Food Review: Mitsuba
by Vincent Tran ’18, Contributing Writer
Setting: 17 Ellinwood Drive, New Hartford, NY 13413. Does this address seem familiar? Well, if you have taken the Jitney or have gone to the Marquee Cinema, you have been close to this address a countless number of times. Mitsuba is the restaurant establishment that resides here. It is arguably one of Hamilton’s better-known locations for off-campus dining. Is it all hype or is it legit?
I began my Mitsuba experience by entering the restaurant and being immediately greeted and seated by a waitress. I went for lunch, so it was relatively calm inside. The restaurant was spacious and modern with multiple seating options. On the right side of the room, there was a sushi bar. I was thinking about sitting there so that I could see the sushi chefs work their magic up close and watch a game on the flat screen TV. On the other side, there were just regular tables. I decided to sit at a table because I wanted more room. As soon as I sat down, the waitress gave me a steamed towel to clean my hands before I began looking through the menu.
The menu consisted of various types of Japanese cuisine such as udon noodles, hibachi, fried rice, and sushi. There is simply no way someone would not find something they liked. I figured I would order sushi since Mitsuba is known for it, among other restaurants in New Hartford. I asked the waitress what rolls she recommended and ended up getting three rolls; two were part of a lunch special and the other was highly recommended.
- Lunch Special (Crazy Eel
Roll and Alaska Roll)
($14.99)
-New Hartford Roll
($12.00)
First Bite: Hmm, not bad for Upstate New York!
I started the meal with a hot miso soup, courtesy of the lunch special. The soup was pretty much what I expected from my other experiences eating miso soup. The seaweed and tofu in the miso broth were flavorful and they balanced the salty broth well. I also had two pieces of a Volcano Roll since every meal comes with two complimentary pieces. The Volcano Roll consists of white fish wrapped in rice and deep-fried. It tasted sweet and good, especially since it was free. The soup was a part of the lunch special that also consisted of two rolls for $14.99, which is a bargain considering that the three items (two rolls and soup) would have cost $20.00 without the deal.
The Crazy Eel Roll was spicy tuna and avocado wrapped in rice with a slice of grilled eel on top. This was arguably my favorite roll of the meal since the flavors were all in unison with one another. The sweet taste of eel was most apparent, but was balanced out with a smooth taste and texture from the avocado and spicy tuna. The Alaska Roll consisted of avocado, cucumbers, and salmon. This roll was refreshing because it contrasted well with the salty soup and the Crazy Eel Roll. The last roll I tried was a New Hartford Roll, which was fried shrimp and avocado wrapped with rice and topped with pieces of crabmeat. The roll was unique because of all the different flavors it had. I immediately tasted the shrimp and crabmeat from my first bite. Then the smooth flavor of the avocado took over.
Bottom Line: Mitsuba is legit. I would say I’m a sushi enthusiast and that Mitsuba earned my seal of approval. The price of the sushi was expensive, but it is on par with prices you would get anywhere else. They conveniently accept both cash and card. There is a lot of parking space in their plaza. Mitsuba is easily accessible by car or Jitney. However, it would take at least 30 minutes to get to Mitsuba by Jitney, so I would recommend driving 15 minutes in a car.
