Zen Toro

Months ago, we decided to try Zen Toro based on the rave reviews on daviswiki, Brett's recommendations, and my coworker's glowing comments. We went for lunch, and were struck by how different the place looked from when it was Tapioca Express. The inside is sleek, dark, and befitting the small, bistro space. The lunch we had was satisfying and a fresh take on Japanese food for the Davis area.

Fast forward to the present. Zen Toro is one of our favorites, and we thoroughly enjoy the Hawaiian-influenced, fusion-tinged Japanese cuisine that Masa and Masako Nishiyama proffer for our enjoyment. At lunch, I enjoy the Zen Toro lunch special, which starts with a small bowl of Hawaiian saimin noodle soup, and a tiny salad of baby Yolo-county mixed greens with a light vinegar dressing. All of their lunch specials start with this, but they leave out the soup if you get a sushi and noodle combination.


My plate comes with rice, chicken teriyaki, shrimp and vegetable tempura, a fish puff, a small scoop of macaroni salad, and a slightly bitter cabbage salad that provides a nice, sharp contrast to the rest of the plate. The chicken teriyaki is sliced and tender, and the tempura is pleasingly crisp. Once, they included a slice of acorn squash, which was a nice surprise. People have commented on the inappropriateness of the macaroni salad, but I think they haven't noticed the Hawaiian influences on the rest of the menu.

The presentation here is valued and beautiful. For example, my favorite roll there, the ZT crunch roll, always comes out beautifully arranged with an artistic sauce spread. The ZT crunch roll features tempura shrimp, maguro, and BBQ eel, with cucumber, avocado, snow crab, and green onion. It's a delicious fusion of flavors.


Dinner there is also delicious, and long with various dinner specials, they feature several entrees that aren't found anywhere else in Davis. Nick had the Kuwayaki duck breast, that comes with a warm mushroom salad, sansho peppers, and a soy glaze. He thought it was great, though he would have preferred having a knife to cut the duck breast. The warm mushroom salad was a different sensation in the mouth, and provided a nice foil for the strong, heavy duck.


Last night he tried one of their Japanese-Italian fusion entrees: the shrimp scampi (Masa's Asian style scampi shrimp). Huge shrimp accompanied soba pasta with shiitake mushrooms and sake, garlic, and butter. This entree wasn't as well executed as some of their other dishes, and suffered from our comparisons of the Italian verson of the dish. It was also new eating pasta with chopsticks, but this was fun.

We also tried their surf and turf roll, with tempura shrimp, slices of rare tataki beef, and these fabulous deep fried tempura onion slices. The roll itself was alright, but I didn't like the texture of the beef as it slid down my throat. The onions, however, were the best part. They reminded me of the onion rings at BJ's and Cattlemen's, but were somehow lighter and more enjoyable.

It was packed on Friday night of a three day weekend, which is a sign that this restaurant is doing something right. My friend Lyndsay says the miso soup is one of the indicators of a good Japanese restaurant, and she rated Zen Toro's version as very delicious, which I concur. Try it at least once, and let Masa and his team impress you with his take on contemporary Japanese cooking.


Zen Toro
132 E St. #1A
Davis, CA 95616
(530) 753-0154

Lunch: Mon- Fri: 11:30am-2pm
Dinner: Mon-Thurs: 5-9pm, Fri-Sat: 5-10pm
website