Irae 60

This very trendy-looking French/Japanese restaurant has been on our list every since it opened a year or so ago, and last weekend my wife and I finally gave it a try.

First, the decor is very slick and modern- the underlit blue glowing counters are the first thing you’ll spot from outside. It didn’t take long to forget we were in a strip mall in Lake county.

Now the food- we started with a very decent Miso soup. As an appetizer my wife ordered the Age-Dashi Tofu, while I had a few pieces of sushi ala-carte. She raved about her appetizer, while my sushi looked pretty sad- skimpy portions, an unexciting presentation, and they forgot the quail egg on my Ikura. Things were not looking good.

But then the specialty rolls we ordered came out, and this is where they really shine. The presentation was beautiful, and they tasted incredible. My wife has the Marilyn Monroe roll, and I had the Tri-Roll, and we both agreed that Brie cheese and sushi really do go well together.

The service, aside from forgetting my quail egg, was very good. It wasn’t very crowded on a Friday night at 7:30 or so. That might have been a fluke, but if you have last-minute guests in town and need a place to go in a hurry, this might be your spot.

So overall, we came away thrilled- if you have adventurous tastes, try one of the specialty rolls. We’re already thinking about which out-of-town guests we’ll be taking here. Next time, I may try one of the French dishes to see how they stack up, but honestly it will be hard not to order another specialty roll! This is one of those strip-mall discoveries that will really challenge the expectations of your hipster friends from the city.