Each spring is filled with newness, with the start of something to come, with the feeling of hope! Spring 2021 perhaps encapsulates those feelings more than any other spring in modern history. As our community works towards engagement and togetherness, we offer new ways to celebrate a hopeful spring at Shiro’s.
Dine-in service continues at 25% capacity, offering only our 19-piece chef’s omakase.
New Shiro’s Combo – March 2021
We are bringing back Shiro’s Combo for March, full of spring’s touch! It includes 10 pieces of nigiri with our signature egg omelet, 3 pieces of Futomaki (fat sushi roll) and chirashi-zushi, which is a popular food item to be served during Hina-matsuri, or Doll Festival, taking place on March 3rd in Japan.
Doll Festival marks a family’s wish for their children to grow with health and happiness. Ingredients for chirashi-zushi, which are traditionally eaten during this time, are selected with meaning. For example, beans are known for powerful growth in Japan, just as beans bring powerful grown in the tale of “Jack and the Beanstalk” in the western world. Beans are selected for chirashi-zushi as they symbolize a family’s wish for their child’s healthy and strong growth.
Order Shiro’s Combo -March 2021, $55, offered 4 – 8 p.m. only.
* Due to unprecedented number of orders, Shiro’s Combo -March 2021- is sold out for now. We appreciate your strong patronage.
(Nigiri from top left) black sea bream, medium-fatty tuna, king mackerel, Atlantic salmon with cherry leaf marinated, sea bream with
powdered york, sock-eye salmon, tuna, belt fish, shrimp, scallop
Chef’s Omakase for Takeout
One of the typical and most popular items at Shiro’s is the chef’s omakase course consisting of 18 pieces of nigiri sushi and our signature egg omelet. Although this item has undergone several name changes, the basic composition of 18 pieces plus egg omelet is unchanged. It was loved by many guests before the COVID-19 pandemic and continues to be enjoyed for dine-in service since we opened last month. We now offer it for takeout as well ($75).
When the COVID-19 pandemic began in early spring of 2020, Shiro’s had never before offered takeout, but it was a necessary shift with the closure of dine-in service. While we started with a limited menu, we got our feet under us and quickly expanded our takeout menu. We have recently added the 19-piece chef’s omakase, so our loyal guests can enjoy one of our most popular dine-in menu items, at home!
Omakase is a familiar word for Shiro’s fan. The verb form of Omakase is Makaseru, which means “entrust.” Although this Japanese word has come to be widely used in a Japanese restaurant, we always recognize the meaning of the word and prepare our sushi with honor and responsibility.
New Sake Stories at Shiro’s
When we re-opened our dining room last month, we introduced small bottle sake, which hold 300 ml (10.14 oz). While Japan officially adopted the metric system in 1891, there is also a traditional measurement system called Shakkan-hou, and many sake bottles are referred to as “go.” 1 go is about 180 ml. (or 6 oz.). In fact, a small Tokkuri, or sake decanters, is 1 go.
Although 2 go is technically 360ml (12 oz), a 300 ml bottle, like we now serve at Shiro’s, is often called a 2 go bottle. At Shiro’s, we simply call them small bottles, ideal for one person, or the larger 10 oz bottle that is meant for two people.
Currently, we are serving the following small sake bottles (10oz or
12oz) in our dining room and on our takeout menu (in addition to others of various sizes online).
Shirakabe Gura Tosuken Junmai (10oz) Kubota Junmai Daiginjo (10oz) Hakkaisan Sparking Nigori (12oz) Suigei Tokusen Junmai (10oz) |
What do you see in March in Japan?
The school year in Japan begins in April and ends in March. Yes, March is the time for graduation. Many schools conduct their graduation ceremonies in the latter half of March, which means that in some parts of Japan graduation occurs during cherry blossom season. It makes a wonderful, scenic picture of a graduation ceremony with full cherry blossoms in the background; a keepsake of bitter-sweet memories of school life.
If a school has uniforms, students wear those uniform for the last time in their life. If not, students dress how they like. Many university students choose to wear Hakama, a traditional Japanese kimono, with trousers. Although graduation scenes are different in Japan and the U.S., different, mixed feelings of completion, achievement, satisfaction, and sorrow for separation are all consistent, regardless of which side of the Pacific Ocean graduation takes place.
We offer a congratulations to all graduating students in Japan!
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