“AGHHH!!!!” I screamed, throwing myself underneath the low restaurant table, “IT’S STILL ALIVE!!!”
Sure enough, the sparkling silver fish atop our fresh sushi platter was mouthing “Oooga Oooga Oooga” at us, despite having all its flesh from the neck downward sliced off in a bloody mess and sitting four inches to its left.
“AGHHHH!!!”
The other four folks at the table were more nonchalant. Yuki and her co-worker are Japanese, and thus perhaps used to these extremes of freshness. Mike has been living here seven years, and reports that on his first work dinner, his shrimp jumped off the plate and ran away. Dee is just a connoisseur of the strange; he had originally suggested we order the raw horsemeat.
One by one the others chomped down the silky fish flesh (myself, I was suddenly full), at times remarking to fishy, “I’m eating you, little guy!” At last the mouth stopped its bubble blowing and we said a prayer for the dead fish. And ate it some more.
“JESUS!” Yuki suddenly shouted. “After 3 days he rises from the dead!” Holy heaven, she was not kidding. We followed her finger pointing towards the plate and, indeed, fishy’s fins were suddenly a-twitch! “Twitch, twitch, twitch!” they flipped, swimming with this bone-exposed, sliced up body towards marine heaven.
“AGHHHH!!!”
Dee has always had an issue with organized religion, as he claims the Catholic Church made his father a bank robber. Without a second thought, he picked up the spastic little guy and plopped him upright in a glass. In just thirty minutes, fishy gained a crown, cape, scepter, necklace, and throne.
Thank heaven Mike is a professional photographer.
(See http://www.flickr.com/photos/kansai/ for the full Mike Connolly experience!)
For some reason I just love reading these food articles. How did the sushi taste like? The only raw fish I have ever taste was salmon, which was pretty delicious.
I like how you added I screamed “Throwing myself underneath the table its alive”. I would have done the same because it was alive and it would look scary.
I hate raw sushi already! But this!? I will vomit the first time I see those things. I might as well skip dinner if that is the case!
I love sushi BUT I would not like to try this extremely fresh sushi platter. I’m a picky eater so eating a dead fish with twitching parts is going to form butterflies in my stomach. O.O
I would really actually run away from the store. Looking at the alive animal can actually make me puke a lot. I also like how the sushi they made are fancy. They put it in a cool way like the picture you took on the shrimp with other ingredients on a glass cup.
Actually, we were the ones who “dressed up the fish,” not the restaurant! We thought it would be funny… and it was! But pretty, too
I would of screamed my head off! Ewwww!
would’ve!!!! sorry
I can’t bemieve that fish was alive. I mean really, you go to a good restraunt and order good food, then boom, its a haunted house with living cooked fish. But, I’ve seen the funniest videos where the person is about to eat, but then, the fish blinks!
The story I have read Way Too Fresh Sushi I think it is interesting how you said you screamed throwing yourself under the restaurant table. I think the nerves are alive and fish had died.
I think the fish is dead, but the nerves are still active.
How can the fish still be alive after being killed? That just doesn’t make any sense to me at all. I would have screamed, and then fall off my chair laughing.
Well still. Once my uncle went to a restaurant and they served him a fish that is still alive and is just lying still and he didn’t know it was alive until he ate the fish. It had surprised him a lot and he didn’t eat fish for a week.
Well, well, well,this is kind of weird but yummy somehow. How does it taste like when it is still alive in your mouth? What kind of fish is it? I feel sorry for the fish.
Oh my gosh! That is amazing! I once watched a TV show called “Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern” He went to Tokyo in that specific episode and his fish was still alive. Yuck! I wonder how the chefs skin the fish with out feeling guilty.
What did it taste like. Was it chewy and slimy, and did it move in your mouth. Poor little fish.
I loved how you said “throwing myself underneath the low restaurant table,” it was a good start for an article. That must have been creepy and scary, going to a restaurant, getting su-shi, then seeing a fish move! I would’ve done the same thing you did, throw myself underneath the table, I would’ve been so scared run while screaming, out the restaurant door. I personally would’ve thrown up a little bit too. “I’m eating you, little guy!” This article’s so entertaining, so funny, and it’s also kind of disturbing too. Anyways, the point is, i really like this article.
It’s interesting how they serve food that is still ALIVE!
HI Ms. Marshall,
It’s kind of gross eating a raw fish. Did you really eat it, how did it tasted like? I bet you didn’t enjoy it much.
This article was really entertaining! Very funny and lively. I wonder though, was the fish meant to be alive? Or was it by accident because I am not a big fan of Sushi, although I have heard that it is raw fish.
Very nice article, it shows that traveling does just take money but also understanding and tolerance of not just ideals and customs but of food as well. But at the same time this experience is just plain fun.
Why is there a little towel on the fish?
Our friend Dee dressed up the fish with things he found on the table!
One time i went to olive garden and me and my family ordered mussels and one was moving! I was traumatized for a while.
I tried raw salmon once and I didn’t really like it. I prefer simple California rolls. Once when I went to China I had raw shrimp. But unlike your fishy the shrimp were dead. I feel sorry for fishy.
haha ms.marshall, you dressed up the fish… you should always try new food no matter what. you might grow to like it. the first time i saw raw salmon, i didnt touch it because i thought it was going to make my stomach upset, but i tried it and i LOVE it now.
That’s so sad. I would’ve been unable to continue eating sushi although I love it so much.
The poor little fish!!!! ): And I feel bad for the girl who had to watch it move on her plate…. Nice story!
Ashley Stephens said…
Too funny!!
The expression on your face is PRICELESS!
September 1, 2009 10:26 PM
Luddy Sr. said…
Oof. Poor lil’ guy.
December 5, 2009 1:02 AM