Overpricing aside, Amman offers a broad spectrum of choices in international dining. I’ve never craved a type of dish without finding some outlet to satisfy that craving. The only exception has been Maki-zushi. No, not Sushi (vinegared rice), not sahsimi (tender raw fish). Maki is about finding the perfect bite made of your choice of topping surrounded by rice which is then rolled inside dried pressed seaweed. Trust me it tastes much better than it sounds.
Maki delivery from Noodasia (click to zoom/enhance)
The photo above shows Noodasia’s idea of Maki. It’s alright but only a facsimile of what this American variation of the Japanese treat should taste like. The green stuff is Wasabi (similar to horseraddish (فجل) sauce), the red container has pickled ginger. You’re supposed to eat between different types of Maki to clear your taste palate. I dont’ like any kind of ginger. 30 Maki Pieces at 50JD, easily 3 times more expensive than a US restaurant, but I wonder how expensive Mansaf would be in LA ?
Googling for “Sushi in Amman”, I found this post by Qwaider. Read the bottom of the comments section for an example of how bloggers sometimes get stalked by weirdos. Although the photos suggest Qwaider’s more fond of Sashimi rather than Maki, he recommends The Living Room as one of the better sushi restaurants in Amman. I haven’t had a chance to try it yet.
Maki Close-up (click to zoom/enhance)
The only kind of Maki-zushi I like is a variation of what in the US has been dubbed the (California Roll). Basically crab-meat (not imitation), guacamole (avocado paste), cucumber, spicy-mayo, and tempura (crispy fried bread crumbs). The problem is, most places in Amman put the rice outside the seaweed, and then sprinkle the tempura on top. This makes it messy (see close-up above), and overpowers the flavor of the ingredients inside. To make things worse, they use too much rice, and a tiny amount of topping making the bite a thin tall cylinder of rice instead of a wider flatter circular taste of heaven.
19 Users Commented In This Post
Posted from
8-9-2008 at 21:13:20
offff! ghali 3andkon!! I am no fan of sashimi at all though
Posted from
8-9-2008 at 21:21:21
Chika
yeah, $2.35 per bite!
Me too, Maki is about the only thing I’d order at a Japanese restaurant.
Posted from
8-9-2008 at 21:57:06
50JDs on a meal?! Time for good ol’ mansaf - cheap and tasty.
Posted from
8-9-2008 at 22:39:35
Khaled yeah, although a good mansaf is like 6JD (used to be 3JD a couple of years back). Still sometimes I feel like something different.
Posted from
8-10-2008 at 02:06:43
I love shushi … but the real stuff is proper expensive … while the ok stuff I can get at the market for £2.50
damn food prices ..
Posted from
8-10-2008 at 02:27:53
shashini o la tghaddini, i don’t eat any of this japanese food, i don’t hate but it all sounds like an appetizer to me !
And for God’s sake, if you’re telling someone about Wasabi, you should warn them in advance how spicy and hot it is.
They should also not avoid serving wasabi and guacamole in the same place, you can get them mixed, i learned it the hard way
Posted from
8-10-2008 at 05:24:34
damn that’s expensive!
Posted from
8-10-2008 at 07:37:47
Sabeur
misery loves company!
Hareega
Good point, it’s finger food, and as an appetizer, it wouldn’t be bad particularily in restaurants that have lotsa other choices like Noodasia. I love their Padh Thai noodles.
Thanks for the wasabi hazard warning ! The roll comes with a small amount of Wasabi in it, some people put some more, and others mix it with the soy sauce. Apparently in some places the chef will be insulted if you use more wasabi.
lol true Wasabi and guac look identical :)
asoom
If I were any good at cooking, I would try making my own. Plus I’m not sure where you can get compressed dried seaweed. I had a Korean friend who would eat that like potato chips!
Posted from
8-10-2008 at 09:04:57
If you ever come here I will take you to an all you can eat for 120 AED :D
I love LOVE all them foodlings! sa7tein ya basha
Thanks for explainin the differences though :) I usually tell the guy to put bits of everything… it was freaky when I saw an octopus tentacle. Chewy!
