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Mark Shields
Super Genius
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There was a time when I didn't know jack about sushi. The long path to sushi appreciation began when I accompanied my sister to her 10 year class reunion. While meeting old friends, we were eventually face to face with this girl I'd had a minor crush on and pointed her out to my sister. My sister then proceeded to ruin 12 years of anonymous angst and distant appreciation from afar by blurting out, "Hey, this is my brother! He had a big ass crush on you!" So, with that, I finally got to properly meet Cathy Lloyd. She gave us her number and I didn't think anything of it since she lived in San Francisco. That is, until I suddenly found myself in San Francisco on business. I called seeking good company and she recommended we start the night off at a place called We Be Sushi. Originally this place was going to be called McSushi's, but the ever clever lawyers from McDonald's had trademarked every food product name by prefixing it with Mc. While at We Be Sushi, Cathy taught me proper technique, what was good, what was bad, etc. I have been hooked on it ever since. Upon my return to Texas I searched high and low for kick ass sushi. I finally found it at the Kirin II Japanese Seafood Restaurant. Below you'll find some photos I took of my food. If you mouseover, I've added some descriptive ALT tags to detail what was going on. Trust me, if you have the means to have good sushi, I highly recommend it. As soon as they start serving sushi for breakfast, I'm there. Cathy, thank you for getting me hooked!

Plateful of sushi which includes salmon (orange), tuna (red stuff), philadelphia rolls (the roll with cream cheese in the center), and a few other tasty favorites. Wasabi is the green stuff in the bottom right hand side.
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First put a portion of wasabi on your plate that you think is hot enough for you. It is best to experiment with a tiny piece before going overboard (you can't go backwards).
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Pour a generous amount of soy sauce on your wasabi. You can't get enough sodium from drinking water, so now is your big chance.
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After placing a portion of wasabi in the dipping plate, wasabi is crushed up with the chop sticks and mixed in. The more you put in, the hotter it gets. It's a wonder Texans don't eat more of it.
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My attempt at demonstrating proper chop stick handling technique. Gripping this way works for me, although I have seen others hold the sticks differently.
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Ideally, if you are managing your chop sticks well, you should be able to grab a piece of sushi like this (in this case we're dipping a philadelphia roll). By the way, it is called a 'roll' because the sushi is actually a long roll prior to being cut into a more manageable piece.
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The longer you leave it in, the more soy sauce it absorbs.
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You can also eat this ginger which has a very unique taste. I prefer to eat this stuff by itself. I will occasionally drape it across a piece of sushi, however.
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The kick ass sushi chefs from Kirin II on FM 1960 and SH 249 in Houston, TX.
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Anxious lunch goers wait patiently for their turn to eat some sushi. There is also regular japanese and chinese food at the large buffet at Kirin, so if you bring along someone who isn't totally into sushi, they won't totally hate you.
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Kirin II, Japanese Seafood Restauarant. On the corner of FM 1960 and SH 295 in Northwest Harris County
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The sign to look for when finding the restaurant.
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