Chef-owner Chau Trinh of Sushi Pop seemed mind-blown to walk away with the garish, WWE-style belt last night at Morimoto Asia, inking the books as the throwdown’s first-ever People’s Choice Award Winner.
“Representing Oviedo was an honor,” he said, moments after posing, belt held high overhead.
The Sushi Showdown, a highly anticipated Orlando chef competition held in the same spot where the now-defunct Ramen Rumble has been held for several years, was a smash with guests, who, in this new format, could interact with chefs as they went from station to station, happily sampling.
Okonomi executive chef Kevin Abanilla earned the Judge’s Award, a Tuna Trophy featuring a compact slab of nigiri balanced between chopsticks.
The night’s overall winner was local nonprofit Give Kids The World Village, which benefited from more than $11,000 raised to provide week-long, cost-free vacations to children with critical illnesses and their families.
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Celebrity judges FOX35’s David Martin, principal ballerina Hitomi Nakamura of the Orlando Ballet and Orlando-based content creator Brian Kirkwood had the difficult task of determining a winner in a competition this strong.
Guests polled were all over the place in their answers; no true frontrunner emerged, even as the night went on.
Okonomi was the collective pick for Cori Carnes and David Witt of Winter Garden, though their feelings were flipped on hot and cold presentations, with Carnes favoring their raw presentation (light and refreshing bluefin tuna nigiri, tomato kosho, shiso, tomato nikiri) and Witt leaning on the cooked (an absolutely decadent panko-fried chutoro atop rich ume togarashi dark chocolate mole, pistachio kastsobushi).
Pictures: Sushi Showdown at Morimoto Asia in Disney Springs
Both chose Sushi Saint Winter Park‘s offering for the opposite (a beautiful Black Tide taco with chutoro and otoro for raw; the Red Tide sando with akami and chutoro atop toasted milk bread from chef de cuisine Lex Bawgus), but in the end, guests had to choose one for the win.
Both were leaning toward Okonomi at the time.
Chef Kevin Abanilla of Okonomi holds the Judges Award aloft at the Sushi Showdown at Morimoto Asia in Disney Springs on Monday night. (Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel)
Yuhi Fujanaga, director of culinary for Patina Group, was grateful to all the participating chefs and owners for allowing the Morimoto team to celebrate sushi with Orlando.
“It’s always great to see all the chefs come together to support such an amazing cause in Give Kids the World,” he said. “Hope to see more people at next year’s Sushi Showdown.”
“It brings the community together,” said Hayashi Taro sushi chef David Tsan (whose runs with both Norigami and Kappo Tsan were Michelin-recognized). Hayashi Taro, an omakase bento concept from chef Lewis Lin (Susuru, Juju), is set to open in the coming weeks at 714 N. Mills Ave. in Orlando.
Chef Yuhi Fujinaga, director of culinary for Patina Group, breaks down the bluefin during the Sushi Showdown at Morimoto Asia in Disney Springs on Monday night. (Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel)
“Events like this keep us connected through more than just phones, which is so important in modern society,” Tsan said.
Hayashi Taro’s cold-tasting, a chutoro roll ‘n’ fold featuring caviar, fried shallots, kizami wasabi, nikiri soy and tomato-strawberry sauce, was a stunner alongside their dry-aged smoked bluefin youtiao sando, a refresher that paved the way for richness.
Where Sushi Pop’s Trinh teased that his offering might make an appearance on the official menu, Seito Sushi’s Juicy Red Nigiri is already available at the Baldwin Park favorite.
From left to right: Lex Bawgus and Michael Collantes of Sushi Saint, Lewis Lin of Hayashi Taro and Huy Tin of Seito Sushi Baldwin Park strike a post at the Sushi Showdown at Morimoto Asia in Disney Springs on Monday night. (Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel)
“This is the first thing I created when I got back from a trip to Seoul two years ago,” chef and operating partner Huy Tin said.
“It is inspired by Korean beef tartare, with flavors like Asian pear, shiso leaves, Gochujang and sesame and it goes so well together.”
The Showdown was Lex Bawgus’ first competition. The Sushi Saint Winter Park chef de cuisine came at it with relaxed intent, working alongside chef de partie Vanessa Fernandez.
“I’m super excited,” Bawgus told the Orlando Sentinel. “Happy that Mike (Collantes, Sushi Saint owner) is backing us up. It’s just a really cool situation for a woman as a chef. It’s nice to be in this realm.”
Guests interact with chefs including chef Lex Bawgus, right, during the Sushi Showdown at Morimoto Asia in Disney Springs on Monday night. (Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel)
For Fan Favorite Trinh, there was no hesitation, he said, when it came to creating the tasting duo that will bring the belt back to Oviedo: the El Jefe (spicy bluefin, blackened , pickled red onion, kampyo, chutoro, fermented green Sriracha, cilantro, roasted pineapple, Tajin) and Bluefin Yam Yum (toasted rice-seared bluefin tuna, kafir lime fish sauce, caramelized shallots, pickled lemongrass, mama’s hot sauce, sweet tomatoes, garlic oil, mixed herbs, sesame).
The “Bluefin Yam Yum” dish from Sushi Pop is pictured during the Sushi Showdown at Morimoto Asia in Disney Springs on Monday night. (Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel)
“I knew that these were the things that I wanted to represent who I am, what Sushi Pop is, the food that I like and the flavors that I enjoy, and that’s what I wanted to create for the people tasting it.”
Find me on Facebook, TikTok, Twitter or Instagram @amydroo or on the OSFoodie Instagram account @orlando.foodie. Email: amthompson@orlandosentinel.com, For more foodie fun, join the Let’s Eat, Orlando Facebook group.
Dining and Cooking