Pokinometry — Restaurant in Anaheim

I'm a traditionalist when it comes to poke, I kind of ripped long standing stalwart North Shore for not being authentic. To re-iterate my idea of poke needs seaweed, ogo, limu and kukui nuts. You've never had Hawaiian poke without at least 1 of those. If your basing Pokinometry off Hawaiian Poke and calling it a new style of sushi I have to say I was extremely skeptical. The pictures evoked a combination of Chiptole and Tender Greens.

Be fair warned parking sucks, just park in the structure or nearby lots. Most of the street parking is locked up by residents or long term locals.

I don't consider this sushi because sushi actually is about the rice and not the fish like people think. The white rice does not use the traditional vinegar, nor does the brown rice for that matter. Great option on the salad and nachos. I found this refreshing. I'd consider this seafood bowls. I could got into more specifics on the sushi topic, but I'll save that for another time and another bottle. The ratio of rice to fish in Hawaiian Poke is usually pretty even and large so to heave small bowls to make things more affordable is novel. That's not how I eat it. To me Large is normal sized, 5 scoops. I liked the avo option, it's something I do in my vegetarian bowls. I went with tuna, salmon, albacore, yellowtail and octobpus. Spicy tuna to me is generic and heat should be added to the whole dish. Salmon was a little soft, but very uniform and fatty. Tuna was firm to the touch, but soft when chewed. Yellowtail was the most pungent, a little on the fishy smelling because of the high fat content which had me a little concnered. Albacore was the firmest and only chosen because I wasn't satisfied with their answer on where they get their scallops. Actually they couldn't/wouldn't find out where they procure their fish/shellfish which shook my confidence in them. I have a fish monger so I know where my and many sushi restaurants get their fish, you should too. Octopus was firm, not rubbery, really took to the ponzu sauce well. I went spicy, I could taste the sesame seed oil, but it wasn't toasted so the need for seeds to garnish is necessary, also adding texture. Toasted sesame seed oil is far more pungent and you need less in the ratio. As traditional as mayo based sauces are in Hawaiian Poke, to me they're not necessary. I love the masago, onions and ginger that come standard, took these off on the chips version I had. Wasn't a fan of the imitation crab meat topping. The chips version I went with shrimp, replacing the salmon. I went with extra sauce and dynamite too. The mayo went well with the crunch. I chose this instead of the salad because a poke base salad is unheard of to not have seaweed. The crunch was nice, but perhaps would have liked them served separately. To mix and then just dump on top got messy, ate with chopsticks and hands.

Seating is weird, 2 seats mostly, nothing for 3-5 groups. Service is good, nice to see they mix everything and make everything to order. I totally expected kim chi as an option. Décor was forgettable and service was overall good, just not their knowledge.

My rating is generous for 3 reasons, options, made to order, and concept. I was critical on sourcing, authenticity, seating, parking. It's a quick fix, something between sushi and teriyaki bowls. New it is not, sushi it is not, poke it is not. 3.5 with room for...

Pokinometry has a great name. When you say it, you think Science. This will be gastronomic experience! If this is what you think, like I did, when you walk in the place, you'll be let down.

It shows that they just need to care more. It feels like there is zero presence of management, like the owners just want to be left alone.

The staff are very young, maybe some of them first jobs. That's OK. But leaving young, first job employees without good management, gave me more of an impression that they don't care. Maybe their trying to recover from pandemic issues, or whatever, but why then are other businesses are doing great, like Poke Co.

For example, when you order you have to go though 4 levels: first is the base, second is the toppings, etc. When I was at the sauce level, there are instructions written on a board behind the station. This board has options. The employee started by asking me if I wanted mild or spicy. After I told them I don't like spicy, they proceeded to add the sauce, even though I didn't pick one. There were at least three kinds to choose. Even though I thought this was strange, rather than stop them to ask what the other sauces were, I just moved along.

The next board was final toppings. There is a bin of the main toppings, and two small shakers of toasted sesame and seaweed. I told them what I had wanted from the main bin. After that, the employee took my bowl over to the register to check out. But, I wanted the sesame seeds. So, I asked them to come back, asked if the sesame seeds were extra... No. Can I have some please? The employee looked annoyed. I was one of two customers in the place, BTW.

Next to the sesame seeds was crunchy garlic and fried onion toppings. I didn't see those before, and asked what they were and if I could have some too.

It was like the employee couldn't wait to get me out. Maybe so they could get back to there smart phone games, or texting, or whatever.

Ordering here felt like I was having to tell my kids to do their chores, and them trying to get away with doing as little as possible, counting on the me not checking... I was right in front of them.

Anyway, I got Salmon Shrimp and Yellow tail poke bowl. The Yellow tail was great. Very fresh texture. The Salmon was mushy. Never had salmon like that.

I wouldn't go back, as there are many other places to try now. Maybe two years ago, no way.

So, I believe this business relies on foot traffic from all the big buildings around. This makes sense to me about why the owners seem to not care to be involved with their buisness compared to others where they have competition right...

I love Poke, and this place does it right! It's really like the chipotle of Poke, so don't be afraid of the long time. It'll go by relatively fast. But for me, when a line is moving fast, and I'm still not sure how the whole thing works, I get really nervous. And if you're like me, I hope I can cure your PokiNometry Anxiety with a few tips ;)

The sizes pertain to the amount of fish they give you. Small- 2 scoops in a slightly smaller bowl; Medium- 3 scoops; and Large - 5 scoops. Medium and Large have the same amount of sushi rice.

A scoop means an ice cream scoop-size; a smallish ice cream scoop-size for the fish; a big one for the imitation crab

When you approach the counter, they'll ask you what size. The first person makes the sushi rice portion.

2nd person of contact puts in the "free" things: cucumber, onion, imitation crab, and avocado. Voice out if you don't want any. Crab and avocado are put into the bowl with the rice. The cucumber and onion are put into a separate bowl to be tossed with the fish and ponzu.

Here you choose the fish- mashed spicy tuna, tuna, salmon, albacore, yellowtail, shrimp (cooked), and bay scallops (small ones). If you end up choosing the mashed spicy tuna, you should ask them to put it IN the bowl to begin with. My person put it with the other fish, and when they mixed it later on, it disappeared into the mixture of the other fish :(

Here you choose the other the level of spicy for your sauce: ponzu/ soysauce/ spicy mayo. I chose the ponzu because it's not as salty as soysauce and has the citrus flavor as well. DEF ask for a side of spicy mayo. I've never made spicy mayo like this.. they put chunks of pickled red pepper inside :o

Now they will mix the sauce + the sashimi pieces and combine it on top of your bowl.

Here's the 2nd round of "free" stuff (YAY): ginger, masago, green onion and wasabi. Feel free to opt out.

Now you pay. Ask for a lid if you want to take it to-go.

If I'm ever in the area, I will def. be back. The flavors itself aren't different or unique, but I like their approach to making Poke a more customizable experience. This place is already poppin within their first months of opening; I'm a bit afraid of how long the line is going to be in the future/ if the quality of the food will be going down/ if the portions will get smaller... bc that's what happens to a lot of places when they become too hyped up :/ Here's to it keeping its 5 stars for...