The mission to explore takeout dining during Utah’s COVID-19 restaurant closures and reopenings continues. This week, we chose to avail ourselves of the curbside pickup program at Takashi, which is still closed for in-house dining. If there is an upside, it’s that curbside pickup means you don’t have to wait for an hour or more to get a table to dine at Takashi. The curbside pickup experience was quick and easy, with designated curbside pickup parking right in front of the restaurant. 

Takashi is currently offering curbside pickup for lunch and dinner Monday thru Saturday. They are closed on Sundays. Phone consultants are available a half-hour prior to pickup hours for customers to begin placing orders at both Takashi and its sister establishment Post Office Place. The takeout menu features the best of both worlds: items from Takashi and Post Office Place, ranging from sushi, sashimi and maki rolls to ceviche, Asian pork carnitas, green papaya salad, and deconstructed Azekura: seared flank steak with tempura-fried portobello and green beans. The takeout menu in general is very robust and features rice bowls, soups, salads, appetizers, signature sushi rolls, sashimi, nigiri, lunch combos, cocktail mixes to-go, desserts, and even Takashi face masks and hand sanitizer. 

Since my wife and I are such fans of the sushi at Takashi, we chose to stick with sushi rolls and nigiri for our takeout meal. They travel well. We began with the Nigiri Sushi Combination ($10) which includes marugo tuna, sake (salmon), yellowtail (hamachi) and albacore. Nigiri at Takashi is of the highest quality, second to none. 

Next we shared a maki sushi selection from the Takashi takeout menu: A Spicy Maguro roll ($5.75) made with fresh melt-in-the-mouth minced maguro tuna and homemade spicy sauce wrapped in nori. It’s a roll that is very simple and inexpensive, but absolutely delicious.

There are more than 20 signature sushi rolls on the Takashi takeout menu, plus a handful of vegetarian rolls and maki sushi – quite a large selection. One of our favorite Takashi rolls is the Easy Rider ($8.95). It’s a roll with rice on the outside and inside a scrumptious combination of maguro tuna, fresh mint, avocado, Thai basil and fresh wasabi, topped with roasted and crushed sesame seeds. The citrus and herbal flavors of the Thai basil and mint pair beautifully with the tuna and avocado. 

Taking a brief break from sushi rolls, we enjoyed a couple more pieces of nigiri: ebi, which is tender, tasty shrimp ($3/2 pieces) and iwana (arctic char) which was $5.95 for two pieces. I could have eaten a dozen of these nigiri alone. 

Finally, we wrapped up our Takashi takeout dinner with another roll: Imagine ($14.95). The Imagine roll is outstanding: fresh albacore tuna, avocado, and shiso leaf wrapped in sushi rice and topped with tuna tartare and tobiko.  

It goes without saying that we miss being able to sit at the sushi bar and chat with the always amiable and generous Takashi Gibo and his superb sushi chefs. But until the restaurant opens for in-house dining again, I have to say that enjoying Takashi’s cuisine at home with a nice bottle of wine or sake is pretty darned appealing. 

Culinary quote of the week: 

“I always thought that bagels and lox was my soul food, but it turns out it’s sushi.” — Sara Sheridan  

FOR MORE RESTAURANT REVIEWS GO HERE.

THIS CONTENT IS FROM UTAH BITES NEWSLETTER.

CLICK HERE AND RECEIVE WEEKLY RESTAURANT REVIEWS, TED’S FAVORITE RECIPE, AND DRINK OF THE WEEK.

Originally trained as an anthropologist, Ted Scheffler is a seasoned food, wine & travel writer based in Utah. He loves cooking, skiing, and spends an inordinate amount of time tending to his ever-growing herd of guitars and amplifiers.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS: click on their logos to visit their website

[envira-gallery slug=”food-logos”]