Free Press

Issue date: 10/28/02 Section: Arts and Entertainment

Media Credit: Joe Lops A chef at the local Fuji restaurant on Exchange Street in the Old Port, prepares a dish behind the sushi bar.

What happens when you are seated at a table and don't know how to use any of the utensils? You quickly learn how to use what you get, whether it is the chopsticks provided or even your hands in a really quick emergency (although this is, of course, your last option in a crowded restaurant). What if you don't know what anything on the menu is? That's easy to solve: pick something with at least one word you can recognize, for example, chicken.

This was my experience at the Fuji restaurant halfway down Exchange Street in Portland's Old Port. Not having much experience with Japanese restaurants, the outcome was surprisingly pleasant and well worth the 15-minute walk in the 37-degree weather.

You really can't miss the restaurant with its neon signs that quietly lure the unsuspecting customer in. Once in the front door one may be confused as to where to go. Do you go straight ahead to the dining area or down the stairs to the Hibachi room? Since this was the first time dining here, it was best to see the dining area.

The dining rooms are cozy and very personal, although it would have been nice to sit on the fun, brightly colored cushions in the room directly behind our table. From what I have learned in all my art history classes and the occasional TV show, these are the traditional settings for furniture, with the table low to the ground and instead of chairs, cushions. The artwork hanging on the walls is very unique to the culture and makes the dining experience all that more appealing. What stood out the most was the attention to detail and the crimson-colored lights hanging over each table. Absolutely beautiful with the dark wooden tables, the designers from Trading Spaces couldn't have done better.

To begin the meal was the Miso Soup ($1.50). This broth with sautéed tofu is a light start to the dinner. Sesame Spinach ($4), which looked a lot like sushi rolls, consisted of spinach rolled up like sushi, then slathered in sesame oil. The spinach was cooked yet served cold with just the right amount of sesame. This was very tasty and along with that, a garden salad with a bright orangey-yellow dressing which was sweet and sour in a way, but very delicious.

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