The World-Wide Sushi Restaurant Reference
Comments and ratings from Ben Shakman

Ben Shakman has contributed information about 15 restaurants: Restaurant Hama, Miyako, Akai Hana, Robert's Seafood, Buffet City, Sushi Popo, Shogun, Shokuyoko, Kikuya, Sushigawa, Sushi Umi, The Sushi Place, Kamehachi of Tokyo, Sansui, Restaurant Japan.

About Restaurant Hama (Columbus, Ohio, USA)
Last visited March 2007.

``One of the first things to know about this restaurant is that it is located in a very crowded shopping area. Parking was difficult (Friday night) and the place was full. I called ahead and found my table waiting with a `reserved' sign - very nice touch. Another important thing to know is that this place seems to be frequented by Japanese (Honda has a facility in Columbus, I think) and I was struck by how few Americans were in the place - always a good sign. I ordered a sushi deluxe ($22) and four ala-carte pieces: charred tuna ($5) and white tuna ($5). The salad was made of mixed field greens instead of the usual boring iceberg lettuce and the dressing was very flavorful. The miso soup was well above average. The sushi deluxe came with a half roll of California roll (average) and a half roll of spicy tuna (excellent - no mayo, just flavor). The presentation of the sushi deluxe was very nice with good-sized pieces of fish overlapping finger-sized pieces of rice instead of the small pieces of fish stuck on top of big rice balls typical of lesser places. The charred tuna was interesting. It was coated in ground white and black pepper - a bit overpowering. The white tuna was melt-in-your mouth delicious. Another particularly delicious piece was the albacore. It was topped with a dollop of ground dichon mixed with a sauce - excellent! All-in-all, a very good place.''

About Miyako (Charlottesville, Virginia, USA)
Last visited January 2006.

``I have visited this restaurant on three occasions that I can remember: Winter 2003; Spring 2003; Fall 2005. I have been impressed with the place on each visit. The owner is a classically-trained sushi chef (an unfortunate rarity) and the quality of the preparation and presentation only served to enhance the experience. My most recent visit included my two daughters (4 & 7 at the time) and they both enjoyed their food - yaki-tori and California Roll - as well. After dinner, take a walk down the pedestrian mall and try the ice cream at the local place (can't remember the name) with the home-made stuff...a perfect end to a wonderful meal.''

About Akai Hana (I-94 to Lake, Illinois, USA)
Last visited March 2007.

``Very good sushi place on the North Shore. Sushi was delicious and reasonably priced. I had a sushi deluxe + albacore + hamachi. Everything was very tasty and devoid of tamago, kani, etc. In short, the sushi pieces represented a good cross-section without being pedestrian. My father had a bento box with sea bass teriyaki and several pieces of sushi also. He reported that the sea bass was delicious and a nice departure from the typical salmon teriyaki. They had a wide variety of appetizers also, but not enough room to sample them on this visit.''

About Robert's Seafood (Springfield, Illinois, USA)
Last visited May 2007.

``Note that this is a fish monger who also offers sushi-to-go on Friday/Saturday. They are well-established in Springfield as the premiere place for fresh seafood, and offer unique cooking classes as well. Sushi is certainly not a major concern and it shows. What could be exceptional is marginal instead. They offer trays made in-house on those two days and also have supplies available. Of note - the nori they sell is almost ten times the price of the stuff available at the Asian market on the other side of town and indistinguishable. I like Robert's a lot, but just not for sushi. It is unfortunate that Springfield cannot support much as far as sushi is concerned.''

About Buffet City (Springfield, Illinois, USA)
Last visited July 2006.

No rankings sent.

``It is a shame that sushi in the state's capitol is reduced to the Chinese buffet variety. They use way too much rice on their nigiri and maki pieces, but the quality is OK. Certainly not a sushi restaurant, but better than you get from the cold case over at Cub Foods. On the upside, there is a lot to be said for having a few pieces of sushi before digging in to crab legs on their buffet. Hopefully, someone will read this and decide to open a real sushi restaurant in Springfield.''

About Sushi Popo (Peoria, Illinois, USA)
Last visited March 2005.

``This place was such a dump that I walked out without trying the food. It is basically a Chineese restaurant with a small sushi bar. The place reeked of fried foods and the fish just didn't look fresh. I asked the `sushi chef' if they had a few of my favorites and he acted like I was asking for widget. Also, I did not see any of the few patrons in there with sushi on their tables. ''

About Shogun (Rockford, Illinois, USA)
Last visited May 2002.

``This place is a typical habachi-style restaurant. The sushi was good and their is a small sushi bar area for those who are not there for the show. One note - this is a great place to claim that it is someone's birthday as the song is in Japaneese. Average sushi, but certainly entertaining for a large group.''

