Oh yeah!

From Michael Chou of Osaka fame comes the newest gem in the area, Sushi Rocks. Located in Sandestin in the Village, this one promises to be an exclusive, be seen place with a hip, relaxed atmosphere and some tasty Japanese fare brought to you by Andy, moving over from the Sushi Bar at Osaka to take care of business here.

The decor was really appealing with an understated elegance but not pretentious. My 15 year old son even said he wanted the chairs that line the sushi bar as we sat in our smartly appointed booth overlooking the Village Lagoon.

We stopped in for lunch and had the place to ourselves since it was only 11 AM and the newness of the place has it still being passed by word of mouth.

Now, before I go further, let me tell you that the prices here are a bit higher than Osaka due to the location and of course the same goes for other eateries in Sandestin. It comes with the resort life but it is worth it. The only issue I had was my small hot sake was $8 instead of $5 which seems a bit at odds until I realized that the quality was also better.

As always with Andy, the conversation was as good as the food and we felt like we had our own private chef. We did for this meal. I digress.

My son ordered his lunch box with chicken and veggie tempura that also came with Miso Soup or salad, he got the soup, a portion of California roll, cuke salad, gyoza and also ordered his fave roll, Shrimp Tempura. Again, the sushi is a bit higher than Osaka and the roll was 7.95 here. His tempura as always was hot, light and crisp, my fave way to eat it. I always get to munch on his veggies since he is more a chicken kind of guy.

I ordered one of the salads which are not available at Osaka and got mine with Tuna. Andy gave me the good stuff and it was over a nice fresh plate of salad greens and not iceberg either. It was drizzled with a light seasoned mayo type dressing and Andy gave me the cucumber wasabi dressing on the side, which is a ranch type dressing with a light and zingy flavor. He also made me my usual lunch portion of sashimi and surprised me with an order of snapper that he had "fermented" in kelp. At first I was leery since I had not liked fermented bean paste before but this was a nice even flavor with a bit more seafood kick but perfectly acceptable to my palate. Of course I eat almost anything this side of Limberger Cheese. The other cuts of fish were "fresh in the boat" good and the lemon to squeeze on them added more fresh flavor.

Service is always good as well and of course even better once you get to be a regular. Andy then treated us to a dessert of red bean ice cream wrapped in a rice type paper covering. My son was a bit hesitant UNTIL he took the first bite and a big smile came on his sweet craving face. He loved it as did I and will add it to our orders when we are not to full in the future.

You can get in and out of Sushi Rocks for about $25 for two if you choose specials only for lunch BUT I would say with all they have to offer, good luck. We made it out at about $55 but our first trip here will NOT be our last. Let me also say, this would be a GREAT date place for an early evening dinner of light fresh sushi and then on to other things.

Take advantage of Andy's talents and ask him to create for you in any department of food items. He is glad to make special rolls and told us that he has soy paper and can do many things differently here in the more quaint setting. He makes the place like an art gallery for sushi and in this setting that fits perfectly.

After all this I am giving Sushi Rocks my full rating of 5 stars and encourage you to visit as soon as possible to try it! You won't be sorry and you WILL be back.

Tell Andy KeithGoesCoastal sent you!!!!


www.KeithGoesCoastal.com