Devotees Can Thank an Act of God for Sushi Kura

Orange County is seeing more and more restaurants where you can order both sushi dishes and Japanese pub food (kappo). Sushi Kura, a shining example of this genre, is in a quiet strip mall on the none-too-busy corner of Fairview Road and West Wilson Street. Many local Japanese say it’s one of O.C.’s best Japanese restaurants.

It took an act of God to bring chef-owner Mitsuo Okura to O.C. A few years ago he had a restaurant named Kabuki up in Northridge; the ’94 earthquake shook him and his family all the way to Costa Mesa.

I ate at Kabuki once and remember more Americanized dishes than Okura serves at Sushi Kura. The reason: Here, Japanese companies nearby provide a knowledgeable Japanese-born clientele. A taste for authentic Japanese food seems to be contagious, though, judging from the enthusiasm of Sushi Kura’s non-Japanese customers.

Physically, Sushi Kura is unassuming in the extreme. The inconspicuous entrance, in the corner of the mall, is marked only by a sign reading “Sushi” above the door. Inside the brightly lit room, you won’t find much but a sushi bar and a few tables, with two Andrew Wyeth prints decorating the walls.

The sound system plays Mozart and Mendelssohn constantly, because the chef says their music helps him think. The better Japanese chefs do often approach cooking intellectually, one reason a maestro such as Okura can orchestrate an evening for you with such consummate skill.

Ask for omakase, literally “chef’s choice,” and Okura will plan your meal from start to finish, continuing to send new treats until you are sated.

Everyone, even those who come only for chicken teriyaki, is welcomed here with a complimentary palate pleaser of the day (zensai). One evening it was a tiny dish of nikujaga (stewed beef with radish, carrots and potatoes). Another time it was kyabetsu beikon, a rich cabbage and bacon broth that tastes as if it could have come from southwestern France.

To my way of thinking, it always pays to ignore the menu and ask for omakase. Okura comes from Kumamoto, on the most southerly and rustic of the main Japanese islands, and when he served us omakase one night, I was delighted that it began with six exquisite, jewel-like Kumamoto oysters, glistening inside their tiny shells from orange-red daubs of grated carrots (momiji oroshi) and splashes of the citrus-flavored sauce ponzu.

Next came two golf-ball-sized fried “sugar potatoes” (agedashi sataimo: smaller and sweeter than regular potatoes) in a light broth dominated by the flavor of shaved dried bonito fish (katsuobushi).

Then came a “bowl” sculpted out of a block of ice into which daikon radish sprouts (kaiware) had been frozen. Three types of sashimi--octopus (tako), yellowtail (hamachi) and fatty tuna belly (toro)--had been carefully arranged inside the bowl. All this was before the obligatory parade of sushi.

For those who need reminding, sushi is not simply raw fish; it’s vinegar-sprinkled rice either stuffed or topped with a variety of foods.

Okura will make you sushi hand rolls out of salmon skin or serve you sushi topped with the sweetest sea eel, the most pungent mackerel or the freshest sea urchin around, all using his skillfully prepared sticky sushi rice.

On the side come a mound of shaved ginger and clumps of wasabi, the ferocious green horseradish that I use as sparingly as possible.

An interesting hand roll called punk is basically shrimp tempura and asparagus rolled in rice, the whole thing then rolled in toasted sesame seeds. Okura’s sweet shrimp sushi is especially delicious. On the other hand, a few items made with fish eggs (particularly smelt eggs) are just too salty.

The dishes are listed on two blackboards, one in English and the other in Japanese. They advertise different dishes.

Look to the English blackboard for beef and onion roll--tender (cooked) beef wrapped around a filling of steamed leeks, formed into a roll the thickness of a Cohiba cigar and chopped into eight or nine pieces.

Likewise for the lamb chops, swimming in lamb juices and topped with grated white radish, and the braised yellowtail collars, two to an order, which come from the oven sizzling and full of the flavors of the sea.

You may not be able to read the Japanese blackboard, but it lists a few dishes you shouldn’t miss. One is ankimo, the coral pink chunks of monkfish liver that some Japanese refer to as their foie gras. Ankimo has a creamy texture and an indescribable taste. You’ll have to go to Ginza Sushi-Ko in Beverly Hills for a better version.

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The chef even has a wonderful way with the lowly noodle (udon). Try nabeyaki, a clay pot of noodles, coddled egg, fish tempura and vegetables, bubbling in a superbly smoky broth.

Okura gets a bit daring at times. One evening he set down three bite-sized pieces of breaded kyosen (sweetbreads), proudly announcing it by its French name: Ris de veau.

On another occasion he served me the intestines of tara, a type of cod. Surely even a few Japanese find tara pretty exotic.

At the end of a meal, cleanse your palate with a scoop of refreshing red bean ice cream. Or even better, a sweet orange cut into bite-sized pieces. The secret of these oranges is that Okura has marinated them in sugar water with a dash of Grand Marnier. That small touch, typical of Sushi Kura, is just one of the reasons for its loyal following.

Sushi Kura is moderately priced. Individual sushi (two pieces to a serving) is $2.90 to $5.80. Sushi rolls are $2.60 to $4.80. Omakase is $30 to $50 per person.

* SUSHI KURA

* 2263 Fairview Road, Costa Mesa.

* (714) 645-5502.

* Lunch: 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. daily; dinner: 5:30-9 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, 5:30-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday.

* All major cards.