The Chew & Review team went out to Jina Yoo’s for lunch! We started ordering our own appetizers but when they arrived we all started sharing food, so we ordered seven rolls for all of us to share. Each of the team members wrote about their experience and what was their favorite. We ran into the owner Jina and were able to talk to her for a while and she gave us some great tips on which sushi rolls we would love. Since we all shared everything, here is the list and description of everything we tried (some aren’t even on the menu yet!)
Appetizers:
- Five Spiced Calamari
- Lobster Spring Rolls
- Edamame w/ sea salt
- Jina’s Balls
- Chicken Fried Rice
- Crabby Basket
Sushi Rolls:
- Spicy Lobster Shrimp-A spicy lobster mix, cucumber and avocado roll topped with shrimp and served with Asian pesto vinaigrette
- Sin City-A crab and cream cheese roll, tempura battered and topped with spicy tuna-crab mix, lotus root, and spinach tempura flakes
- Jackson-A tempura shrimp, cream cheese and mango roll, topped with seared tuna and drizzled with eel sauce, citrus hollandaise and mango puree
- Cadillac-A spicy lobster meat and eel roll, topped with avocado slices, drizzled with eel sauce, spicy mayo and chili oil
- Sun west-A spicy lobster mix, mango slices, cucumber roll, topped with lightly grilled tuna and drizzled with eel sauce, and chili oil
- Mr. Myogi-A spicy tuna, cream cheese, asparagus, squid salad roll, topped with avocado, sautéed cashews and drizzled with eel sauce, chipotle aioli and chili oil
- Double Crunch Scallop- Panko breaded scallops, spicy lobster mix, and asparagus rolled in beet tempura flakes and drizzled with a cherry reduction and chipotle aioli
- Nameless Roll- This was an amazing roll Jina had just recently created. It was California roll toped with the five-spiced calamari and an aioli sauce. One of the most incredible rolls we had.
One of the best sushi restaurants I have had the chance to visit in a long time -
When someone asks, “Do you know where there is a great sushi restaurant in Mid Missouri?” I think that most people are not sure how to respond.After all, we are in the middle of the country, far-removed from the posh sushi restaurants found in cities like Chicago, New York and LA.But, there is an exceptional place in Columbia where not only can you get amazing food, but an equally memorable experience.That is Jina Yoo’s.
When you first enter, you realize that this is not a big place.Definitely not a chain, it has the feel of a small bistro.Our party of six was seated right away at a table large enough for all of us, but not so big that we could not all talk with each other.
Our waiter was at our table quickly for our drink orders as we all began piling through the long list of menu items to find our choices.The group decided we would first try a multitude of appetizers.
The selections for our table ranged from the Crabby Basket, the Five Spiced Calamari, Jina’s Balls and the Beef Salad Wrap.
The presentation showed how much attention is given to detail in the kitchen.The chefs truly take their time to put all of the items together thoroughly before bringing them to the table.
My attention next went to the selection of sushi rolls.Jina took time out of her busy day to talk with all of us about what we liked, what we didn’t, and what she was going to put together for us.
After just a few minutes, she went off to the kitchen to prepare several plates of rolls including the Cadillac, Sin City, Tiger Roll, the Mr. Miyagi and others.In no time, they were on the table and the feasting began!
One thing that you notice right away is the different mix of flavors in each roll.Too often sushi can become very generic; not the case here.Lobster, shrimp, cream cheese and spices all come together to leave you very satisfied.
The flavors will stay with you after you are finished.This can be a bad thing.Not here, as it helps you to remember your experience and it gets you thinking about when you can come back.
I would say that this is one of the best sushi restaurants I have had the chance to visit in a long time.I would highly recommend Jina Yoo’s to both the sushi enthusiast to the sushi novice.Jina’s is a must stop on any culinary adventure in Columbia.
