Koji Osakaya (Japanese)

• Restaurant website
• Location: Northeast (Lloyd Center)
• Price to fill up two people: About $40

My cousins and I hit up “Dark Night,” the new Batman movie on Sunday night. (As an aside, it was pretty violent and also pretty good, if a tad preachy.) Afterwards, we stood outside the cinema, blinking in the bright light, and tried to figure out where to go for dinner.

In true gadgeteer fashion I whipped out my PDA, activated Google Maps and searched for restaurants within walking distance. Koji looked the best of the lot, so we headed over that way. And in fact, there was a lot to like about it.

For one thing, there was this really cool hot sake machine in the corner that was fun to watch. For another, the selection was nice and the food was good. Jeff had a bowl of noodles while Robyn and I went to town on the sushi. Most all of it was good. They started miso soup; I had my favorite sunomono (vinegared cucumber salad with a topping of steamed shrimp and cress), and it was not only good but probably TOO substantial.

I wouldn’t say it was knock-your-socks-off memorable, but it was above average, workmanlike Japanese food at a fairly reasonable price. If you’re in the neighborhood, it’s worth a try.

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