Love sushi and hand rolls? Norimono specialises in temaki (Japanese hand rolls) served fresh across the counter. They have creative combinations like seared scallop with XO sauce, wagyu with foie gras and ikura and lobster egg benedict. Find out what we tried, what we loved and which dishes we'd order again (and the ones we'd leave behind!).
It's a rainy Saturday night when Sophia and I arrive at Norimono, a Japanese hand roll or temaki bar in Crows Nest. At 5:15pm the restaurant is full of people and we are glad that we have a booking. All of the seating is bar seating and there are two sections: the bottom section with Head Chef Hiro Kano (formerly of Besuto) and the top level, larger section which we are sitting at.
Ordering is done with the waitstaff and the paper menu also serves as a placemat. There are lots of containers with pre-prepared ingredients in them and watch as the chefs add them to the rice and nori. Each temaki comes in a little wooden holder and the idea is that you put back the wooden temaki holder when you want your next one. The temakis range from $8 for simple ones to $25 for their signature ones.
We decide to start with the signature ones. Our first temaki is the seared scallop with XO and crispy shallots. These are Hokkaido Hotate scallops served with a light sear so they are mostly raw and topped with a flavoursome XO sauce. The temaki is a bit difficult to eat but this is delicious with a good ratio of scallop to rice and the XO sauce flavours it well.
The wagyu rolled cigar is the best selling temaki here and it is layered with scallop, foie gras, ikura and cucumber. The wagyu is tender and torched to order and while they are generous with the ikura, when each pearl bursts it becomes like a salty, liquid dressing that really overtakes the flavour of the wagyu. I didn't enjoy my first bite but once the ikura fell off, I enjoyed it more (there's a plus to being a clumsy eater haha).
We also try the seared foie gras temaki. This is Sophia's first time trying foie gras and it is caramelised foie gras with a thick piece of softly stewed apple. For me, foie gras really needs to be pan fried to get that wonderful crispy edge that brings out the buttery centre of foie gras and this one isn't so it's not what I expected or hoped for.
"This looks like potato salad," says Sophia and she's right it does. The lobster is paired with hollandaise and tobiko but doesn't have a lot of flavour to it at all of either lobster or eggs benedict. Out of the signatures this is our least favourite.
My favourite temaki of the night is the char grilled unagi or eel glazed in tare sauce. This one is actually served in a thin cucumber shell rather than nori. The rice, eel and cucumber are a perfect pairing as the cucumber cuts through the rich eel.
There are three vegetarian temaki and we both love maitake mushrooms so we decide to try this one. Although the mushrooms are said to be roasted until crisp at the edges they're actually served cold and seasoned copiously with what looks to be deep fried garlic granules that really overpowers the flavour of the mushrooms. We also can't detect any truffle salt or truffle aroma.
Both of us really enjoy miso cod and this has a fillet black cod glazed in yuzu miso and gently grilled with ikura and shiso on top. This is well balanced and one of our favourite ones as the yuzu isn't overpowering with the delicate fish.
There have been some hits but also some misses and the kakuni pork belly was with slow-braised pork belly with chilli and jalapeño doesn't quite have the flavour we were hoping for. Kakuni is such a delicious way of cooking pork belly but I mostly taste the jalapeno and chilli.
We also try a couple of the non temaki items. The karaage cheese fritto is a bit different from what I expected. It is deep fried and crispy boneless chicken topped with a fine cheese powder (described on the menu as a "rich cheese finish"). On the side is mayo with shichimi togarashi. The chicken is nice but it's really more a regular karaage as the cheese powder doesn't add a discernible difference for us.
What we did enjoy was the kataifi wrapped prawns that are deep fried and served with house made tartar which has plenty of onion and egg finely diced in it. In fact I recommend getting an extra serve of the tartar sauce to add to some of the temaki. I only wish there were more than 2 per serving!
So tell me Dear Reader, do you like temaki or hand rolls or do you prefer nigiri or Australian style sushi rolls? Which hand roll flavours would be your pick?
This meal was independently paid for.
Norimono
69 Willoughby Rd, Crows Nest NSW 2065
Phone: 0403 538 199
Open 12-3pm, 5-9pm Wednesday to Saturday
12-3pm Sunday
Closed Monday and Tuesday
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