Welcome to TBO.com. Skip directly to: our Keyword Search, Section Navigation, Content.

TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Dining

TBO > Entertainment > Dining > Dining

Casual sushi spot has us hooked

Tribune photo by SCOTT ISKOWITZ

The sushi and sashimi at Hook's are artfully prepared, graciously served and reasonably priced.

By SHERRI ACKERMAN | The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 20, 2009

Related Links

ST. PETERSBURG - They face each other across the street like two fishslingers at a sushi standoff.

One looks fancy, with a well-coiffed blonde waiting outside as luxury cars circle the parking lot. The other resembles a Tiki bar, with adults and kids in shorts and jeans, tank tops and T-shirts.

Since we were on the same side as Hook's Sushi Bar and Thai Food, we asked friendly diners waiting for a table: Which restaurant is better?

They easily convinced us the sushi at Hook's was fresh and reasonably priced. That would've made owner Hook Atsavinh, who died unexpectedly in January, happy. His slogan, after all, was "All Fish and No Bull."

He worked briefly at the other more opulent-looking restaurant, Sushi Rock Grill, before opening his own across the street in 2003. Rustic and homey, it has the feel of a neighborhood hangout welcoming dates, friends and families alike.

During our wait of about 20 minutes, we sipped sake and Copper Ridge White Zinfandel outside big picture windows that allowed us to ogle lucky diners' little boats filled with sushi and sashimi artfully prepared and graciously served.

We wasted no time thumbing through a menu that showcased Japanese, Thai, Chinese and Korean specialties. We focused on Japan and ordered two salads as appetizers. A generous Sunomono had too few pieces of octopus and surimi, and lots of cucumbers soaked in a sweet vinegar sauce.

The asparagus salad featured romaine lettuce, chopped asparagus and shredded surimi, and packed a surprising spicy punch. Some of us loved it -- describing it as "excellent, with the right crunchiness, and well-flavored." I thought it too spicy.

We also chose the baked mussels: six plump mollusks bathed in Hook's Heavenly Sauce, a mayonnaise-based seafood sauce similar to Thousand Island dressing, and sprinkled with roe and spices. These were a bit bland, but it's hard to beat the baked Green Mussels at Yoko's Japanese Restaurant in Tampa.

On to the entrees. One of our dining companions isn't a big sushi lover. She opted for the red curry with shrimp, which came with miso soup and a basic tossed salad topped with ginger dressing. This dish boasted plenty of shrimp, snow peas, red peppers, zucchini, mushrooms, carrots and broccoli and was satisfyingly spicy and more than enough for two meals.

The rest of us were bent on eating sushi. We tried the melt-in-your-mouth Lobster Tail roll with tempura lobster, asparagus and avocado. Next: Hook's signature roll, the TST -- spicy tuna, surimi, cream cheese and scallions cooked tempura-style. It was crunchy with just the right heat from a few drops of Sriracha chili sauce.

We also devoured a Mexican roll filled with tempura shrimp, asparagus, avocado, scallions and masago -- smelt roe. We also discovered too late that too much tempura can be a bad thing, masking flavors and hiding fish. So we opted for some nigiri (sweet eel) and kunsei (smoked salmon). Both were succulent with the perfect consistencies.

Another mistake -- we didn't leave enough room for the raw stuff. But we'll be back. Maybe for $1 sushi on Wednesday nights.

Dinner for three, with three appetizers, sushi, two large sakes and two glasses of wine totaled $115 with a 20 percent tip for prompt service on a busy Friday night.