DECEMBER 8, 2004
A cheery waitress, Christian Baker, welcomed me to Kon Nechi Wa’s in its new location, near Menards, on a recent Sunday afternoon. As I puzzled over the menu, she explained that sushi is the rice, sashimi is raw fish and calamari is squid.
This I know, but this I forget. It isn’t often I visit a Japanese restaurant.
It’s pleasing to see this one faring well in a new location that has double the space of its former location, in the Grand Cities Mall. Kon Nechi Wa’s (which means good afternoon) is a unique, appealing place. It now has three small rooms, in traditional Japanese style, that are semiprivate, with half-length curtains. Instead of seating on the floor with space for feet in a pit below, Kon Nechi Wa’s has tatami mat seats of regular chair height for Westerners, with cushions for comfort. It provides an opportunity to experience fairly authentic Japanese dining.
The menu features a daily special of chicken or beef fried rice, an egg roll and beverage ($4.95). There are appetizers, teriyaki stir-fried meals ranging from $6.95 to $9. Soups, fried rice and sushi are offered in a variety of combinations. The rice is prepared each day, and sushi is made to order. Some customers ask for no monosodium glutamate. Others ask for ingredients in a wheat-free diet. Sachi MacGregor, owner and head chef, is willing and eager to accommodate.
My choice was a skewer of five coconut-breaded shrimp ($3.75) and a pork egg roll ($2) from the appetizer menu. That tasted so good, I asked for an order of smoked salmon sushi to take home ($8). It came with a touch of wasabi (you have to go easy on that green hot horseradish) and some ginger. The food, especially the sushi, was excellent and a pleasing departure from the routine. It was well presented and inviting. It left me thinking I ought to pick this up more often.
I like the freshly prepared food in Kon Nechi Wa’s and the variety of choices. I like the fish-shaped pottery plate on which the shrimp was served and the matching plate for the egg roll. I don’t care much for the plastic glasses that say Coca-Cola, but they are new and shiny.
It’s also nice that there are disposable chopsticks on each table, as well as sweet-and-sour sauce in mild and sharp versions. Somehow, Japanese food tastes better to me if I use chopsticks—albeit clumsily.
Soft background music would be nice. As it was, there was only the sound of a compressor while I was eating.