date night

once in a great while, you get the opportunity to experience something that is normally reserved for special people. in this case it was something known as date night. date night happens on wednesdays, every couple of weeks. it entails dinner, drinks, and sometimes a stop at barnes and noble to peruse male pornography, specifically play girl magazine.

thankfully, this particular date night, last night in fact, did not include the usual stop to the b and n.

what it did include, were me and danny, two surprise guests who were invited to join this secret society for one night. along with the founding members liz, mel, katie, al, and danielle, danny and i were able to catch a glimpse of what it is really like to be 'on the inside'.

we ate at kona grill, a pacific-rim kind of fusion place, coupled with its own sushi bar. we all ate sushi and had a pretty good fill. in my opinion, the sushi was sub-par, but i guess acceptable for non-habitual sushi eaters.

the salmon special roll was surrounded by a wasabi-green tea vinaigrette that was strangely unsettling, a flavor and texture that did not add to the enjoyment of the roll. i found myself passing on the vinaigrette and sticking to my own soy-wasabi combination. the volcano was very tasty and very spicy, however it was the diameter of a nickel. i've never seen a chef specialty roll so small, and with so few pieces. also, the heat was fine for me, but it was at a level that the average person may not enjoy. lastly was the spicy yellowtail, which featured sriracha instead of the spicy mayo. unfortunately, the sriracha overpowered the delicate flavor of the yellowtail and was not a good combination with the scallions and cucumbers. the creaminess of a spicy mayo sauce instead, may have successfully melded all of the textures and flavors together.

i am by no means a sushi expert. however, i am a connoisseur and i know what i like and how i like it. kona grill was disappointing in this regard, but to be fair, they are not known for their sushi, but instead their main entrées. i did not try their macadamia nut chicken, sweet chili glazed salmon or their kona`s big island meatloaf, and those dishes are listed as their popular specialties. i may give it another shot one day, but for now...

kona grill sushi: D+. not unique, not flavorful.
overall dining experience: C+. for poor service and comfort.

as far as the date night experience goes... well, truth be told, our conversation was dirtier than a pack of sailors after a two year tour of duty. we hit every low note possible, and in so many ways. i danced around the line and danny knocked us over... every time. topics included, but were not limited to: midgets, the holocaust, chuck norris, the sex lives of our friends, tourettes, and a few other topics that i dare not mention. i'll tell you one thing... if you think that women don't think about sex as much as men do, then you haven't been a part of date night. it was a blast.

i left this night satisfied that, adjacent to my spot in hell, i would be accompanied by at least these six people.