Japanese Cuisine Returns to Ja-Roen Thai & Sushi.

Saturday night is “date night” for Roy and myself.  Often times I cook up buffalo wings, mozzarella sticks, hand cut fries, homemade pizza, even do all the work required for authentic English style fish n’ chips.  Then we pick out a movie, usually a mystery, horror, sci-fi, or comedic mystery, dating anywhere from the 1930s to the 1980s.  When movies were made with the reality of what was available on set, or locations, and movie stars did acting, not pushing opinions or fads.

Once in a while though, we splurge and order take-out, or actually get away from the home and mingle at a restaurant.  Now during the summer, Ja-Roen Thai & Sushi, unfortunately, got hit with staffing issues, so American breakfasts, sushi and Japanese specialties were benched.  So, it happened that an announcement was made, on Facebook, that Ja-Roen had a new sushi chef, and sushi was back.  This announcement was the best news ever!

Walking into Ja-Roen, we were met with warm greetings, and it was so wonderful to see Palm again.  Remember, she was the woman who gave me the lesson on making bubble tea.  Oh, and now she has warned me that I will be learning to make temaki (hand rolled sushi), and egg rolls.

Also, planned for February 2025, new additions to all their menus; and we hope to get calls for taste testing before then.

Sushi Chef, Dos

Since I have mentioned temaki, time to relate our date night dining to you.  Not on the menu as yet, we were honored to taste test temaki, expertly done by their new sushi chef, Dos.  Yes, we teased him about being a computer operating system, but, indeed, he is an important operating chef for the restaurant.  One hand roll contained crab stick, Japanese omelet (Tamako), avocado, cucumber, shrimp eggs (Masako).  The second contained salmon, cream cheese and avocado; of course, both had the traditional short grain sticky rice.  Oh, the tastes were heavenly, no one item overwhelming the others, just a pure blending of flavor.

Temaki - Hand Rolled Sushi

 

 

 

 

 

 

While popular specialty rolls, sushi (nigiri) and sashimi have returned, there were new items on the menu as well.  To make it even more exciting, Japanese meals such as katsu and grilled eel rice bowl were back.  We chose, however, two of our favorite specialty rolls, Shrimp Tempura Roll and Orange Dragon Roll.  Now, if you are unsure as to which roll to choose, the menu has specific details listed, so you know exactly what is inside.  After our visit, the menus had some slight changes.  There was the addition of Poke Bowls, Hawaiian salads which contain salmon, shrimp, scallops or tuna.  Also, the names of the sushi rolls we know and love have been changed to reflect San Juan County natural sites.  However, if you ask for your favorite roll, such as Orange Dragon Roll, the staff will happily make it for you.

 

Orange Dragon Roll, Shrimp Tempura Roll

 

Not to ignore their classic Thai menu, we also ordered Cashew Nut with chicken, and Fresh Roll.

 

Cashew Nut has stir-fried mushrooms, red bell peppers, onion plus chunks of pineapple; and a delicious sweet chili sauce.  The cashew nuts were just the right texture, and the addition of slices of chicken made it a perfect dish.

 

 

 

 

Fresh Roll is an appetizer, but can be a stand-alone meal option, or paired with one of their tasty soups.  It is fresh julienned vegetables, wrapped in rice paper, and served as is; no steaming or deep frying involved.  You get the crisp crunch of the vegetables in every bite; the rolls are served with a light sauce filled with crushed peanuts, or you can order the traditional smooth peanut sauce.

 

This was definitely a great start for date night, and back home, we laughed our way through the 1988 film, High Spirits, featuring Steve Guttenberg, Peter O’Toole and Liam Neeson (the ghost with stinky feet).

Mary Cokenour

 

Japanese and Sushi Menus - current as of October 2024.