Kabooki Orlando: Sand Lake Location Falls Short of East Colonial
Usually on Valentine’s Day, my wife and I will choose to go to a fine dining establishment, but we waited too long this year and every single place was booked out like a month in advance. So we went to the old reliable Kabooki, but this time it was the Sand Lake location because the East Colonial location was booked out as well.
Word to the wise: if you want to go somewhere special on Valentine’s Day, book it when reservations first open, which is usually a month out. You will be competing with every couple in the city.
About Kabooki Sand Lake
I will start off by saying that the Sand Lake Kabooki location is not as good as the East Colonial one in my opinion. And Kabooki is very dimly lit scene type restaurant, so if you have a hard time reading in dark places, you will probably need to turn your phone flash on just to read the menus like what the couple sitting next to us were doing. And if you want Valentine’s Day pictures in the restaurant, you will probably need to turn on your flash like what the couple on the other side of us were doing, and yes it will draw some attention.
Kabooki has been a consistent option for an upscale Japanese fusion experience, and that is why I like it. It is a date night spot and the price reflects that, along with the sports cars usually parked out front. The dishes are meant to be shareable.
What We Ordered at Kabooki Sand Lake
Truffle Scallop Tasting
We got the truffle scallop cold tasting and this was decent. My wife found it too fishy, which could have come from the yuzu dashi sauce, but I thought it was good. Very savory, unlike a lot of scallop sushi dishes I’ve eaten which tend to highlight the natural sweetness of the scallops more.
Crispy Tuna
We also got the crispy tuna, which is a guilty pleasure of mine. As the name suggests, it is basically like a deep fried nigiri. The rice is a crispy little block with tuna tartare in a spicy mayo mix along with some eel sauce drizzle. It is the fancier version of Americanized sushi, and I unapologetically love it.
Booki Booki Roll
We got the booki booki roll, which was good. Nice balance between the vinegary rice and the rich tuna on top and creaminess from the mayo and avocado with a slight crunch from the tempura shrimp inside. The rolls are not really the strongest part of the menu at Kabooki, but they do the job for those that want makimono. Kabooki more so specializes in fusion style tasting dishes.
Nigiri Moriwase
The sushi tasting I got was the biggest flop of the night. One thing about nigiri is that it is highly dependent on who is making it. Some chefs tend to make smaller pieces and others are more generous. In a restaurant with so many chefs working behind the sushi counter, it is even more of a gamble. I have no idea what kind of quality control or if they have strict portion control, but I found the nigiri to be disappointingly small.
They did not look or taste like full sized nigiri. Probably the smallest I have come across in all of Orlando, and they were a bit cold and dry by the time they were served to me because they were small. Sushi is not exactly cold food, it is a room temperature food. The fish themselves tasted a bit dry too. Good fish should be moist and have a nice sheen across the top, but overall this just tasted like it sat out too long. Having small nigiri sizes contributed to that.
Pork Jowl Donabe
The main dish and the most filling dish was the pork jowl donabe, which is Japanese style claypot rice mixed with mushrooms, egg yolk, and other seasonings. We’ve had this dish with pork jowl before and it is great. Not the biggest fan of the pickled mushrooms in the dish, but I guess it works to balance out some of the richness.
This time the dish was served with pork belly. Maybe they ran out of pork jowl, but the taste is obviously different even though it said pork jowl on the menu. Pork jowl has a snappier chewy texture to it with nice fat evenly distributed throughout the meat, while pork belly as most people have had it is very rich with the meat and fat sandwiched in layers and gets a bit much. The donabe was still good, but I wish they were transparent about what cut of meat was actually served because it does taste different.
The Verdict: Is Kabooki Sand Lake Worth $240?
At $240 for two including tip and tax, the Sand Lake location of Kabooki Orlando didn’t live up to expectations. Would I continue to go to Kabooki? Absolutely, but maybe Valentine’s Day was an off night.
I still enjoy a lot of their menu items like the rock shrimp or crispy tuna rice, but I highly recommend those who want to go to Kabooki to choose the Colonial location where the food is more consistent, unless you live significantly closer to the Sand Lake location.
The Sand Lake location has inconsistencies with nigiri size and quality control that I haven’t experienced at the East Colonial spot. For an upscale Japanese fusion date night, Kabooki is still solid, but location matters.
Tips for Visiting Kabooki Orlando
- Go to the East Colonial location for more consistent food quality
- Sand Lake location is acceptable if you live much closer
- Get the crispy tuna for guilty pleasure Americanized sushi
- Skip the sushi tasting at Sand Lake, nigiri disappointingly small
- Dishes are shareable so order accordingly
- Expect sports car crowd and date night atmosphere
Have you been to both Kabooki locations? How do they compare in your experience?
