Poke, a traditional Hawaiian dish centered around raw fish, originated as a much simpler dish than the poke we know of today. What began as a snack consisting of freshly caught fish massaged with sea salt, seaweed, and roasted kukui nuts adapted as immigrants arrived, bringing new, international flavors with them.

Go Fish Poke Bar first opened its doors in 2017 in Redwood City and has long been the only poke bar in the area, making it a fan favorite of Sequoia students. However, a new bar, Poke’d Out Fish Bar, opened on Laurel Street in San Carlos in July. Seeing as students in both San Carlos and Redwood City attend Sequoia, the two poke bars will be competing for the attention of students, so I decided to give a comprehensive review of both bars as a guide for Sequoia students.

Walking into both bars, you are confronted with an array of numerous choices of fish, toppings, and sauces. Immediately, Poke’d Out stands out with significantly more sauces and toppings than Go Fish. Adriana Lizarraga, an employee at Poke’d Out, had a few sauce recommendations for me.

“‘Da Poke Sauce,’ spicy aioli, and citrus ponzu are the pretty popular sauces here,” Adriana Lizarraga, a Poke’d Out employee, said.

In addition, Poke’d Out features toppings that Go Fish doesn’t serve, such as fresh mangos and Hot Cheetos, which are associated with more modern interpretations of the traditional Hawaiian dish. Go Fish, however, prides itself in staying more traditional.

“The owner set it more like traditional style so we don’t have toppings like mango,” Stephanie, a long-time employee at Go Fish, said.

If you are looking for more variety and contemporary ingredients, Poke’d Out is the bar for you. On the other hand, lovers of traditional poke would best find their favorite bowls in Go Fish.

As I began to order in both bars, further differences between the two began to emerge. Firstly, Go Fish stood far above its competition in terms of service speed. My poke bowl—consisting of salmon, lettuce, cucumbers, and more—was completed within 30 seconds. Meanwhile, in Poke’d Out, ingredients were carefully and methodically added to my bowl, and I was informed of every item on the menu as well as any ingredients that added extra cost. My order took two-and-a-half minutes; however, the extra time felt more welcoming and friendly.

The serving sizes of the ingredients were also different: Poke’d Out served larger scoops of fish and slightly larger portions of ingredients than Go Fish. In comparison to cost, both bars serve three scoops of poke for around the same price; however, given that Poke’d Out serves larger scoops, it is a slightly better deal than Go Fish.

In both bowls, the poke was equally fresh and delicious—neither Go Fish nor Poke’d Out compromise on quality. However, the flavors in the bowl from Go Fish had a better balance of saltiness, while Poke’d Out’s house Ahi Poke was slightly overpowering. The salmon from Go Fish also seemed slightly fresher than Poke’d Out’s house Ahi Poke.

If you are looking for a traditional poke bowl that can be prepared quickly, Go Fish is the poke bar for you. But, if you enjoy more contemporary flavors and ingredients in your poke bowl, then Poke’d Out is the poke bar for you.