Ry Poke Mart - Lomita

A Hawaiian poke place takes over the Sampa space. 

How does it measure up to the best pizza chef in Brazil? 

The Shoyu Tuna (not pictured) and Salmon Ponzu do not. Shoyu gets a little slimy, and the ponzu is a bit overwhelming. The salmon has a slightly fishy aftertaste, not helped by the acidity of the ponzu. 

My favorite so far is the spicy mayo-slathered Firecracker, and I love the Limu, which has a clean, mildly soy coating with the signature seaweed. They have both salmon and tuna options, and I usually opt for the tuna because it just goes better with the sauce. Sides include the standard seaweed salad, crab salad, pickled cucumber, etc. All are fine, just get your faves. 

There's an option for regular (previously frozen) or to upgrade to premium (never frozen) for a fee, though I'm not sure I see enough of a difference to pay. 

We're heartbroken at the loss of Sampa, but at least we have a high-caliber replacement. For poke in the South Bay, Ali'i has my vote and Jus' Poke has my heart. Ry is a close second, with the added benefit of being the best poke near work, but I do wish the sauces were a bit simpler. Sometimes there's so much stuff the base ingredient gets lost in the shuffle. Then again, the mixes are unique in a way that makes me crave their stuff specifically, so whatever they're doing, I think it's clearly working. 

Sodam Boba & Poke Cafe - Torrance

Love poke but hate people? Say no more! Place your iPad order at Sodam and simply sit in silence until they call your name. The staff are a lovely family and happy to help, but the menu features clear photos, rendering interactions minimally necessary for any insistent introverts. 

The poke bowls are huge and shockingly affordable. $12.99 buys a hefty helping of some of the South Bay's freshest fish. Cubes of Spicy Tuna and Salmon gleam red with a sweetly spicy sauce much like Asian chili sauce with a perfect umami of sesame oil. A whole scoop of imitation crab and seaweed salad sit side by side with a generous helping of ripe avocado. All lay on a half n' half bed of salad covered in creamy sesame dressing and a pile of sushi rice. All is seasoned, all is good, but there's just too much sauce for me. 

A simple hack is to get the regular Tuna and Salmon bowl with salad dressing on the side. The poke has a simple sauce; I think I taste a bit of vinegar with sesame and ginger topped with a dash of sesame seeds and seaweed. The bowl is still too big for a single sitting, but the salad and rice can be stretched another day, and without the dressing there's no sauce overload.  

They also have these Okinawa style onigiri, a sandwich-musubi thing for those looking for a surefire hangover cure. I love the idea of the spam and egg, but the nori wrap here is very fishy, which is a bit off-putting with a bit too much spicy mayo in the middle. It's a fun idea, but maybe get the sauce on the side.

Stick to the poke, I think it's the best value here. They have bentos if you want more variety and sushi rolls if you want your poke bowl rolled together for you, but I'd skip the noise and just grab the bowl. 

Ali’i Hawaiian Grill - El Segundo

I ordered from the Torrance location two years ago and let’s just say I wasn’t running back for more. Yet this place holds its spot on an Eater LA list year after year, and when the El Segundo location showed up on my Doordash, I had to try again to see what the fuss is (still) about. 

I’m not one for gambling because I never win, but this was a chance worth taking. It wasn’t a cheap venture, but you get what you pay for, namely the South Bay’s best poke, now tied with my personal fave Jus Poke in Redondo Beach. 

The tuna here is red and dense, lean and meaty, flavor immense. The Hawaiian is simple, mostly limu to sprinkle the sea into these ruby red chunks. You can’t hide behind a sauce this simple, and the tuna is undoubtedly fresh-off-the-boat. Spicy Ahi has a fantastic sauce, a spicy mayo that kicks with little pearls of roe to make it rich.

The Garlic Shrimp poke is not to be ignored - the shrimp are plump and the palest pink, just barely cooked so the texture is incredibly tender. 

Just skip the side of potato salad - it’s bland.

The Kalua Pork is a curiosity - can they cook as well as they can procure? Not really, no. The pork is very juicy but it’s heavily salted and that’s all there is. As for the sides, the smoked potatoes are alright. OTOH, I never have and never will understand Salmon Lomi, and this one is no exception. I can kinda taste the influence of fish if I imagine really hard, but I can’t see any actual fish and it seems to be just a pico and not a very good one.

