Loving Sushi at the Sushi Bar Hime

The first time we visited this tiny little spot in downtown Hilo several months ago was at the urging of a friend who knew my son Anthony and I write restaurant reviews for The Hawaii Island Journal for the East side of the island.  We fell in love with the ambiance, the owners and of course, the sushi.  Since then we have visited several times and they have never disappointed.

The place has been sort of a well-kept secret since their opening in January, but that is how the owners Yugi and Takako Sekiguchi like it.  Customers who have found it will tell other sushi aficionados and that is the only form of advertising the Sekiguchis want.

"It is just the two of us, and this is a very small place", says Chef Sekiguchi, "we want to keep our regular customers happy" .  When asked about the name "Hime" we were told that it means Princess in Japanese and it is the name of their pet kitty....a beautiful, sleek black "princess" who answers to the name of Hime and is also their mascot and logo shown wearing a golden crown.

Located in the space originally occupied by "Canoes", the tiny place will seat only 10 people comfortably......but the food....! Oh, the food....!

Photo: One of our favorites is the Spicy Crab Roll with cucumber and asparagus - on a very spicy sauce redolent of sambal, cilantro, chives and lightly balanced with the sweet taste of honey.

I think through the months we have tried almost everything on their menu....even the eel sushi, which I was most reluctant to try and did at the urging of a dining companion during one of our visits.  I was pleasantly surprised to not find it fishy but actually, slightly sweet!

Photo: Another of our favorite selections is the Orange Sherbet Scallop Wrap.  Yummy raw scallop in a slightly spice sauce that hints at orange and wrapped in a soft  'crepe' made of green soy flour.

Photo: Scallop & Hamakua Mushroom Medley baked in a fantastic tasting sauce.

On our last visit we were pleased to see a new item on the menu and of course had to taste it.....They call it Baked Dynamite and is a combination of an assortment of Hamakua mushrooms and scallops baked in a white sauce and served in a scallop shell about 6 inches in diameter...............Delicious!

We could not "take apart" the seasonings in the sauce,  but we all agreed it had a beautiful consistency, was well balanced and tasted ....well, like dynamite!

Originally trained in Japan, the Sekiguchis came to Hilo from Maui, where they also operated a sushi place for several years... Previous to Maui and the Big Island, they lived in Canada and in New Caledonia in the South Pacific before that....

Altogether Chef Sekiguchi has been practicing the art of sushi making for about 36 years...and it shows!

(c) Sonia Martinez & Anthony Mathis - Some content taken from our review for the Hawaii Island Journal - May 19, 2007 issue