About Shokuyoko (Warsaw, Poland, Europe)
Last visited May 2006.

``From the exterior, this is one of those typical places in central Europe that you would regret not entering. It is on a busy street and appears grungy from the exterior. Open the door and you'll find quite the opposite. One of those few places where almost every table is surrounded by screens that create the impression that you have your own personal dining area. One really interesting (and unexpected) thing that I tried here was a thin slice of marinated filet mignon, served rare, as a piece of sushi - surprisingly good! My wife had the eel and loved it - so much so that I didn't even get a bite. The kids ate some California roll that they enjoyed and some yaki-tori that I thought was quite good but was not a big hit with the elementary school crowd. My sushi combination featured a great variety and delicious food. Walk down the street to the Jan III Sobieski (a great place to stay) and have dessert in their coffee and dessert spot - very high quality stuff. ''

About Kikuya (Chicago, Illinois, USA)
Last visited March 2007.

``This is a neighborhood place that I tried again after several years of eating other places. The overall experience was mediocre. The service was great. I had their big sushi combination and a shrimp tempura roll. The tako was delicately cooked, a nice departure from the usual boiled to rigidity found most places. Ditto on the ika. Unfortunately, the good experience ended with those two pieces. The rest of the meal either didn't taste quite right or didn't have much taste at all. Notably, the tempura seems to be fried in the same oil as they fry chicken and that gives it a touch of the colonel that shouldn't be there. Also, the nigiri pieces were generally too large to be consumed in one bite and that is just plain sloppy on the part of the chef. Next time, I'll dine at the Korean joint located right next door. ''

About Sushigawa (Peoria, Illinois, USA)
Last visited July 2005.

``This is one of the better sushi restaurants that I have ever visited. I highly recommend this place and make an effort to schedule travel to the area to coincide with meal times.''

About Sushi Umi (Terre Haute, Indiana, USA)
Last visited August 2005.

``This place is a true find in an unexpected place. It is run by a classically-trained sushi chef and these are the sort of places that I seek out. The white tuna melts in your mouth and the mackerel is out of this world - complete with the small slices in the top of it and the shaved scallions on the top. The quality of the food more than made up for the quality of the service. ''

About The Sushi Place (El Paso, Texas, USA)
Last visited July 2004.

``This place was a surprising find in an unusual location. Very stylish restaurant with interesting rolls. This was the first sushi I ate after returning from a year in Iraq and it was certainly worthy of the occassion.''

About Kamehachi of Tokyo (Chicago, Illinois, USA)
Last visited August 2007.

``I dropped a bundle on my visit to this restaurant, but left feeling like I had received a decent value. I had several pieces of á la carte sushi and found the eel to be uninspired. The mackerel was delicious, but the real stand-outs were the yellowtail, salmon, and tuna. I ordered two rolls: The tempura shrimp roll was good, but not outstanding...unlike the special salmon roll. It was one of the best nouveau sushi rolls I've had in a long time. This particular roll includes baked smoked salmon, scallions, masago, and eel sauce. There were some other items in there as well, but I cannot recall what else. Suffice to say, the combination of flavors and textures worked well together. My friend had several things which were quite good, and a chicken teriyaki which was pedestrian at best. I also had a shrimp tempura appetizer which was quite good. I will certainly try this place again on subsequent visits to Chicago! ''

About Sansui (Saint Louis, Missouri, USA)
Last visited July 2004.

``This restaurant went in the wrong direction when Kenji left and I prefer his new place. I don't go there anymore.''

About Restaurant Japan (Columbus, Ohio, USA)
Last visited March 2007.

``Visiting this restaurant was the high point of my trip to Columbus! It was exceptionally busy, but certainly worth the wait. I ordered the chef's selection and everything was out of this world. Especially notable was the ama ebi, served raw with caviar on top and the head (tempura style) on the side. The giant clam was super tasty and only mildly chewy. The selection included two varieties of maguro including one that goes for $6 per piece - that one was saved for last and savored! The amberjack was very mild and quite fresh as well. I asked the waitress about the place and she explained to me that Honda's presence in the area has led the top Japanese restaurants to fly in lots of their supplies. Who knew? I topped off the chef's selection with a tempura sweet potato maki - something I've never seen before - that was simply an amazing combination. Also worth noting is that there is a Japanese grocery store about fifty meters away. ''

Disclaimer. Make sure you have read the full disclaimer located in the overview to this restaurant guide. Basically: I cannot vouch for the accuracy of any information on this page; remember that the comments are no more than the opinions of strangers; before you venture out to explore the places listed here, it would be a good idea to make sure they are still open, and to verify their exact locations.

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