Sushi cravings led us to an contradictory, but pleasantly memorable experience at Teriyaki House

My friend Zeldine and I first bonded over food. I remember how it all started. She was outgoing, funny, sweet, and above all hungry; much like me (I mean the hunger part of the description).

When she left she was soon to make her way to Thailand, where her parents would soon be deployed for work. This is where she resumed her final year of high-school and went through college. 

I remember our very first conversation as if it was just yesterday. I had mentioned my love for wings, which she shared. She then expressed her love for the traditional meat pie. Later on this catastrophe of an exchange happened:

Zeldine: Goats are definitely one of my favorite animals; aside from Zorro of course. 

Me: I don’t know… They kinda creep me out. I think it’s the square pupils. 

Zeldine: I’m pretty sure a goat would taste good in a pie though. In fact, that’s what we should do next. Find some goat pies to taste. 

Me: I’m with you there. Make sure they include the square pupils in the filling. I bet they got a bitter taste that complements the creepy look I their eyes. 

Zeldine: Square pupil pie it is. 

‘Square pupils’ became an ongoing silly inside joke between the two of us, and it became the very start of our food tasting, reviewing and binge eating endeavors. 

The other day, with determination to tend to our sushi cravings we went to an ‘affordable’ sushi buffet, we went to a restaurant called Teriyaki House in our city, Centurion. This place was actually a last resort because our usual sushi spot, Wok ’n Roll, did not have the sushi buffet on that particular day. 

We arrived at Teriyaki House expecting absolutely anything. The service was great. The atmosphere was peaceful, and the sushi chef got to work with rice in hand as soon as he heard us say ‘sushi buffet’ to the waiter. 

The first sushi orders we made came shortly after we ordered and we were pleasantly surprised by the quality of sushi we received. Zeldine, having lived in several Asian and European countries, has an opinion on those respective cuisines that I trust. 

Me, on the other hand, having a more African/British/ American palate and gastronomic knowledge base, only began to discover a wide variety of foods after the age of 18 and even then had no way of determining the authenticity of diverse foods. In fact, I had a fear of trying new foods for a long time (probably because of my nut and coconut allergies).

The second round of sushi was also great, and included some of the chef’s recommendations. 

However, in the last round of sushi we had, we realized that we had made grave mistake by ordering the tuna. The moment I put that tuna maki in my mouth, I had deep regret which I felt I could not express out of respect for the chef as well as my friend. When Zeldine herself put the tuna maki in her mouth, she discreetly released it into a napkin after a few chews. 

That piece of sushi might have ruined what was an otherwise brilliant experience. It was then when we understood why the waiter was not recommending anything tuna related. The deep fried ice-cream we had for dessert ended up making up for the traumatizing tuna I swallowed. 

A few days later I was at a birthday dinner where I met cool aw student, who shared my experience with, and she explained that the best day to order seafood is on a Tuesday, because it arrives in the Gauteng province from the coast on Mondays. The worst days are Fridays to Sundays, and guess what… the had sushi on a Friday. 

The moment became the source of another inside joke.

What’s more is that after the sushi buffet, once Zeldine & I we got the bill with what we assumed was usual delightful Chinese candy, we were hit with another not so triumphant moment when we tried the Honey Plum Candy that we had heard about, but never actually tired.

The first few seconds were actually pretty good. Sweet like candy ‘should’ be. Then, an intense wave of salt coated the inside of my mouth triggering my tear ducts. They say the saltiness passes, so I kept moving it around in my mouth, completely embracing experience. Twenty minutes late the salt on got more potent, and there had been a significant reduction in sweetness to keep balance with. As I was driving us home, that was making me nervous. Zeldine was struggling just as much. We threw that jawn out the window.

I see why people would like it tho. It’s the same reason why Zimbos put flying termites on the stove top or put dovi in muriwo.