Go for the poke, go often. Skip all the other stuff, eat all the tuna end don’t skimp on the shrimp. 

Poke & More - Lomita

During pregnancy I avoided all the P’s. Pate, precut fruit, prosciutto…and poke. Poke was the hardest. 

I got poke and more poke from Poke & More, a fantastic way to break my poke fast. those fresh tuna chunks are slick and smooth in simple Shoyu, multi-layered with sharp and spicy favors in Spicy Mayo,

And pungently bold with Spicy Garlic. 

The sweet & spicy Salmon was a bit more slimy and didn’t taste quite as fresh as the tuna, but the poke bowl is still good deal.

And here’s where it needs to end. Poke & More needs to be “Poke & No More” because less is more when it comes to their cooked food. 

In their defense, dishes like Loco Moco just don’t travel all that well, and this one is alright. The gravy reminds me of the southern-style stuff you’d find over a biscuit or a slab or chicken fried steak. The texture is more runny than creamy, but there’s a meaty finish to it. Overall a bit heavy on the salt as the meats (beef patties and Portuguese sausage), are already so salty.

A side of Crunchy Spam Musubi is a fun idea, but the spam gets lost in the batter. That said. the rice takes on a mochi-like texture which is pet awesome. Their regular musubi is pretty lackluster. 

The Beef Rib makes me wonder if they actually know how to cook food. The smaller pieces are like jerky, almost as dry as the bone they come on, and the sauce is desiccated brown salt. 

Order the poke…and no more. The fish is good, the rest is okay, and the special is a disaster.

Fish King - Glendale

 

Gliding through Glendale after a rare trip to Burbank, it's too easy to pop into Fish King for some first-class poke.

The Dynamite Scallop is my favorite by far, tender little bay caps, super fresh, super succulent, super sweet. Doused in a spicy mayo that stings but doesn't scorch, best eaten over tostadas to balance a heavy sauce. 

LA Weekly proclaimed the Hawaii Style Tuna LA's best, and I confirm that it rivals the best of the island itself. The tuna is just perfection, and the sauce is so simple, seasoning and sesame seeds with seaweed for umami. I love that it's not overpowered by sesame oil or oversalted by so much soy. 

If you're looking for something to slowly eat, the Octopus is your dish. It's cooked like you'd use in salad and another simple seasoning with ginger and strips of mushroom and bamboo. I was warned it was on the salty side, but it's just right over rice. 

It's pretty ballsy to call yourself a king, but Fish King proves itself with just the poke alone. Super fresh, simple yet sublime, this little shop will always slay. 

Sweet Salty Poke - Gardena

I heard they were once a Pokebar that chose to rebrand. I haven't been inside, but the menu looks the same. 

The shrimp is good, the salmon is fresh, and the spicy tuna is truly spicy. I got my usual, with fresh veggies and some pineapple, all doused in a spicy mayo that'll make you sweat. Seaweed salad and crab are sides, same as they've always been. 

I don't know why they rebranded, but I don't think they've changed. It's good quality for the price point, it's fast-casual poke that tastes pretty good.

Ali'i Fish Company - Torrance

They showed some promise, but our Doordash order came with an entire bowl missing. 

What did come was a small bowl of poke with a pretty Ponzu Salmon and a rather unsafe-looking Sweet & Spicy Ahi. Both tasted okay, but neither was extremely fresh. The bowl itself was enough of a meal for one, but it's not a lot of fish for a whopping $17. 

Chips and Smoked Ahi Dip, a plate with some potential. The dip does have a nice cream and smoke, but it's a little light on the tuna. Still better than your typical chips n' dip so I would nibble again.

I wanted to like it, and I thought I'd love it, but the experience was disappointing. That said, some companies just don't do delivery well so next time I'll visit in person to determine whether the problem is in the delivery or if they just don't deliver. 

Jus’ Poke UPDATE - Redondo Beach

From my first visit six years ago to my most recent take-away last month, Jus’ Poke has never failed to deliver. 

