THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, January 23, 1997 TAG: 9701220123
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: On The Town
SOURCE: Sam Martinette
LENGTH: 80 lines
As this column celebrates its ninth year in publication, a look back shows that the first column - on Jan. 21, 1988 - was a cover story on the burgeoning Ghent restaurant scene.
When I checked the list of 35 restaurants mentioned in the story, I was amazed to find only 12 of the 28 independent eateries have survived.
You probably remember the Intermission, Clark's, Courtney's and Master's, but do you recall Mexico in Ghent, Trattoria Roma, Savories and Le Bon Cote? How about Raw Bar Bay, Chappell's, Doubleday's or the Sweet Shoppe?
More than half of the restaurants profiled that first year are gone - 27 of 48, to be precise. It's a tough business, but the good news is that, in many cases, a new operator stepped in at the old location, changed the name and concept and fired up the burners to chase the American dream of being the boss.
A couple of notable successes that year include Jerry Meltsner's No Frill Grill on Tidewater Drive and Mike Cavish's Fellini's, going strong in its third location, on 21st Street.
Clark's, a Colley Avenue restaurant and executive hang-out during the 1980s, has been Szechuan in Ghent since 1990. The latest innovation of King San and Chia Chi Nee is the addition of sushi, with chef Sam Matsumoto doing the honors since the bar area was redesigned and opened with a Japanese motif on Nov. 1.
Matsumoto, whose years of experience in the seafood business led to his mastering the art of sushi and sashimi, came to Ghent from Kyushu in Virginia Beach, where the Nees were regular customers. A native of Sendai, Japan, the chef said he worked in New York, Washington and Richmond before coming here two and a half years ago.
When Chai Chi Nee how they came to combine Chinese and Japanese cuisine under one roof, Chai Chi Nee explained, ``We went to Kyushu once a week and would see our customers. Our bar did not do well, so we decide to do this.''
The sushi bar is separate from the dining room, but you can order Japanese dishes from any table in the house. The dining room has dropped ceilings reminiscent of the paper walls of old Japan. Several tables increase the seating in that area to 30.
You'll find Sam Matsumoto behind a counter laden with portions of smoked eel and salmon, boiled octopus, marinated mackerel and assorted raw seafood with which he plies his trade.
There he slices, dices and displays the various dishes on a gta, the small wooden bed-like table that serves as a platter.
Diners may order sushi or sashimi (sliced fish served without a seaweed wrap and rice) a la carte. Two pieces of yellow tail tuna cost $3.75, while shrimp or squid cost $2.75. A Tekka Maki (raw, fresh tuna rolled in a wrap of rice and seaweed) is cut into six pieces and costs $3.25. An eel and cucumber Temaki (or hand-rolled sushi) is $3.50.
Sushi is served with wasabi, a green Japanese horseradish that should be mixed with soy sauce for dipping, and slices of ginger root.
Matsumoto recommends beginners start with a California Roll, designed for those not ready for raw fish, or a vegetable roll. Sushi and sashimi may be ordered as a dinner, served with a salad, Miso soup and rice. The vegetable sushi combination ($9.50) offers five pieces of vegetable sushi and a vegetable roll, while the sushi regular ($12.95) offers eight assorted pieces of sushi and a tuna roll. The sashimi deluxe ($16) is an assortment of fresh, raw fish.
If you aren't ready for that, you might try the non-raw fish assortment ($12), with five pieces of boiled, steamed or marinated fish and one non-raw roll.
Szechuan's sushi bar also offers hot Japanese meals, including tempura shrimp and vegetables ($11.50); beef Udon, white wheat noodle soup with stewed beef ($10); Ra-Men, hot noodle soup with roast pork and vegetables ($8); and lots more. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by SAM MARTINETTE
Chef Sam Matsumoto of Szechuan in Ghent does his fancy work at the
sushi bar, where he slices, dices and displays the various dishes.
AT A GLANCE
Sushi Bar at Szechuan in Ghent: 1517 Colley Ave., 625-1551.
Prices: Appetizers, $2.75-$3.75; entrees, $9.50-$16.
Hours: Open for lunch Monday through Friday and for dinner seven
days a week. Szechuan in Ghent restaurant is open for lunch and
dinner daily.