Second Helpings

"Second Helpings" is compiled from new and previous reviews, guides, and poll results. This week's entries were updated by Erin Mosow. For more on Austin eateries, check here.

Ichiban

7310 Burnet Rd., 452-2883 Monday-Thursday, 11am-10pm; Friday-Saturday, 11am-10:30pm; Sunday, 4-10:30pm
Ichiban is Japanese for best, first, tops, No. 1. A big claim, but we've heard some regular customers that will, hand over heart, claim it's true. The place is constantly crowded, which means the fish turns over fast, always the best benchmark of a sushi bar. If you get tired of sushi, they also have first-class Korean food.

Korea House

2700 W. Anderson #501, 458-2477 Monday-Thursday, 11am-10pm; Friday, 11am-11pm; Saturday, noon-11pm; Sunday, noon-10pm
The Kim family of Korea House has steadily built a loyal clientele for their small family restaurant overlooking a quiet, beautifully landscaped pond. Once people make their first trip to this almost hidden location, they seem destined to return. The selection of sushi is small and priced very fairly. They always seem to have the freshest and sweetest yellowtail available. The service is attentive, quick, and friendly, and it's also worth giving the marvelous Korean food a try.

Koreana Grill & Sushi Bar

12196 N. MoPac, 835-8888 Monday-Friday, 11am-2pm, 5-10pm; Saturday, 5-10pm; Sunday, 5-9pm
Very reasonable lunch specials highlight this pretty restaurant. The Koreana lunch includes a California roll, inari sushi (fried tofu stuffed with tuna, corn, carrots, and beef), and two pieces of the daily special for $9.95. By the piece, the sushi is fairly expensive, but they also have one of the largest assortments of maki (rolled sushi) in town.

Musashino Sushi Dokoro

3407 Greystone Dr., 795-8593 Sunday, Tuesday-Thursday, 5:30-10pm; Friday-Saturday, 5:30-10:30pm
A first-rate sushi bar, the chic but almost-hidden Musashino is located in the same building as Chinatown, on the southbound frontage road of MoPac just north of Far West Boulevard. Serving a whopping variety of sushi and a small selection of Japanese appetizers, the restaurant features fine fish and friendly service. The regular sushi dinner includes miso soup, salad, three pieces of a roll, and seven different pieces of sushi (chef's choice, so it changes daily) that melt in your mouth. Though expensive, it is certainly one of the best in Austin.

Seoul Restaurant

6400-C S. First, 326-5807 Monday-Thursday, 11:30am-9:30pm; Friday, 11:30am-10pm; Saturday, 4-10pm
Sushi master D.K. Lee furnishes beautifully presented, moderately priced sushi crafted from the freshest cuts of fish in spare, clean, appealing environs. The creamy, butter-soft yellowtail deserves the most attention. The spider roll is wonderful: a deep-fried soft-shell crab sprinkled with flying fish roe and paired with cucumber strips before being rolled tight in seaweed, then pressed in vinegared rice and black sesame seeds and sliced on the diagonal. The result had a rich flavor, a delicious departure from the typical healthy-fresh sushi roll.

Shogun

1807 Slaughter #225, 292-1580 Mon-Fri, 11:30am-2pm; Mon-Sat, 5:30-10pm
The Korean-owned Shogun serves a solid selection of reasonably priced sushi and Japanese cuisine, as well as stir-fry and a few other generic Asian dishes. Specialties of the house include sukiyaki, tempura, teriyaki, teppanyaki, udon, and soba. The menu also features some interesting salads. The maki and hand-roll sections include such items as the spider roll, Hawaiian roll, and Rock'n Roll.