We can’t resist the temptation of a novel combination of toppings…but was it any good?

Popular conveyor belt sushi restaurant Kura Sushi has been holding a special ikura (salmon roe), uni (sea urchin), and meat promotional campaign since April 18 in commemoration of the 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo happening now. Even though our Japanese-language reporter Tasuku Egawa wasn’t in the area, he could still feel the reach of the event when he visited his local Kura Sushi branch in Saitama the other day to satisfy a sushi craving.

Once Tasuku sat down, he began browsing through the limited-time campaign merchandise on the digital tablet, which included products with the Expo mascot Myaku-Myaku.

The special campaign menu items focused on variations of the ikura, uni, and meat theme. All of the offerings definitely looked delicious, but there wasn’t anything that he felt was totally unconventional.

Except…huh? What was that in the bottom right of the screen?!

▼ “Shrimp, strawberry, and cheese sushi (230 yen [US$1.60])”

Tasuku couldn’t quite believe his eyes. Fruit and sushi…?! He’d never seen such a combination before, much less eaten anything with strawberries and shrimp together. It was also the exact same price as the rich uni sushi in the campaign, which seemingly indicated that they must be on par with each other.

However, after getting over his initial surprise, he decided that he shouldn’t judge the sushi before trying it. Maybe that blending of three flavors would prove to be on the same level as more classic combos. That’s why he decided to order both of them and do a little side-by-side taste testing.

▼ Left: rich uni sushi, Right: shrimp, strawberry, and cheese sushi

Tasuku started with the rich uni sushi, which boasted the usual delicious flavor of luxurious uni. Now it was time for the unconventional one. For starters, he didn’t even know how he was supposed to eat it. Should he pop a piece into his mouth as is, or should he dip it in soy sauce as usual? There were more questions than answers, and ultimately he decided that there was no better way to find out than to start with its basic, unaltered flavor.

▼ A close-up of the sushi in question (questionable sushi?)

The verdict? He honestly had no idea. It was such a new combination of flavors for him that he couldn’t even find the words to describe this tasting experience. After some pondering, it was clear that the combo wasn’t bad by any means, but he also couldn’t decide it if were good enough to call it delicious. If he had to analyze it rationally, the first flavor to hit him was the sourness of the berries followed by the cheese. That’s a good pairing in general, but as you can probably guess, the existence of the shrimp complicated things. Actually, the shrimp was almost overpowered by the other flavors to the point that its texture was the main contribution to the mix. He concluded that the mysterious sushi was simple, clean, and pretty good after all.

To further test his conclusion, Tasuku decided to order another plate of the sushi to pair it with a kaisen uni temaki (seafood uni hand-roll) (190 yen) this time.

There’s no doubt that the temaki was delicious, but if you’re looking for the best uni bang for your buck, then Tasuku recommends ordering the rich uni sushi instead.

Before eating the shrimp, strawberry, and cheese sushi again, Tasuku decided to take a step into potential culinary chaos by drizzling some soy sauce on it. “Here goes nothing,” he thought as he popped a piece into his mouth.

It was actually great! He was vexed to admit it, but the soy sauce really brought out the flavor of the cheese and shrimp. It also paired unexpectedly well with the strawberry. Dare he say it, but he couldn’t even choose which of the 230 yen-sushi plates to recommend over the other.

By the way, for those in a more traditional sushi mood, here are some of Tasuku’s other recommendations from the current campaign.

▼ Aburi yaki-harasu (grilled fatty salmon belly) (250 yen): The slices are generously sized, delicious, and the whole thing is a reasonable price.

▼ Thick akagai (ark shell clam) (280 yen)–It was consistently delicious from start to finish. Tasuku realizes that shellfish may polarize some people, but for those that like it, this one is highly recommended.

▼ Yuzu buri (yellowtail) (160 yen): Fresh yellowtail paired with the citrus of yuzu makes for a refreshingly delicious combination.

▼ Uni cream chawanmushi (egg custard) (410 yen): Uni is sprinkled into this creamy chawanmushi, which altogether packs a flavorful punch.

On a final note, if you’re not quite feeling up to going out to eat sushi at the moment, you could always opt to stay in and design your own conveyor belt sushi experience instead.

All images © SoraNews24
● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
[ Read in Japanese ]