San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — San Diego is primarily littered with trendy Chipotle-style poke food culture, sleek places where huge mashups of clumpy rice, stringy toppings, and low-grade fish get layered together before your very eyes. Properly executed, fresh tuna shouldn’t be hot pink like a lollipop.
In the industrial office complexes of Sorrento Valley, in an area that could accurately be described as ‘off the beaten path,’ Hawaiian Fresh Seafood sits in one of the last places you’d expect to find bona fide island poke. This is the real-deal poke destination in San Diego, a purveyor selling fresh, straight-off-the boat fish by the pound or by the dish. This is pre-marinated poke, the way that god and all of Hawaii intended.
On a Saturday, there is usually a long (but manageable) line that queues through one room into the next, finally arriving at your turn in front of the display cases, one filled with up to a dozen varieties of that day’s hand-cut poke, the other with fresh slabs of raw fish for purchase. The ordering area can be a little bit hectic; there is one point of sale, and it can turn into a free-for-all while they help multiple parties at the same time.
When it’s in the building, the avocado salmon is my favorite thing here, a mix of salmon, avocado, and onions mixed in a subtle vinaigrette. Collectively, it is more than the sum of its ingredients, a composition that’s butter reenforced by butter and still each part stands on its own.
The salmon and wasabi is that thing that sort of defies expectations, one thing combined with another that you’re sure will overpower the whole. But done right, it works. This is salmon that’s tossed with green and sweet onions and melded together with a wasabi-based cream. There is also an ahi version, similarly balanced and magnificent. The outcome is magical, a combination that delivers some heat for those who crave it while the fish remains the star.
There is also yellowtail, draped liberally with green and sweet onions, where the fish is cut small but not too small, melting into the subtle sweetness of its marinade but still tasting very much of itself.
Everything else that I’ve had over the years has been great bordering on excellent. Personally, I prefer the shoyu-based stuff in general, and sometimes I find the mayo-based options a little too overdressed. Even so, it’s light years ahead of everything else in town. Entrees are served simply, in a plastic bowl if you’re getting a small (1 scoop) or a medium (2 scoops) and in a hinged styrofoam container if you’re getting a large (3 scoops). White or brown rice are your base choices.
The word is out so expect this to be one of the busiest suburban cul-de-sacs you’ll ever see, a wholesale business turned destination eatery thanks to quality fare. A small outpost has also opened up at Liberty Station, where the same great poke is available at an up-charge thanks to the central location.
Written by Joy
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Being born and raised in Honolulu, I can attest to the products from HFS. It is definitely NOT what we call the “Chi-Poke” fad/concept. Just not a big fan of the salmon at HFS….it’s one of the products their fleet doesn’t catch. The quality is about that of a typical supermarket back home, which is better then just about anything you’d get here; unless you make it yourself.
As for the pink hue of tuna, it’s usually what we call “saku” fish – treated with carbon monoxide. In Hawaii it’s law that fish treated in this manner has to be labeled as such.
If you’re interested more info here:
https://mmm-yoso.typepad.com/mmmyoso/2007/03/maguro_unconfid.html
Hi Kirk thank you for the additional info and insight! That’s interesting that the salmon isn’t caught by the HFS folks – as noted, it’s still light years ahead of everything else in the area. In fact, I’m always stunned by the lack of quality seafood and fish education and knowledge across the board in San Diego, given that we’re a coastal town. It’s great to see this place thrive (and expand) and help raise the bar.
That’s great you found a good local spot!
Indeed! I recall that you don’t eat poke but they also have cooked fish plates here, including fish and chips. Though I can’t speak to the quality of those personally, I think they’d be worth a shot given the caliber of their seafood in general.
I have tried their fish and chips and the Garlic Shrimp. I really enjoyed the fish and chips, but was not wild about the shrimp. I am a recent poke convert due to a little shack in Hilo and HFS. I tasted my partner’s poke and each time I had a few more bites. The last two visits, I got small bowls for myself. I haven’t ventured past the shoyu ahi, but am intrigued by some of the other options
I’ll do my best to try one of their cooked entrees sometime. The poke is always so tempting!
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