Totoro

Classes started today, and this past weekend saw the craziest influx of kids I feel like I've experienced in my college experience. Usually, I feel like it's a somewhat gradual increase in student body presence over the week or so before classes. This time, it was *bam* Friday, EVERYONE is here. It's nice to have people back, though. A college town isn't quite the same without... college kids.

Now that more of my friends are back in town, this should give me more opportunity to go out to eat and share my findings, including two from this weekend: Sava's and Totoro. Sava's has a great story and I fell in love with it immediately, so I'll write about that after I make at least two trips back (and I know exactly what I'm getting).

Totoro. Say it. Totoro! Isn't it fun?? It's more fun if you say it really fast in almost a light whisper, so the words tumble off your tongue in that giddy Japanese schoolgirl way. Totoro-san, hai! Clearly, it's a Japanese restaurant. I went with a couple of girlfriends for lunch on Sunday. My first time. We walked in and the waitress greeted us by pointing out the udon + cali roll special for $8.45. I was pretty much ready to order then. But the three of us sat down and pondered over the menu, considering at one point or another everything from bowls to bento boxes.

We settled on ordering and sharing 3 rolls - crunch crunch, tempura california, and spider roll. Back to the basics. Nothing adventurous, but all very crunchy. I was worried from the moment we ordered until I took my final bite that 3 rolls would not be enough. I'm the kind of eater that doesn't understand the concept of full, and it isn't until I'm rolling around on the couch short of breath that I realize I shouldn't have had that fourth helping. After being dubbed "The Masticator" this summer, I decided I should learn to control myself, so after we finished off our rolls I told myself that I was content and didn't need to order another. To my surprise, the end of our post-meal chitchat found me... full. I guess that satisfied feeling that you get near the end of your meal is a sign that it's a good time to stop eating so you don't suffer through being overstuffed.

Why is this turning into a self-reflection of my eating habits? Back to the subject, spider rolls are always a favorite and I was not disappointed at Totoro. The crab was light, crispy, and perfectly tasty. The crunch crunch is tempura shrimp and avocado topped with tempura crunch and masago with eel sauce. Tempura california is, you guessed it, deep-fried cali roll. Maybe my least favorite of the three because it seemed heavier, what with it being wholly dunked and fried in batter. I don't have a "fancy phone" like someone, but I snapped a few shots with my dinky flip phone. The food looks washed out, but I promise it was yummy! And the sushi chef laughed at me when I took pictures of the restaurant. I don't know why.

Unfortunately, Totoro probably won't be my most frequented restaurant for sushi... but that's because there are literally 3 sushi places within 2 blocks of where I live (a bone of contention which I'm sure I'll rant about some day). But I dare say it may be one of my top three of sushi in Ann Arbor. Will try more special rolls in the future. Yummers!!!

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No website, but you can find the menu and pictures here.