I tried these places at lunch on Saturday. The first two are in or near the food court at the Oviedo Mall. The last two are in the strip mall on the near right side of Red Bug Lake Rd (Tuskawilla?) coming from 436. It was a surprise that the first two made the better dishes.
Japanatolia - A fusion of Turkish and sushi. Kind of. They only sell five rolls. And they are barely Japanese. More Eastern European menu if anything. No fish. Mostly veg. Only rolled in roast beef. One was rolled with collard greens. At $8+ I deviated from the plan. Oh. It's also not a restaurant. It is a stall. I did settle on the chicken in bechemal sauce with rice and mashed potatoes and salad. It was very good. Very rich. Cost $10. Lots of tender chicken. Some pieces seemed like they were ground chicken. Some whole pieces. Bechemal was fine. Mashed potatoes were very rich. Rice was ok. A little mushy. Salad was just carrots, etc in vinegar and oil. They had a few other hot dishes. One with meatballs. They gave me a sample of a lemon semolina dessert. It was good. I think the owner said he was from Istanbul. And the logo has the bridge that spans the Bosphorous on it. Maybe they call it Anatolia because that is the Asian part and Japan is in Asia? Not what I expected, but, acceptable. Very good for a mall stall. And if you need a Dr Oz impersonator, see the cook. Open a month.
Oyishi - They have a decently appointed restaurant with hibachi tables and a bar and a sushi bar. A little aged. Way better than the to go area. I popped into there because this was not planned. That area looks like a worn out Chinese take out place in a dirty city. I ordered the salmon (smoked) and avocado and cream cheese roll for $7 because they didn't look trustworthy to deliver the hibachi side and my stomach had been waiting for sushi. It was a shock. I'm not sure if they made a mistake, but, they gave me two 8 piece rolls. The rice was done correctly. The ingredients were fresh. Came out fast. They also do teriyaki, hibachi, bentos, etc. Probably has been open for years.
Hearts of Jerusalem - The worst of the four. And I expected it to be the best. Arab Jerusalem cuisine. The menu said they have three in Colorado Springs. Open for one year. I tried the $14 Ultimate Plate after they tried to up sell me to a $23 kebab plate. It had thin, non-descript lamb/beef gyro meat and terrible chicken shwarma. Also a Greek salad (best thing) and bland hummus and raw pita triangles. I suspect the gyro meat was not even shaved. And definitely not from their own slab. The chicken looked like the stuff you get from a fast food restaurant/supermarket salad bar in their salads. Bag chicken. Plus some of that was even plastic-y. Frozen. No rice. Biggish menu. The usual suspects. Local color decoration. TV showing Medina. Three columns of tables. Japanatolia was way better.
Kabuto Sushi - I think it was Nagoya before. Only tried because I was there already. Plus I could see, if I did, that this could be a two cuisine food war post. Compare and contrast. I tried the Alaska Roll for 47. Only 1 roll this time. 8 pieces. Fresh salmon. No cc. Avocado and cuke. It was ok. Salmon was a bit soft. Looks good inside. Black and modern. Small. They said kabuto is the hat samurais wear. Open for two years. Menu looked good. Ramen+.
Travel Notes - Vermont/New Hampshire/Maine/New York: Flight to Albany cost $182. Rental car (Budget) cost $436 for week. Spent the first night in Latham NY at a Microtel for $107 because late night flight got in two hours late. Ate a breakfast Beach (cinnamon and vanilla icing) donut at Duck Donuts because I saw a billboard. Drove north on 4 to Saratoga NHP. Continued up to 30 and 7 to Middlebury VT. Saw the college. Continued north to Burlington. had a cream cheese and tuna fish bagel at Feldman's Bagels. It was as bad as it sounds. Or more correctly, couldn't taste the cc. The road it was on had a lot of interesting looking food options. Went east on 89 to Richmond. Went to Cochran's Ski Area. Like 4 Olympian skiers learned there. It was just some guys backyard hill. Saw it on ESPN or 60 Minutes. Further east to North Woodstock NH. Stayed at the Inn 32 for $137. Ate falafel plate with naan and beer at Pemi Public House. Had a beer at Woodstock Inn Brewery. Went to Franconia Notch SP. Just north. Flume Gorge for $21. Aerial tram at Cannon Mountain was $29. Didn't do. Went back to town and saw a place called Clarke's Bears and Hobo RR. The RR was $20, but, just left. Ate an egg and cheese muffin and a great Rueben at White Mtn Bagel in Lincoln NH. Took 112 east to 11 to Maine and up 202 to avoid tolls to Augusta. Then 3 to Belfast and 1A up to Bangor for the same reason. Stayed at a shit box called Queen City Inn for $114. Up 95 to Medway and then Millinocket to Baxter SP and Mt Kahadin (Appalachian Trail northern terminus). $16. Back south on 95 to Orono. Saw University of Maine. Down 15 to Deer Island and Stonington. Had a $26 lobster roll at Stonington Ice Cream Company. Not bad. Back up and over to Belfast. Stayed at Yankee Clipper Motel for $130. Ate at Young's Lobster Pound. Bad (boiled) 1 1/8 lobster for $26. Nice view though. Got 4.5 stars on Yelp. Went to Rockland to buy ferry tickets. Had half dozen Damariscotta River oysters for $16. Very good. Bought round trip to North Haven Island for $17. Spent rest of day driving the coast off 1. 32 to Pemaquid Point Lighthouse. 27 to Booth Bay. Etc. Back to Rockport for a cheese and herb flatbread at American Flatbread. Slept in Rockland at the Ledges on the Bay for $140. Great view. Bought some cheese and wine and Joseph's by Riverside from Lawrence MA hummus and ate it looking over the ocean. Took ferry to North Haven. Not much there and most things weren't even open. Saw it on tv. The draw was the Nebo Lodge restaurant. Closed. Went up some path to Ames Knob. Good view. Nice ferry ride. Drove south on 1 again to Waldoboro. Grabbed some clam strips and a hd at Delano Seafood Shack. Farther down to Brunswick. Slept at Relax Inn for $102. Down 1 to Wells. Had haddock bites and clam chowder at Wells Beach Lobster Pound. Had bad mussels at Baston River Fish Camp Brewing. Beer was good. All other food dishes looked great. They just opened. Stayed at Anchor Inn for $116 (they tacked on a RF that I will dispute). Took 9 west through Concord to 393 to 202 to 9. Stopped at Franklin Pierce Homestead in Hillsborough NH. To Brattleboro VT. Had a great Roundabout Russian on Marble Rye (T and CH and Sprouts) at Vermont Country Deli. On to Bennington. Saw the college. You should read Rules of Attraction to see why. Onto Albany/Latham and I had cannoli ice cream at Control Tower. Plane left on time. Gas was around $5 everywhere.
** Some interesting ice creams; coffee brandy, vanilla and eclair crunch swirl with red caps (Maine Lobster), vanilla and raspberry jam with caps (Maine Black Bear), espresso and heath bar (Maine Deer Tracks).
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