During the holiday season, this Wuff decided to pay a visit to one of his favorite sushi establishments in Colorado Springs: Kura Japanese Restaurant.

Vrghr started with a couple appetizers (a delightful seaweed salad, and rock shrimp tempura in a sweet and spicy mayo sauce) and then inquired about their menu listing for "Izakaya" creations. Basically, these are a chef's creations of "small plates", somewhat akin to "Tapas" but Japanese style.

Wuff's waitress had no idea what "Izakaya" meant, even though it was on the restaurant's website. So Vrghr asked whether they did "Omakase" there? (This, roughly translated, means "I put myself in your hands." And the sushi chef offers the patron a selection of sushi creations of the chef's choice. Normally ranging from a mild start to more creative and strongly-flavored as things progress. But you never really know what you're going to get, or how much it will ultimately cost!)

Once again, waitress gave wuff a blank look. HOWEVER, the sushi chef across the bar where Vrghr was seated chimed up at that point. He mentioned that Izakaya and Omakase were pretty much reserved for the evening meals; the luncheon was more geared to quick and less expensive plates, to get patrons out and back to work instead of spending longer hours in the restaurant.

Vrghr nodded his understanding, and ordered an a-la cart selection of Nigiri sushi off their luncheon (highly discounted) menu. The resulting delightful and very delicious presentation is pictured in the top image.

While Vrghr was enthusiastically enjoying that, the sushi chef who has spoken up earlier handed Vrghr the lovely plate pictured in the second image! Though not normally a feature of their lunch menu, he had created an Izakaya special dish for the wuff! This was a fantastic assortment of different types of sashimi, artfully encased in cucumber 'boxes' and presented beautifully! It was SOOOO good!

Wuff handed the chef a special tip to express his gratitude and delight. Later, as the chef was getting off shift and heading home, he offered this wuff yet another surprise - the final dessert dish pictured at the bottom. A simple dish of sliced orange segments with whipped cream and edible flower petals, with a sweet sauce swirl.

The perfect light ending to an utterly delicious lunch!

For those who happen to be passing through the Colorado Springs area, Vrghr STRONGLY recommends a stop at this delightful business if you are a fan of artfully created, delicious sushi!

Wuff had to show off this chef's work, and prove that, Yes Indeed, food can be an art form entirely fitting for an art site!

Bon Appetite!