Posted from
8-10-2008 at 09:19:00
KJ
Deal, and if you ever come here, I’ll take you for Raqabat Ma7shiyeh (rice stuffed goat necks!).
lol an octopus tentacle, I’ve seen some menus list spider among the ingredients. You gotta love the Japanese people :)
While we’re on the subject, when are you planning on cooking Peter ? I hear turtle soup is very good :P
Posted from
8-10-2008 at 12:41:17
Hmmm that really doesn’t look tasty, no offense. And that is a heck a lot of wasabi for that quantity of food. Its always good to play tricks on people though, try to get one of your friends to have a teaspoon of them and see their reaction :p
Oh and its not hard cooking sushi at all, a friend of mine taught me how and I’ve been making it every once in a while. The most important thing is to cook the rice correctly, but the hardest bit is rolling the damn thing to stop any bits falling. I doubt you can find any asian shops in Amman but we’re lucky here we got the ingredients in normal supermarkets.
Posted from
8-10-2008 at 12:50:33
LOOOOOOOOOL Hani! I actually had a dream I was cooking him! That poor thing!
What’s funnier is that Peter is a she. Yes! Gender confused turtles with extra taste!
But first I gotta feed him well so he grows big enough to make stew to share with you ;)
And sheesh @ stuffed necks! I am anti meat, unless it is minced. In other words I don’t like chewing muscle :S Chicken excluded
Posted from
8-10-2008 at 14:08:32
Ali
Quite right, it looks horrible. It would look much better if they put the seaweed on the outside, along with the tempura inside with the ingredients, it would taste much better too since your tongue won’t be overwhelmed with the taste/texture of the rice.
That Wasabi came with 60 pieces rather than the 30 shown, but I hardly used any of it anyway, and I’d never play that joke on a friend, maybe an enemy :)
Yeah I’ve seen it made on a cooking show once, but the thing is just cooking plain rice is a challenge for me!
KJ
A she-turtle named Peter that eats lettuce? You could write books!
Hmmmmm no meat? ok, then it’s going to have to be Brighton Fish and Chips, and you better like Cod :P
Posted from
8-11-2008 at 02:53:47
I like trying different foods but for some reason sea food minus fish isn’t my thing. I hate the texture (shrimp for example)! and I have this wild imagination that makes it even worse to swallow. I wish I can like sushi because it looks cute to me lol but it doesn’t work. I eat one piece in like 7 bites *sigh*
Posted from
8-12-2008 at 04:41:36
Batoul
I actually don’t like seafood in general except for shrimps and crab (I should add fish N chips but you can’t even see the fish inside the batter). I know what you mean about imagination especially when they serve you the fish head and all, and you have to look at it’s eye staring at you as you eat it :)
Posted from
8-24-2008 at 09:07:28
I totally missed out on this article :( I was MIA in marriage bliss :)
Man, listen, if you ever make it over here, I promise to take you out to the best sushi you ever had in your life! And the best Maki’s too ;-)
Posted from
8-24-2008 at 18:10:04
Qwaider,
Hope you’ll always have the marital bliss but without the MIA part :)
Deal about the Sushi, and when you get back to Amman (or just visit), remember you and Wasim have an open invite to Ragabat Ma7shiyeh.
Posted from
8-28-2008 at 16:51:17
That’s crazy expensive! But I must say.. I love sashimi the most follow by nigiri sushi (fish on rice) followed by maki.
Posted from
8-28-2008 at 21:02:20
Zait, or should I call you Mr. Za3tar ? :)
First, welcome to my blog, you’re only the 2nd fellow atheist to comment here as far as I know!
To contrast that 1 plate of 30 pcs of Maki (which is a full dinner for me) in Amman is worth 50JD, compared to a tray (sidr) mansaf with 11 pieces of meat which can easily satisfy 5 people for the same price. Still when you crave Maki you have to have Maki no matter what the price. I work to satisfy my cravings after all :)
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