Fushi Poke
Poke and ramen are pure perfection in a bowl. But only, of course, if each dish is done right. And, Fushipoke is doing right better than right with a Hawaiian owner who started as a carrot peeler and worked his way up the restaurant ladder, stopping at food running, kitchen, bartending, serving, and management rungs before eventually using his finance degree to map out a business plan for what is becoming Sarasota’s favorite spot for two of the “big island’s” most famous offerings.
At its core, poke (pronounced POH-kay) is a mix of contradictory flavors and textures that, when assembled, create a harmonious balance that’s difficult, perhaps impossible, to replicate elsewhere. Sure, “bowls” have been a big thing as of late with Buddha bowls and acai bowls strutting their stuff all through social media and food blogs galore the past few years, but there’s something singularly special about the poke bowl which is, finally, taking its spot at the top of mainstream eats. Meanwhile, ramen—real ramen, not grocery store college ramen—is also having its long-deserved day in the sun, showcasing the richness, depth, and downright deliciousness of this traditional soup.
Fushipoke is a legit poke and ramen shop with ingredients that ring true to what the dishes’ heritages are all about. That’s 100% due to the owner, Tyler Fushikoshi, who is actually from Hawaii. He felt that maintaining the accuracy of dishes that are as ubiquitous to Hawaiian culture as pasta is to Italians was not only an obvious choice but a far more appetizing one. His fish is always fresh, never frozen, and comes from over a dozen purveyors depending on who can deliver the best quality at the time. His ramen noodles are from the same distributor that David Chan g uses to stock his famous Momofuku restaurants and every element, from his toppings to his beverages, is selectively chosen based on quality and authenticity. As evidenced by his respectable restaurateur journey of working his way from the basement to the rooftop, Tyler is not about cutting corners.
For their poke, name a taste or temperature and it’s sure to be in your bowl: warm rice, cold cucumber noodle s, butter y soft salmon or tuna or tofu, extra crunchy tempura flakes, sweet eel sauce, spicy mayo, salty nori strips, fermented kimchi, chewy seaweed salad, rubbery enoki mushrooms, ma sago that bursts when you bite down, and avocado that glues it all together are just some of the choices offered at the counter. Yet they all just seem to work when put together in a poke bowl, which magically turns a cacophony of option s into a melodic mix of ingredients. Maybe it’s the bowl? Makes you wonder what would happen if you put it on a plate.
And the ramen is no joke. Tyler makes his own vegetable broth as the base as he, and his team, found that the exorbitant amount of mushrooms used to make the broth gave a decidedly more bright and exciting umami flavor than meat-based versions. Throw in the traditional ingredient s, like seaweed and soft-boiled eggs that have been marinated in soy sauce and star anise, and you, my friend, have a Hawaiian classic you simply had to travel up the street to slurp down.
> Fushi Poke: 128 N Orange Ave, Sarasota, 941-330-1795; fushipoke.com