There’s never been a single piece of tuna that hasn’t been fantastic, and unlike the mixed-to-order assembly-line style of their competitors, tuna from Jus’ Poke marinates all day long. Even the sample of tofu poke I tried out of curiosity was full of flavorful salt and soy. 

They have the freshest tuna, gem-sized chunks that glow ruby-red. The Shoyu poke gleams burgundy-brown, the Wasabi pink with a glint of green. The sides are always perfectly cooked edamame and fresh seaweed salad, and I always snag a Musubi when I can. 

There’s not a single piece of poke here that I don’t love, and this is an homage to one of my oldest favorites, one of the first to make poke before poke stormed the South Bay. Jus Poke put down its roots long before the slew of Pokebars, and with unquestionable quality and infallible ingredients , they’ll be here long after the others are gone. 

Pono Market - Kapaa, HI

I'm loving the poke-all-day-every-day theme, but man, I've really missed cooked food. 

They make both at Pono Market, which is a definite plus. My lunch plate has a savory-enough kalua pork piled high, next to a sassy side of tako poke with Korean pepper sauce. There’s a surf clam poke, which I have yet to see again. The chewy shark-tooth triangles are firm and juicy in a basic salty solution, and they add their own dash of ocean brine. I like it, but if you don’t like brine, stick with ahi. 

The poke is okey dokey, but I like their hot food better. Spicy ahi poke is gooey with mayo, and the spicy shrimp are pretty fresh. The Pork Adobo is probably the best thing on these plates, meaty chunks soaked with a thick and gritty, nice and vinegary, semi-gravy.

If you're feeling neither, you can keep it simple with a drink at the coffee counter or a warm musubi for a change.

Another day, another poke counter. Every town has a market for a fish and a fish for poke, and I'm sure there are towns with much worse poke than Kapaa, but I don't know if I need to eat poke here next time I'm in town.

Koloa Fish Market - Koloa, HI

It's a short hike to and from the hole We've had a lot of raw fish on the island, and this fish market is the only one that comes close to Foodland. 

The Tako Poke is tender and juicy, Soft and simple with a touch of sweet onion. Wasabi Ahi Poke is a slow green burn, and I love the green masago for texture. 

More Tako because a single serving is never enough. This bowl has the Korean Ahi Poke is bright and spicy with a sprinkle of sesame to savor-out the gochujang. 

It's a sweet and simple little market, and it's kind of tucked into a corner in a complex, but do take the time to find it. The tako poke is the best one I've had on this island, and it's worth stopping for!

The Hibachi - Kailua, HI

When in Hawaii, go grocery! A mini-mart stocked with all kinds of poke and and things on sticks. Poke is scooped to order, and all sorts of meat refrigerates in marinade, ready to go on the grill.

We stuck with the poke today, but I would like revisit the skewers. The variety was impressive, and they all looked irresistible. 

Today is a day for Tako. There's a reason they always run out of the tako first - it's an island special, and these tender, juicy slices are draped in sharp sweet onion and savory limu. The other half is Spicy Tobiko, fresh tuna chunks in roe-laced mayo.

They get pretty creative too. This one is Spicy Oyster Sauce, same fresh ahi with a salty burn that builds. The oyster sauce is sticky, and and it coats your tongue with all that pepper.

Beware the wrath of the Thai Basil. It's flavorful, and it glows red-hot and angry. It'll leave your mouth raw, but those chilies pack the most pleasant heat! 

Wash it all down with an Island Cola. Tastes like regular cola except my can (and maybe my imagination) can tastes a little a more cane. 

A mini-mart with a tiny parking lot and an inconspicuous storefront. That seems to be the MO for great restaurants in O'ahu. So far so good; keep the groceries coming!

Poki Stop - Simi Valley

We needed something quick on our way to the Reagan Library, and I figured you couldn't really mess up poke, especially custom poke. Well Poki Stop didn't really mess it up, but it also didn't go too well. 

