Summer is over and the weather is cooling rapidly, welcoming winter to Australia. It’s not all bad news though, as this means the launch of winter menus for many restaurants on the Adelaide scene. Whether it’s replacing all the summer produce based meals on the menu with winter ones, or simply adding some heavier, warmer meals to the menu, you won’t find many good restaurants who keep the same menu year round.
As massive sushi fanatics, there aren’t many Japanese restaurants in Adelaide we haven’t had the pleasure of sampling their wares. We don’t go more than a week without eating sushi. Naturally this meant the launch of gourmet sushi restaurant Sushi Planet’s new winter menu was high on our list of priorities. As we entered the West Terrace venue, the sight that met us was similar to what we imagine heaven to be like.
A huge buffet table was laden so heavily with sushi it brought tears of joy to our eyes. Sitting in the middle of the long table was the most beautiful sight I’ve ever seen, an ice sculpture filled with sashimi. Along the bar was an assortment of wines, and further along was their entire range of yakitori.
The owner of Sushi Planet, Pavel Gayvoronskiy was almost as excited as us about the new menu launch;
“The expansion of our menu will give sushi lovers the opportunity to try new and eccentric flavours. We pride ourselves on offering a cutting edge menu that will ensure patrons enjoy the ultimate sushi experience at our restaurant.”
Kingfish, Tuna and Salmon Sashimi
The ingredients used in the sushi were so fresh, the fish pulled apart easily and melted in your mouth and there was no sign or stringiness or chewiness. The vegetables were so crisp and fresh, and the rice was light. There’s an open kitchen space in the middle of the restaurant so you can see the chefs preparing your meal for you as you wait. I’m yet to figure out how they sliced all that sashimi so evenly, these guys are masters of their trade.
Shrimp Roll with Mango, Tempura Big Roll, Aburi Salmon Roll, Aburi Beef Roll
The rolls were all large and filling, and Sushi Planet have created a few new combinations, called Fancy Rolls, to dazzle your taste buds. The concept behind these is that Gayvoronskiy has combined complimentary ingredients like mango and seaweed to create exciting new sushi rolls. They are designed to be tasty while still being healthy, and a number of Fancy Rolls are also vegan.
One interesting flavor combination Sushi Planet have come up with is the Aburi Cheese Roll, which consists of breaded chicken thighs and mango, topped with seared cheese and spicy sauce. The cheese definitely adds a different dimension to the traditional sushi we’re used to, but after a few bites it was a decided winner. Another ingredient used in some of the rolls we hadn’t had before was seaweed. Traditionally found wrapped around the rice, Sushi Planet used seaweed salad as a filler for their Aburi Beef Roll and the Seaweed Roll with Avocado.
Miso Marinated Salmon
Breaded Pork with Tonkatsu Sauce
The chargrilled skewers were really easy to eat as they didn’t require any cutlery. Sushi Planet offer a variety of skewered goods, including asparagus with teriyaki sauce, scallops with parsley butter, breaded chicken thighs with miso aioli and king oyster mushrooms glazed with teriyaki sauce. As big meat eaters we mostly tried all the carnivorous skewers, and the meat was cooked to perfection and always accompanied by some form of tasty sauce.
The open kitchen space
Dessert was also offered, and we all got to try the amazing Cacao & Goji brownie. The new dessert menu helps encourage healthy eating, by recreating popular traditional desserts like cheesecake and tiramisu in new, healthy ways.
“Sushi Planet’s dessert menu is gluten and refined sugar free, and is just as delicious as regular, less healthy dessert options. We promise that once you try them, you’ll be left wanting more,” says Gayvoronskiy.
Sushi Planet has also extended their trading hours to include lunch, meaning they’re now open from 11:30am to 2:30pm, and then 6pm until late, and they’re continuing to offer delivery service within these hours.
As well as sushi feasting, an Instagram competition was being held that night with the task to create the most creative sushi picture. The winner received a voucher for $120 worth of amazing food from Sushi Planet. Currently we’re not sure who won, but our bets are on This Is Radelaide’s picture, which we thought was genius and envied their creativity. The best we could come up with was an artistically arranged sushi plate.
