Bamboo Sushi: Restaurant Guide 2010

5-10 pm daily. $$ Moderate.
[SUSTAINABLE SASHIMI] Kristofor Lofgren's super-sustainable restaurant doesn't use its Marine Stewardship Council endorsement to prop up a weak kitchen. The dishes coming out of the hot kitchen or from the sushi bar are first and foremost tasty, the question of their provenance be damned. On the nigiri side, the smoked ivory salmon is still one of the best pieces of raw fish you're going to put in your mouth, the light smoke lending funk to the buttery salmon. They finally nailed agedashi tofu here, employing the same local Ota curd but cutting it thinner so that its flavor plays nicely with the smoky-sweet dashi broth and shaved bonito flakes. You wouldn't think it, but Bamboo also slings a big, mean, important burger. It's a sloppy, gooey mound of ground Kobe with white cheddar, onion rings and an optional fried egg that is the pin on this umami grenade. Heady stuff, but like all of the other dishes, expect great execution with a side order of satisfying well-being. BRIAN PANGANIBAN.
Ideal meal: House-smoked wild ivory salmon nigiri paired with anything else.
Best deal: The MSC Northwest Philly roll (Alaska salmon, cream cheese and avocado fried tempura style) is only $4 at happy hour: 5-6:30 pm Monday-Friday.

WWeek 2015

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