Fire It Up: Rick James Sushi
BY TAMARA PALMER
I love Thai chef Rain Pantana’s imaginative menu at Wabi on Rose in Venice. Wabi’s pink magnetic takeout boxes make me feel like I’ve purchased something from Tiffany. It’s one of the few places I’ve found so far in Southern California where you can try oshizushi, which are creations made by pressing layers into a box and then slicing into rectangles or squares (check out some of my easy vegan oshizushi recipes).
The oshizushi to order here if you want your eyes to roll back in your head is called Rick James, which layers crispy halibut, spicy tuna, yellowtail and avocado, with lemon aioli, Serrano and Sriracha on top.
Wabi’s fancy takeout box
Rick James
If you’re looking to go all out, the Midnight Rain roll has several luxurious ingredients: spicy blue crab and fried shrimp on the inside, seared toro, black truffle, caviar and “gangster sauce” on the outside. I want this every day.
Midnight Rain
You don’t have to super splurge here to have a good meal. More recently, I tried the lunch special, which is two classic rolls, salad and miso soup for $18 — I chose a California roll and a Japanese scallop roll. Orange ricotta donut holes are worth ordering, too.
Wabi lunch special
Orange ricotta donut holes
After two takeout meals here, I hope the next time I try Wabi on Rose is in person.
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