THE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE:SUSHI

Yes...it's coming and it's coming soon: sushi on 24th Street! And we're not talking about some swanky joint nestled in Noe Valley. Oh no, no, no....were talking about the corner of 24th and York Streets, the very heart of the Mission! (At least it's the heart of the Mission to me, because I live two blocks away for shits sake!) It's been known for some time as their permit sign has been hanging in the window, but the time is nigh!

A couple of weeks ago, I was waiting for my carnitas torta at La Torta Gorda (whose tortas are just awesome btw), when this aging hipster runs in (I mean this guy was OG, he's probably been living here since the mid 80s at least, back when the hipsters weren't hip at all: they were mostly leftist, intellectual types who wore wire rimmed glasses and tweed). So he's saying to anyone who would listen, "Can you believe it?...they're putting in a sushi bar next door?!! What is this? Noe Valley? Oh this is the end...the end!" He shook his bald head, rimmed with gray hair, in a dire state of disbelief; his wire rimmed glasses- steaming.

I told him that there was another one of these Sushi Bistros out in the Richmond and that I had looked it up on Yelp where it had pretty decent reviews. Obviously unimpressed, he just stared at me blankly, "but come on....sushi?!" and then finally he just muttered in defeat, "...well I guess it's unavoidable." Indeed. It's a slippery slope: after the arrival of vegan omelettes, the smell of spider rolls is never far behind. Oh the horror...the horror...

But...I like sushi. While living in Los Angeles, my wife and I, in better times, would try to go out for good sushi at least twice a month, sometimes more. We used to go to this great place on 2nd Street in Little Tokyo. We had our regular chef, who had Yakuza tattoos on his fingers and who always would get crazy-creative for us; masterfully pushing the envelope of intensly incredible flavors for us to experience. It was always worth the drive, the horrible parking and the aggressive homeless crack-heads. Hey that kind of sounds like...

I know that, to some, it might seem a little over the top to have a sushi restaurant here, I was somewhat surprised too...fearing the inevitable sandwich-like annexation from Noe Valley and Potrero Hill. But if Sushi Bistro opening up is truly the mark of apocalypse, then what better way to welcome in the end of days than by ejoying some toro, salmon skin, yellow tail, Spanish mackerel with sea salt, uni and then washing it all down with a cold bottle of Kirin or warm sake or soju? Oh the possibilities...and we won't even have to drive!