolls with a generous bowl of plum sauce
> arrived while we were waiting for our dinners. My daughter told us
> they were spicy inside, but I didn't think so. DH burned his tongue.
>
> DD started to get antsy, as our dinners took quite a while. Suddenly,
> her vegetable tempura showed up. Another long wait ensued, and we
> realized we were getting full.
>
> Finally, our meals arrived, and were well worth the wait. DH ordered
> the Peking duck moo shi with foie gras drizzle, grilled pineapple and
> hoisin potato. The wrappers were served in a pretty bamboo box, and
> the potatoes were yummy. DH was very happy with it.
>
> DD went vegetarian, with the Sweet chili soy tofu, braised in an iron
> pot. It was served with rice and mung bean salad dressed with vinegar
> and black sesame seed. The veggie tempura we had had earlier. The
> fried tofu blocks were wonderful, crisp-chewy on the outside, and
> creamy on the inside.
>
> I had the ginger scallion oil poached salmon with Creme Fraiche, stir
> fried garden vegetables and sweet and sour wontons. The salmon was
> done to perfection, moist and tender and flaky. The vegetables did
> not seem to have been fried at all, crisp tender and a clean foil for
> all the seasoned foods we had. The wontons were also fried crisp,
> sort of shaped like folded napkins.
>
> We were quite stuffed at this point, so when the chef told us that his
> pastry chef had tried something new and would like us to try it, we
> groaned. Didn't turn it down tho. Dessert was a 3-layer cake with a
> chocolate layer in the middle of two yellow cake layers, a very thin
> pastry cream filling between each, and an amazing butter cream
> frosting that was like a very thick whipped cream. Served with
> fortune cookies and green tea so hot that DD burned her tongue.
>
> The chef came out to hear our opinions, and we gave him the accolades
> he deserved. We'll definitely be going back there. Prices are in the
> moderate range, $12-19 for entrees, $3.50-10 for appetizers, and $3-4
> for soup and salad. While we like it's closeness, it surprizes me
> being in an area of strip malls and residential. It belongs in trendy
> downtown, not out here in the 'burbs.
>
> Yoko Bistro
> 1460 Oaklawn Avenue
> Cranston RI
> 401.463.3888
>