The poke bowls are assembly-line style, pick-your-poison. We both go with rice base, and if you need to ask why, you need to eat more poke. We got salmon and tuna, both of which are acceptably fresh, but won't be wowing anyone anytime soon. The sauce is on the bland side, really just soy splashed onto the fish with varying amounts of sriracha depending on your spice preference, and here is where our bowls start to differ. Mine is minimalist, mostly cucumber and masago with a side of seaweed salad. I asked for spicy mayo as well, HUGE mistake. Rather than mixing it in, they douse the top with literal rivers of flavorless goop. It's just mayo - there's really not much spice or other flavor to speak of, and I'm really annoyed that they covered my seaweed salad. 

I don't get a lot of toppings. They have some of the regular stuff, but literally half their items come with an extra charge. I get that avocado costs more, but we paid more for edamame, and they even charge for artificial crab so WTF.

So it's not Torrance's Pokebar, and it sure as heck isn't Jus' Poke. It's a generic create-your-own fast food-ish poke bar, and it's edible, but they need to get it together. Charging for half your veggies/toppings and drowning seaweed salad in mayo is not cool. So if you're craving poke, don't stop at Poki Stop. Keep driving until you find something better. 

Poke Bar - Torrance

I... I don't understand. Somewhere between Torrance and El Segundo, something changed for the much MUCH better. I don't know why and I don't know how, but I've gone from boycotting PokeBar to becoming a legitimate fan.

So far, I've only been to El Segundo and Torrance, and in Torrance they do the poke right. The salmon is fresh, and the tuna is light and lean. The spicy tuna is dense with a dash of sriracha-spice, and even the octopus is in more manageable in edible little niblets. Anything goes with spicy mayo, but the mayo here enhances rather than masks. It's just the right amount of small-burn, and they mix a precise proportion. There are plenty of toppings and veggies to make the poke pop, but I'm a minimalist so just the masago will do. The side of crab salad is fine, the seaweed salad is good, and I haven't tried the pickled cucumbers yet but they look pretty tempting. 

Customized poke with fresh fish in generous scoops, just 2 miles away. Sounds too good to be true, but PokeBar Torrance just made that dream real.

Poke Bar - El Segundo

Right around the launch of the viral, glitchy, well-conceived, horribly-executed Pokemon Go, Poke Bar comes to town.

The poke bowl has a lot of choices, mine a myriad of tuna, scallops, and octopus. Conceptually sound, execution about as disastrous as the constantly-crashing app. The contents of each bowl is a meat-mash that resembles an exploded poke ball... With the Pokemon still inside. The tuna is tasteless, the scallops too. The octopus is chopped into bits the size of ground meat, with the texture of something pre-chewed. Follow that with a random choice of vegetables and a hastily-poured sauce and you really can't taste anything.

There is way more rice than poke and way more salad than anyone would want. They even add seaweed and crab salad at the end, which are nice little sides, but I'd rather have more poke or more quality over quantity.

Society's newfound food allergies, real and imagined, have spawned a virulent strain of make-your-own restaurants, hell-bent on giving everyone the right to make their food as they please. It's worked out well for pizza, but at places like Poke Bar where much of the flavor relies on preparation, it doesn't end well. I wonder how many aspiring Pokemon trainers came here... Only to find that it's not much of a catch.

Poke Etc - Carson

Etc. Et cetera. Latin for "and other things", American for "the other stuff," or "the other stuff I don't care to mention." Well I'm sure the etc to the poke is fine, but it's hard to care about curry when you're face-to-face with shiny, market-fresh, chunky cubes of fish.

The Ahi with Limu is poke in its purest form, Hawaiian seaweed with a little bit of oil to bring out etc flavors of tuna.

I liked the tuna, but the limu left the slightest aftertaste. Plus the Limu could use a little more salt, seasoning, etc so I liked it better on the brinier Mussels. A saltier alternative is the Shoyu, a touch of soy and salt that doesn't alter the flavor, ideal for dressing tender arms of Octopus.

The shoyu works just as well with Salmon.

But Salmon with Wasabi makes for fun, smooth, neon bites that bite back.

The Ahi with Spicy Mayo renders the ahi obsolete, but annihilating properties aside, spicy mayo is still hella good.

Be sure to wash it down the salt with some island sugar-water. Hawaiian Sun is my senseless guilty pleasure.

Jus' Poke remains my geographic go-to, but Poke Etc has all the goods. The endless permutations of seafood and sauce are an unavoidably seductive selection, and it's impossible to stay away!