WV Gourmet

If if weren’t for bachelorette parties, girls’ nights out, and first dates, this place would be out of business.  Any time you go in this restaurant, there will be at least four of each of the aforementioned groups eating, waiting for a table, or on their way out.  The food here is good, but the sushi is really only alright - largely due to the criminal overuse of cream cheese in virtually every maki they serve.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read the description of one of the sushi rolls at Ichiban and thought it sounded really good, then shuddered when I saw the words cream and cheese.  It has probably happened 73 million times (okay, maybe they don’t quite have 73 million items on the menu, but they do have an inordinate number of items that utilize cream cheese).  The cooked food, on the other hand, is all quite top notch.  I’m particularly fond of the Mongolian filet and the spicy thai shrimp. 

The Mongolian filet, is basically like the Mongolian beef on the menus of so many Chineese restaurants, except it is made with filet and the sauce is flavorful and spicy, not gloppy and bland like the stuff you can get at Chinese restaurants for eight bucks. 

The Thai shrimp is pretty much the hottest thing I will eat and actually enjoy.  They taste really good, but they burn going in and coming out.  You pretty much have to be prepared for a miserable morning the next day after ordering this dish, because fire will literally shoot out your ass.

Also noteworthy is the Wild Ginger Pork.

The editorial staff at WV Gourmet are all fans of the greatest spirit in the known universe, gin.  You may have noticed that the folks at Rogue (famous for  their beers) have gotten into the liquor game and said liquors are now available at some of the finer establishments in Charleston.*  You may have also noticed that they offer no less than two gins – their “Spruce Gin” and their “Pink Spruce Gin”.  I saw these and was immediately intrigued.  I was also taken aback by the $30+ price tag.  After some deliberation, I bought both, on two separate occasions, and have now run each through the ringer as a martini and as a gin and tonic.  

Rogue Gins on display at the liquor store on Patrick Street

The Spruce Gin tastes just like a gin should – lots of pine up front, with some citrus and other interesting flavors (cucumber was one) from the botanicals in the finish.  It is also a real gin, weighing in at a nice 94 proof.** 

The Pink Gin is the same gin, but it was aged in pinot noir barrels for a few months.  Rogue comes from Oregon, and Oregon is Pinot country, so this makes sense to me.  Aside from giving it a pink hue, the barrel aging also imparts a softness to the gin.  It still has the gin attributes, but the have been a bit subdued and are a bit more gentle here than in the regular gin.  The martini was good, but this stuff really shined with the tonic.  Also, due to the pinkish hue, people may think you’re drinking a cosmopolitan if you’ve got it served in a martini glass, and you really wouldn’t want that. 

*Actually, the only place I’ve seen them is at the liquor street on Patrick Street.

** While gins that are under 90 proof can be quite good, they aren’t quite the same as their 90+ proof bretheren.