I don’t know if anyone else experiences this, but it has personally been a long and arduous trek for me to find good, fresh, and cold raw fish in Davis. But the struggle is now over since Zumapoke & Lush Ice recently opened downtown, and has quickly grown to become my new go-to place. Zumapoke is owned by couple Rachel and Dustin Ryen (pause for adorableness) who are originally from the Yolo County area but have frequently taken trips to Hawaii, land of poke. When they noticed the poke craze start to happen they decided to open a restaurant in their hometown, and thankfully they did because this sh*t is cray in the best way possible.
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Zumapoke’s menu is pretty self-explanatory and their prices are also on point with a small bowl at $10.95 and a large at $12.95. Every bowl comes with a base of white rice, furikake, and pickled cucumbers. From there you can mix and match a variety of fresh fish (I recommend the traditional poke) and add sauces and sides as well. Oh, and a topping of sliced avocado doesn’t hurt either.
It’s hard to believe that so many different components work well together in one dish, but they really do and you don’t feel bad after eating a whole, generously-portioned bowl because it’s so light and healthy. To top it all off, Zumapoke also has a delicious selection of lush ices that taste just like a Hawaiian sunrise.
Just kidding, I’ve never been to Hawaii. Oh, and did I mention these lush ices can be made into alcoholic lush ices with the addition of Soju? Mama likey.
Photo by Nicole Nguyen
Another component about Zumapoke that I really appreciate is that their fish is not just high quality, but also ethically sourced from the Hawaiian coast. This makes a positive impact, as many commonly eaten fish species are dying off which might mean no more poke. Their rice is sourced from a family farm and they only use local produce as well. Talk about farm to table.
So the next time you find yourself with a hankering for sushi, step it up a notch and check out Zumapoke. You’ll be glad you did.
GIF courtesy of giphy.com