Seabar

I hate the suburbs. I really, really do. I am spoiled too, since everything I want to do and all the people I want to see are located within the comfortable confines of my West Side neighborhood. Sometimes people will suggest a new restaurant and I'll ask where it is. On Niagara Falls Boulevard? Blecch. Out in the wilds of Williamsville? Even worse. However, I read recently that Mike Andrejewski, recently of the sadly defunct Tsunami, opened a sushi bar in Williamsville. My mouth watered but I wrote it off.

Moving right along in my story...My friend AB, originally from Buffalo but longtime resident of Seattle, descended upon Buffalo last night for her annual visit. She invited me out to dinner with her family and this is an event I always look forward too. Her pops and his wife have some incredible taste. Going out to eat with them is a treat; I get the inside scoop on the newest restaurants, I hear the gossip surrounding why the old ones closed, we enter through the back door, through the kitchen and have the owner comp our meals. Such is the life. God, I am really taking a long time to get to the point, forgive me. So they wanted to go to Seabar and I'm glad they decided to make the drive, not me.

We ordered a medley of dishes to share. I will dissect them one by one for you.

1. Best Spicy Tuna Roll: That's what is was called on the menu. It was not the best. It wasn't spicy, not even a little bit. And I think using rice crispies instead of little, fried tempura bits is just plain corny.

2. Spider Roll: I love a deep-fried soft-shell crab married to a luscious avocado. You can't go wrong here.

3. Beef on Weck Roll: Yup, you read me right. Only in Buffalo. For those non-Buffalonians, roast beef on a kimmelwick roll, with coarse salt, caraway seeds and horseradish is local legend. I quite liked this roll, but mostly for its quirkiness. I probably would only order this once, just to try it.

4. Miso Caramel Crab Roll: Wow. This was so unique and quite tasty. I'd elaborate but it disappeared before I could really get a handle on it.

5. Unagi BLT Hand Roll: Clearly, they are taking liberty with what is actually sushi. Actually, I would argue that their sushi wasn't all that, it was their "dishes" that really toed the line of excellence. I felt the same way about this as I did about Beef on Weck Roll.

6. Calamari, Seared Ahi Tuna and Chinese Black Beans Over Rice: This is where it gets really good. The tuna was stellar. The Seattle-ites proclaimed it the best tuna they had ever had. This is in contrast to the "best" spicy tuna roll, by which we were all so overwhelmingly underwhelmed. THIS was the best tuna.

7. Foie Gras with Mango and Smoky Eel Sauce: Keep in mind we had an extensive discussion about what they do to those poor ducks to produce this succulent treat. We ordered it anyway. Let me first state the only negative. The foie gras wasn't cooked as I'd like it. The sear on the outside wasn't up to par. That said, the sauce was amazing. I really could have eaten just the rice drizzled with that sauce. I want that recipe. It also was served with tiny cubes of mango, tossed in a bracing and acidic dressing, perfect to cut the rich foie gras. It was garnished with a sort of fried wonton of seaweed, which I loved.

8. Crunchy Avocado with Ahi Tuna and Chili Mousse: What is crunchy avocado, you ask? My best guess is mashed up avocado, shaped into a cake, dipped into tempura batter and fried. I don't know if it could be that simple, considering its greatness. Then there were glistening chunks of raw tuna, tossed with sesame seeds, arranged in a semi-circle around the avocado cake, topped with tobiko and surrounded by dots of wasabi sauce and a chili mousse. I normally have no patience for foams, mousses and the like but this was truly outstanding. I had no idea what is was when I tasted it and the sequence of flavors that rolled across my tongue upon tasting was surprising and very pleasant.

Again, I apologize for the lack of photos. I am currently embroiled in a bitter battle with Casio regarding my camera. It's shame I couldn't get some pictures of dinner last night because each piece was visually stunning. I suppose you will just have to go there if you want to see.