I first visited Sake Bomb a few months ago, right after it opened, and have been talking it up ever since. With good sushi, an unpretentious atmosphere and sake bombs going off everywhere (I'll explain in a minute), it feels like a restaurant and a house party. It's not often that I have that kind of experience dining out, particularly in Cincinnati, and I liked it.
But when I went back to Sake Bomb recently, things had changed. There was new artwork on the walls, the lights had been dropped to a softer level and there was a more refined feeling in the air. Most concerning, though, I didn't see a single sake bomb the whole time I was there. (If you've never tried one, a sake bomb is a delicate commingling that occurs when a cup of sake is suspended on chopsticks over a pint of beer. A count ("1, 2, 3, SAKE BOMB!") culminates in a table pounding that unseats the sake, which splashes into the beer and usually all over the table. The surprisingly smooth and palatable mix gets downed in a gulp.)
Somehow, in a few months, the place got all grown up.
I stopped short of regaling my dining companion — a grown-up, sophisticated, Blackberry-toting businesswoman — with too many lampshade-on-your-head kind of stories about my first visit ("... and then the server banged the table and the beer went everywhere!"). Determined to re-taste former glory, though, I proposed kicking off our meal with a round of sake bombs. My companion paused, looked around the room of earnest Hyde Parkers fingering elegantly plated sushi, and coolly demurred: "Maybe after dinner ... or in the bar." Alas, the Sake Bomb of my dissolute November had gentrified into a far more respectable January.
When I later called the restaurant to ask about this alcoholic evolution, they assured me that although the dining room might have matured, the bar area is still sake bomb central. Patrons crowd in, clamoring for chain reaction, domino-style multiple sake bombs, and Vegas-like flaming versions, drawn by the magnetic, fun-loving personality of the owner, Charlie Choi. What a relief. What drew me to Sake Bomb in the first place was that it felt atypical and fun — that it was not just another sedate place to get sushi.
For starters, we tried the Edamame ($5), Vegetable Tempura ($6) and Gyoza ($5). The steamed soybeans were fresh and nicely salted, the tempura was excellent and not at all greasy, and the pork dumplings were tasty and perfectly cooked.
When it comes to entrées at Sake Bomb, it's all about the sushi. My advice is to go straight for the special rolls. We tried the Dynamite Roll ($8.95), a melding of Baked Spicy Tuna, Salmon, Yellowtail and Red Snapper. This was delicious, with a nice level of heat. From an illicit-sounding category called Tropical Fantasy Fruit Special Rolls, we picked the Mango Roll ($11.95), containing Salmon, Mango, Avocado and Radish. This unlikely combination wrapped in delicate soy paper was exceptionally light and flavorful. Unfortunately, some of the sushi was unevenly cut — a serious offense in the pure melding of style and substance that is Japanese cuisine. We also tried a Chicken Teriyaki entrée: The chicken was moist and nicely presented, but the sauce was unbalanced, too much salt and not enough sweet.
Service was somewhat ragged. Initially we had two servers until they figured out whose table it was. Food came out in spurts, and we canceled our dessert on the advice of our server, who reported that the kitchen was so backed up that our order would take 20 minutes. At least he was honest. To be fair, every table was full, and there were two large parties of 10 or more, so the night might not have represented their best. Noise was also a very serious problem — not from music, but from people trying to talk over the noise of other people talking. My ears were literally ringing after I left.
Even with these issues, I'm still a fan of Sake Bomb. It's got good sushi and good personality. I am definitely going back — maybe a little earlier on a weekend night when it's not so busy, or on a weeknight, or perhaps for lunch. Now that would be a good time to enjoy a flaming sake bomb. ©
Charlie's Sake Bomb
Go: 3672 Erie Ave., Cincinnati
Call: 513-533-0555
Hours: Lunch: 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, noon-5 p.m. Sunday. Dinner: 5 p.m.-midnight Tuesday-Sunday. Closed Monday.
Prices: Reasonable to expensive
Payment: Major credit cards
Red Meat Alternatives: All the fish you could ever want
Accessibility: Small step up at front door. Wheelchair access through back door from the rear parking area
Grade: B
