My inaugural post starts with my hometown. Nestled between Monterey and the Silicon Valley, on the coastal lands of Santa Cruz County, is the farming community of Watsonville. I was raised here and still live here.
Santa Cruz County has something to offer everyone; from the redwood forests, to the beaches to farm lands. You can hike, bike, surf or soak up the sun. We have an abundance of fresh fruits and produce that go from farm to table; it pairs nicely with seafood from our ocean to your plate!
I will write more about Watsonville, its history and culture, and of course, the food in future posts.
https://cityofwatsonville.org; https://www.co.santa-cruz.ca.us
Watsonville is home to some of the best Mexican food in the region, Martinelli’s Apple Cider and California Giant Berry Farms, to name a few.
Watsonville has many food influences, but today I’m going to show you a place that has a fusion of Korean, Japanese and Mexican flavors all in one. And it just so happens I work there as one of their sushi chefs: Imura Japanese Restaurant (my shameless plug)!
You either hate raw fish or you can’t get enough of it! There is no in-between in my opinion.
My go to sashimi plate: salmon, hamachi (yellow tail) and saba (mackerel)! Usually this dish is plated with fresh nabu and shiso. But I always tell the chef it doesn’t need to be wasted on me. I just want the fish! These three fish cuts are my favorite.
The salmon is velvety with plenty of fat in it for flavor. Hamachi is buttery and melt-in-your-mouth. The saba is soaked in a vinegar mixture and has a nice salty and fish oily taste, which for me, goes well with beer and hot sake.
Oh, and did I mention, the Japanese beer and hot sake flows here all day! After all, what’s a traveling foodie like myself going to do without the booze to go with the food. Orion beer is my favorite at Imura. It’s light, crisp and dry! For me, that’s the perfect beer on any day.
Hot sake (Koshu Masamune) is a favorite at Imura for most customers! I’m a big fan of it and drink it after every shift!
Although we have an established menu of sushi rolls and kitchen food, the best attribute of Imura is you can order a sushi roll, bento box or sashimi plate pretty much anyway you want it!
Even vegetarians and keto diet followers can have a piece of the pie. And, yes, even after working here for some time now, I still love eating the food.
The chefs are encouraged to be creative with their customers and regulars, which has given me the opportunity to create two signature rolls of my own. I created the “bomb squad” (an ode to my former team) and the “miso-crazy” rolls.
The bomb squad is laced with all things spicy to give you that lingering burn on the palate. It’s a hit among lovers of spicy. I like watching the beads of sweat roll down their faces as they bite into the tasty roll with much anticipation. Then the search begins for a cold glass of beer or water to tame the heat.
Fresh tuna, dynamite paste and cream cheese in the middle. Spicy tuna, sweet sauce, sriracha sauce, spicy mayo sauce, jalapenos, tempura crunchies and habanero tobiko on top.
The cream cheese helps cool the burning sensation in your mouth. The dynamite paste is a mixture of sriracha sauce and Japanese chili powder. Put it all together and you get one huge explosion of heat!
For you miso salad dressing fans, I created a roll that has fresh or spicy tuna and avocado in the middle. Fresh or seared salmon on top with sweet sauce, tobiko, green onion and the miso dressing. If you want to skip the salad and go straight for the miso dressing, this is your roll!
Dessert is an amazing experience here! My favorite is the deep fried 10-20 ice cream. This rich, creamy infusion of fudge and Oreo is a tantalizing caramel experience on the tongue. You can order it by itself or have it deep fried in our tempura batter drizzled with chocolate sauce.
10-20 ice cream is made by Marianne’s Ice Cream. A local Santa Cruz creamery located on 1020 Ocean St. The 10-20 ice cream was cleverly named after their address at its original site.
https://www.mariannesicecream.com
Imura Japanese Restaurant has been in business for over 20 years and is owned and operated by the Song family.
It’s a “locals” restaurant with many “regular” customers. Some eat here almost every day. Others come to socialize, hang-out and drink beer and hot sake.
The food, the atmosphere and most importantly, the level of customer care, makes you feel like you are part of the family.
