Kokova Magazine

Last week we were lucky enough to get an invitation to the YO! Burger launch party at YO! Sushi's premier restaurant in Poland Street where we sampled all five of the limited edition YO! Burgers and talked to Mike Lewis, YO! Sushi's award winning Executive Chef.

The creation of the YO! Burger stems from Mike's many travels across Japan, to all the different regions. Mike wanted to capture all the flavours and experiences from his travels into the five new, exciting flavours of YO! Burger.

Firstly, we are at YO! Sushi... this has to be at the top of the list when it comes to our favourite places to be and we head down to the Brighton YO! on a regular basis; often making a trip to the beach an excuse to simply go visit the YO! in Jubilee Street.

Secondly, we are being served all FIVE of the new YO! Burgers to try! We are not usually ones to punctuate with an excess of exclamation marks but on this occasion we feel the event warrants many!

Each YO! Burger is served on a Japanese bento tray, coupled with crispy nori crackers, pickled daikon slaw and misotchup sauce and created using a toasted rice bun, which surprisingly manages to stay together while we eat.

This is a much lighter twist on a 'regular' loaded burger and with the total calories on a plate not exceeding a maximum 423kl for a whole meal it has to be a winning combination.

OK - so we ate our way through all five which increased the calorie count but when presented with this calibre of cuisine we stopped counting (did we mention our devotion to the YO! already).

So what makes each YO! Burger so special?

The Chicken YO! Burger with its teriyaki seasoned chicken thigh sits between its rice 'bun' and is coupled with lettuce, red onion and mayonnaise - all topped with diced pineapple and white sesame seeds. Need we say more? If chicken teriyaki is your choice off the YO! Sushi menu then you will want to try this fabulous YO! Burger combination.

Two succulent pieces of tilapia katsu fish, lettuce and a classic cheese slice topped with wakame tarter sauce brings together the Tilapia YO! Burger. With a strong resemblance to cod this is a classic fish burger with a difference. Tilapia has a very unobtrusive flavour and will easily adopt any flavours you add to it, making it a very versatile non-fishy tasting fish.

If you prefer your fish to pack more of a punch in the flavour stakes then the sensational Salmon YO! Burger, served with lettuce, kimchi pickled vegetables and topped with mayonnaise and shredded nori may be more to your taste.

Tofu has never tasted so good as it does in the new Tofu YO! Burger. Personally we are not keen tofu eaters, preferring ours to be made into a chocolate mousse but when we bit into this burger we were hard pressed to disagree with anything in the taste. Tempting tofu katsu, lettuce, coriander pesto - topped with a slice of avocado and fresh cress. Healthy, perfect for veggies and more importantly - yummy! We were surprised and would most definitely have no qualms in ordering this again.

Last but by no means least though - our winner in the YO! Burger stakes - the Prawn YO! Burger... WOW - yes just WOW!

When we spoke to Mike Lewis he said this was the first flavour created and the least changed idea throughout development - and we taste why. When you hit perfection on the first go you get the Prawn YO!...

A delicious prawn cutlet served on white cabbage, spiced with a delectable dollop of curry mayonnaise and a sprinkle of spring onion and diced beni shoga.

If you only try one YO! Burger, in our opinions make it this one!

Aside from the fantastic YO! Burgers we also got to try a variety of dishes from the belt, including the new Strawberry Cheesecake Mochi; a soft Japanese rice cake ball filled with strawberry cheesecake, coated in biscuit crumb.

Having tried the regular Mochi and not finding it to our taste we were a little reserved about trying this new dessert. It has an unusual texture about it but if you have ever owned chickens and found an egg in a soft shell you will be familiar with the feel this dessert has - it is soft to touch yet firm enough to hold its filling without spillage. Taste wise it is heaven in a soft shell!

A soft cheese filling that initially tastes like raw cake mix (did you ever get to lick the bowl in the days before health & safety and the Edwina egg scandal of the 80's took over) precedes the cheese and strawberry mix - which erupts in delight onto your taste-buds.

We recommend giving yourself time to enjoy this tasty morsel - pop it in whole, make sure no one wants you to talk for a few moments, sit back, relax and simply enjoy. Another favourite to add to our top choices - along with the Spicy Pepper Squid!

Check out our party pictures on the YST Flickr page.

Keep up to date with the latest from YO! Sushi at www.yosushi.com or via Facebook and Twitter