Soonja rather than later

Though I'm a junior here at Princeton, this is the first year that I've really lived on campus. A month ago, I took up residence in palatial Brown Hall, the wide-halled faux-Florentine villa that sits between Prospect Gardens and Dillon Gym. Its very centrality is what attracted me to it in the first place, for I spent the last two years in the backwater of the Forbes College Addition, home to more bikes and bitterness than Floyd Landis' house. There was, however, one true advantage to living in Forbes, and it has nothing to do with the "It's a tight knit community" propaganda. Unknown to most of the undergraduate body, a culinary outpost exists in the uncharted wilderness near Forbes, a gem of a Japanese restaurant called Soonja's. This very evening, I set out with three friends to reacquaint myself with their cuisine, this time not motivated by mere proximity. The epic meal that took place proved as rewarding as I had hoped.

Soonja's is found on desolate Alexander Street, a location that belies its inviting interior, where Japanese floral prints adorn the walls and the glass tabletops gleam gently under the demure light of paper lanterns. My friends and I, obviously there to practice some serious gastronomy, were ushered by the smiling proprietor into a small private room. To warm up for the Lucullan sushi feast about to take place, we ordered some of our favorite preambles. The edamame were delicately salted and just crisp enough, in contrast to the overcooked and over-salted soybean mush I so often encounter elsewhere. The gyoza (steamed meat dumplings) combined a light dough casing with a well-seasoned ground pork filling, while the shumai (steamed shrimp dumplings) paired a translucent, lightly steaming exterior with a juicy shrimp interior, enhanced by a hint of scallion. One of my dinner companions ordered more adventurously, bringing to the table a cold Korean noodle dish called bibbigumsu. Resembling angel hair pasta in a creamy vodka sauce, the bibbigumsu combined salty, sweet and spicy flavors in each bite, leaving a lingering heat in its wake.

The appetizers demolished, our waiter brought out a mammoth platter of sushi. The rolls at Soonja's adhere closely to the classics found at most Japanese restaurants, but the superb quality and freshness of their fish distinguish them as exceptional. The salmon was well-marbled and tender; each melting bite persisted sumptuously on my palate. The tuna had a crisper, cleaner taste, but also possessed a velvety texture and a bracing sea flavor. While our rolls were consistently excellent (with the unfortunate exception of the Salmon Skin Roll, whose charred bits of skin and soggy exterior should be avoided at all costs), one roll in particular stood out. Not offered on the menu, but available upon request, the Crunchy Spicy Tuna Roll alone is worth the journey. Presented on a snowy platter crisscrossed with artful curlicues of sepia Japanese mayonnaise and crimson hot sauce, this oversized roll is as visually stunning as it is delicious. A mountain of shaved tuna sits grandly atop each piece, concealing beneath it the tempura flakes that give this roll its crunch and the luscious avocado that provides a creamy contrast. Dipped into the fiery hot sauce and the cooling mayonnaise, each rich mouthful brought together conflicting elements to create a cohesive, entirely satisfying whole.

As we polished off the stragglers on our denuded sushi platter, thoughts of dessert crept into our heads. I don't usually order dessert at Japanese restaurants, but menu items like Various Baked Goods, Seasoned Daily Fruits, and Green Tea Mochi piqued our collective curiosity. As it turns out, Various Baked Goods means unimpressive cheesecake and Seasoned Daily Fruits means unripe pineapple, but the Green Tea Mochi was a sweet end to an exceedingly savory meal. Defying my limited understanding of the basic laws governing solids, gases and liquids, the chefs at Soonja's have managed to graft a lightly sweetened rice shell onto a mound of green-tea ice cream, resulting in a doughy, honeyed confection that hits a wonderful final note.

Sated and aglow after our sushi expedition, we began the long and arduous trek back to civilization. As I lounge in my spacious triple in Brown, I can't honestly say I'd rather be living in Forbes again. I can say, however, that I would make the pilgrimage to Soonja's any day, for it is a veritable oasis of fish and soy in the desert of Alexander Street.

Atmosphere: Casual Sound level: Barely a murmur Recommended dishes: BibBiGumsu, Crunchy Spicy Tuna Roll, Green Tea Mochi Wine list: BYOB Price range: Appetizers $3-$10, Entrees $15-$25, Desserts $4-$5 Reservations: Not necessary Credit cards accepted: All Wheelchair Access: Yes