Incredible flavors stay with you and you can’t help but crave them -
While I have always been a huge fan of sushi, this was my first trip to Jina Yoo’s and I was extremely impressed. The atmosphere was light and fun. No one needed to try hard because the food, service, and relaxed atmosphere make you want to come back at least once a week. What really made our experience, besides the amazing food, was Jina herself stopping by. She was a blast to talk to and made you feel as if she were having you to her home. The most interesting thing I learned from her was the “art of sushi.” Sushi is what she is passionate about and you can see that the minute you ask her to make some suggestions. She is constantly thinking of new combinations to put in the rolls, which is how we got onto the topic of the nameless roll listed above.
I love to start out my sushi experience with edamame. This was a great inexpensive option to start of your meal with ($4 for the basic). I couldn’t help but to try a little bit of everyone else’s appetizers. I literally couldn’t get enough of anyone of them! The five-spiced calamari is incredible with a spicy, crunchy, and bright flavor. Another appetizer I couldn’t get enough of was the lobster spring rolls. I always love anything lightly fried or anything with lobster but these were better than anything I’ve had before. These rolls had a mango sauce to go with them. I love the sweet complimenting the spring roll.
Depending on the day, I enjoy the raw fish sushi and/or the tempera fried sushi.My top favorite roll from the day was the “Nameless Roll” with the fried calamari on top. You had to resist the temptation to lick the plate! Next was the Sin City Roll. This was a lightly fried roll and absolutely bursting with flavor! The spinach tempura-fried really made the roll unique. Another roll that I loved because it was unlike anything I’d had before was the Sun West Roll. This was a Mexican type sushi roll. It had fresh eel, spicy lobster, mango slices and chili sauce! It was a perfect balance!
I’m already trying to plan my next visit to Jina Yoo’s because those incredible flavors stay with you and you can’t help but crave them!
Sushi Newbie Dives In -
Jina Yoo’s Asian Bistro was a nice treat for lunch. If you like a nice laid-back atmosphere with friendly and knowledgeable servers, Gina’s is for you.
I am a sushi “newbie” so I had thousands of questions and our server was fantastic. Plus, having Jina herself stop by the tablet to talk about some of her favorite rolls and menu items was pretty cool! Her passion for the food shows when the plates hit the table.
Personally I am a Crab Rangoon snob. They are my absolute favorite thing to get when we order Chinese food and the Rangoon at Jina’s are now right there at the top of my list. Made fresh and just the right mix of sweet taste and a snappy crunch. Jina’s Balls are a fun treat (Wow! Can I say that?) My two favs…Sin City Roll and be sure to try the Scarlet Shrimp.
I will be going back and can’t wait to try some more new things.
Casual Atmosphere and Amazing Food -
Our experience at Jina Yoo’s was unlike any time I had ever been there, usually because my sushi expertise really isn't that great, despite my love of the genre. Having Jina there to help us order was a fantastic tool and got us all the food we could possibly enjoy, even some items that hadn't made it to the menu yet!
I had a fantastic appetizer with the spicy tuna-filled Jina's balls, bursting with great flavor. I also sampled some of the calamari and the lettuce wraps which were also delicious.
Jina then brought us her newest creation, a sushi roll that had fried calamari on top of it and it was among some of the best sushi I had ever tasted there. We ordered a sampler of about 7 additional rolls that were shared by 6 people. I enjoyed the Sun West, Double Crunch and Spicy Lobster the most out of that selection, though I really couldn't say anything bad about the others.
The atmosphere was very casual, and although it's not the cheapest way to do lunch, it was very reasonable for the amount of food we ordered and the size of group we had.
Found My New Go To Dish -
I wasn't sure what to expect when I went to lunch at Jina Yoo's.Most items are off limits to me since I am allergic to shell fish.But the folks at Jina Yoo's were up for the challenge.I found a chicken and rice dish with a lettuce wrap and Jina told me she could make it without any shellfish sauces.It was very tasty and the lettuce was very crisp.I was surprised how well the combination went together and the flavors really complimented each other.I would gladly have it again and think it will be my "go to" dish for future visits.My co-workers ooh-ed and ahh-ed over the variety of sushi rolls they dined on, but I was perfectly content with my dish :-)Great atmosphere, really great service, and an owner who took the time to make sure my dish was going to be delicious and safe for me.
To view all the photos from our trip to Jina Yoo's, head over to our Facebook gallery.
