The Fields in southwest Champaign is growing and an enhancement to that corridor is Poke Shack. This place is a gem. The poke and Hawaiian restaurant has expanded their menu adding sharables and specials.
The ube tempura fries ($6) were our first sharable item. Ube is a type of purple yam hailing from the Philippines and currently making a splash in the U.S. in a number of items. These fries were very nice: a classic coating of tempura batter, not greasy, well-cooked. The texture and flavor of the ube was interesting, quite starchy and not as sweet as a standard yam. The side of honey mayo that arrived with it was a nice compliment as it added a creamy sweetness to the fries.
We also ordered the summer special: pineapple ($3.50) with choice of seasoning li hing mui powder or Shichimi pepper. I’m not much on fiery spice at the moment, so we decided to go with the li hing mui powder, which I had to look up as I had never heard of it previously. Li hing mui powdert is a sweet and salty seasoning made from dried plums, sugar, and licorice. This topping really added to the pineapple! It was sweet and lightly licorice-y with just a hint of salt. Wow, this cut through the sweetness and tartness of the pineapple. It was very good and interesting! I didn’t use it all, so I plan to try it on other things in the future — popcorn seasoning anyone?
I love some poke, sushi, or fish of any type, so I selected the combo sushi bowl ($14.95). Yes, I am aware we cannot see the ocean from here, unless we consider an ocean of corn. This was stocked high with deliciousness and garnished with delicately cut nori (seaweed), tempura crunch, spicy mayo, and sushi sauce. The proteins included were grounded spicy tuna, krab salad, smoked salmon, and hot fire shrimp. For my bowl base, the options were white or brown rice or mixed greens. I selected mixed greens. The other toppings included were daikon radish, cucumber, carrot, edamame, red cabbage, and avocado.
The krab salad had a light mayo dressing, and it was a good flavor. The shrimp was quite spicy and overpowered the smoked salmon, as they were plated next to each other. The spicy tuna was very finely ground and not spicy at all after the shrimp. It almost tasted like there was some mirin in it. I tasted the proteins separately and then mixed everything together. A bite with a bit of everything was full of flavor and texture. It was a light and nice meal for a summer evening.
My husband ordered the loco moco bowl ($11.50). He cannot resist loco moco when it’s available. The dish consisted of rice (choice of white or brown); he chose white, burger, gravy, and egg. Generally the egg is runny, but they were able to make the egg over hard. It had a garnish of scallion, but we wanted more of them on the dish to add additional texture. There was a good amount of rice under the burger and the proper amount of gravy to mix with all of the ingredients. The burger patty was premade but still cooked well with good flavor. They could elevate the dish more by upgrading the burger to fresh meat. The gravy was a good beefy, salty, just a pinch sweet flavor. The dish was overall enjoyable.
While in the shop, we could not resist the ube rice krispie treat ($2). It was so dark purple, it appeared black in most light! This was a tasty dessert that was not overly sweet, possibly due to the addition of ube. It had less marshmallows than normal. The ube lended a slight botanic flavor and clearly the color to the treat. It was a good size portion. We did note, upon unwrapping, the treat smelled like a box of fresh donuts. Yum.
Poke Shack is a very good option for a quick bite when in the area. Everything was presented hot and fresh. Of note is their two locations: one in Champaign and one in Mahomet. This lends to multiple opportunities for you to try these unique flavors and offerings.
There are quite a few other dishes to try, so try some poke or Hawaiian food! Order in the store or online through their website or GrubHub.
The Poke Shack – Champaign
3401 Fields South Dr
Champaign
M-Sa 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.