Muracci's Japanese Cuisine

Muracci's is a super casual Japanese restaurant in the Financial district.  Open only during the week, for lunch and early evening only, so not somewhere I've had many opportunities to visit.  They have a very small seating area, basically just a couple stools up against the front window, but nearly everyone takes the food to go.

The space is kinda funny, a long narrow hallway basically, where everyone lines up, leading to the register deep inside the space.  The line always spills out onto the sidewalk at lunchtime.  Once you order, and get your food, then you have to squeeze back through everyone.  I'm not sure how they could do better though, the space just isn't very big.

The menu is mostly Japanese-style curries with rice, although they also have noodle soups, a small sushi menu, and some side dishes.  I'm not one for curries, so I opted for sushi and sides, none of which were very good, but, the curry really is what they are known for.  Oh, they also have packaged mochi, which I did enjoy, but somehow didn't get a photo of.  I'm losing my edge.

Potato Salad.  $3.75.

This is certainly the most unusual potato salad I've ever had.  Perhaps this is normal for Japanese potato salad?  It had ... broccoli and corn.  Uh, what?

The potato itself was also strange, it was .. almost mushy?  Like chunky mashed potatoes, not distinct pieces of potato.  I can't say this was a bad thing exactly, just, very different.

However, there wasn't much flavor.  It was certainly not overdressed, which is probably my most common complaint with potato salad, but I still am not sure there even was a dressing in this.  It really might have just been potato, corn, and broccoli.

I'm glad I experienced this as a totally different form of potato salad, but I wouldn't get it again.  $3.75 price was fine for a container of potato salad.

Inari.  $3.95.

Muracci's has a small sushi menu, consisting of 3 types of rolls (cucumber, avocado, or California) and inari.  All are prepared in advance, ready to grab-n-go.  I was really craving sushi, and while I didn't expect Muracci's to have anything all that high quality, inari is usually a pretty safe bet.

It was ... fine. The inari skin was slightly sweetened, it was well wrapped.  But, I didn't care for the rice inside and each piece was very generously stuffed.  It was white rice, but tasted somewhat like brown rice.  I think possibly due to the sesame seeds that were also in there?  The rice was slightly sticky, but didn't seem seasoned, besides the sesame seeds.

The portion of 5 huge inari was great for $3.95, but I'd prefer an option to get fewer, although I wouldn't get this again anyway.

California Roll. $3.75.

Well, this was not very good.

The rice was mushy.  The nori wrapper was completely soggy, actually hard to chew through since it was so soggy.  The sushi clearly was constructed much earlier in the morning, although the cucumber was crunchy and the avocado not too brown.  The crab was crab stick, fishy tasting.

Wasabi, ginger, and a soy sauce packet were included in the box.  Oh, and a fake sprig of grass.

I don't think this was even worth the $3.75 price.