Taka Shin, Palm Springs
Our current favorite for traditional sushi, especially on Wednesdays
TAKA SHIN Japanese Cuisine
641 N Palm Canyon Dr Palm Springs (Next to Copley’s)
Menu | Website | Ph: (760) 600-5806. Currently open Tues-Sun, dinner only.
Our star rating: 4.5 out of 5
Gosh, it’s been a while! But we’ve been trying out new restaurants like crazy as the pandemic has raged and we’ve been settling in to a new desert lifestyle. I’ve just been too busy and distracted to write. Time to get back on that horse.
When it comes to good sushi, there are not a whole lot of options in Palm Springs. Of course there is Sandfish, which is always good and always busy, and usually packed full of a see-and-be-seen crowd. But it offers a sort of a cool, Californicated version of sushi.
For the real thing, consider Taka Shin, on the northern side of downtown on the west side of Palm Canyon. It’s sort of tucked into a nondescript, white apartment complex next to Copley’s and across from Jake’s. We drove or walked by there a million times before we realized that there was a sushi restaurant right there on the street.
We’ve been twice in the last few months and love the place. The first time we drove by around 6 pm and saw a friendly-looking, well-dressed Japanese man in suit and tie standing alone in the bright white dining room looking out to the street. Behind him was a distinguished looking sushi chef in a cap and apron standing behind the counter, ready to roll. We thought, “Awwww, we should give that place a try.”
At the door we stumbled through our awkward vaccine checks, konichiwas and bows with the well-dressed gentleman, and sat in a booth by the window. On our second visit, we chose to sit at the sushi bar and watch the master create.
Both times we enjoyed some of the best, most authentic sushi we’ve had since our our big trip to Tokyo and Kyoto, a month before the pandemic hit, clipping our international travel wings. This place felt just like the slightly sterile, incredibly delicious sushi restaurants recommended to us by locals in Japan where we, like the locals around us, ate nigiri with our fingers, dipping it fish side down into the soy sauce, and washing it down with a large bottle of Asahi beer.
After sitting down, a well-versed, English-speaking waiter stepped in to take our drink orders, and explain the menu and specials. The kindly man-in-a-suit showed up and propped a white board on a chair on which were the day’s specials. We learned that Taka Shin gets its fish delivered every Wednesday, and it comes in from all over the world— Japan, of course, but also Spain, Washington, Mexico, Peru, and Scotland.
The following descriptions include both our first and second visits.
We love our soosh, but usually don’t go too hard core, so with the help of our waiter, we started by warming our bellies with bowls of comforting miso soup ($4), ordered a small bottle of cold Dassai sake (light, clear, floral, $26) and tried a variety of nigiri (raw fish on rice) and sashimi (sliced raw fish only).
Right off the bat, we enjoyed four pieces of shrimp tempura, flash fried and piping hot, which we dipped in warm, watery salty-sweet tentsuyu sauce ($14.50). Strains of Yanni soothed in the background….
We enjoyed toro, from the underbelly of blue fin tuna; we tried both a fatty version and a medium fatty version, which the chef recommended. Also, the deep red, almost gem-like, maguro (which comes from the leaner side of the tuna). As usual, we ordered a slightly warm and savory unagi (eel), plus deep orange salmon and for the first time, red snapper (madai). Prices for most range between $8 and $15 for two pieces. We also really enjoyed two versions of prized hamachi (yellow fin tuna): A nice nigiri and but we also splurged on the Hamachi Jalapeno ($19), a platter of yellow tail sashimi topped yuzu (lemony) juice, olive oil, ponzu and topped with jalapeno.
We also loved the all-American California roll ($16) made with succulent fresh crab (not the fake, rubbery “krab” you typically get) and fresh avocado. We enjoyed the Taka Shin version of our standby spicy tuna roll so much that we ordered two of those ($15). We also slurped up four fresh oysters which tasted like the ocean, on which the chef spooned a few drops of a light soy sauce and sprinkled with chopped scallions and orange fish roe.
Both meals concluded with plenty of friendly smiles and bows and promises to return… especially on Wednesdays when the fish is at its freshest.
Where do you get your sushi fix in the Coachella Valley? Tell us in the comments!