It's a Sushi Wrap!

After these past 12 weeks writing about different sushi restaurants in the Triangle, I'm glad to say it was a great success. Here I have my top ten list, starting from best to worst.

Top TEN
1.Mura
2.Sono
3.Sushi-O
4.Kanki
5.Sushi Nine
6.Yo-Ho Asian Bistro
7.ShabaShabu
8.Harris Teeter
9.Sushi Tsune
10.Sushi Blues

My top ten is rated best by the taste of the sushi, how fresh the raw fish was, the service, the cleanliness, the selection on their menu, and the atmosphere. My top five are more pricy than the others and a lot nicer on the inside.  If you want to get your moneys worth, I would definitely suggest the top five places.

Although ShabaShabu has good sushi their service and sanitation is horrible. Numbers eight through ten are the top three places not to waste your money and time on.

I hope all of my advice has been helpful. To those of you who haven't tried sushi I definitely recommend you going and at least giving it a try. My boyfriend, Brian Reites never tried sushi until I made him. He really enjoyed it. I'm happy to say this has been a great experience.

Yummy Kanki Sushi

Kanki is located at 4325 Gleenwood Avenue. 

The service was great. My waitress made sure my water was filled to the top and checked on me at the right times to see if everything was good. 

A lady and her daughter said, "Sono is our favorite spot, but we are having a girls day shopping around we decided to grab some sushi at Kanki. We like it." 

 Their menu had many great, delicious selections. What you see in the picture is what you get. The prices are a little higher than other places but its well worth it. It was very hard for me to choose because it all sounded way too good. I had to ask the waitress her opinion to help me narrow my selection.

$13.00

I choose the Poseidon Roll. Inside this deliciousness was lobster and shrimp tempura fried, massago, with scallions on top, cucumber and spicy mayo, in a reverse roll topped with crab stick and a seasoned sweet soy sauce. 

Each slice is super big but it taste like heaven in your mouth. It had a wonderful crunch while tasting the fresh lobster with a sweet and spicy taste. 

ShabaShabu Is The Sushi For You!

ShabaShabu is located at 3080 Wake Forest Road.

There is plenty of seating room with different atmospheres around the whole restaurant in separate rooms.

When you get your first cup of water make sure to check it before drinking it. You might have a little something floating around.

 Their menu of sushi was very limited but definitely had a lot of great choices.

The service was terrible. Being the only one in the restaurant it took my waitress over ten minutes to ask me if I was ready to order. I had to ask another waitress to refill my water and get my bill for me. Also, when I asked my waitress to tell me some of their most popular sushi rolls she couldn't really give me answers.

$8.99

The sushi roll I choose was The Wolfpack.  Inside the roll was, crab, asparagus, avocado, scallions, tempura flakes, spicy mayo and tobiko.

The thin sliced, easy to eat bites of sushi were delicious. With its fresh crab it was warm, with a crispy crunch taste, and a hint of spicy mayo rolling through your mouth.

Maggie Wright a student at  Peace College said, " I am a lover of seafood, the crab was fresh and I loved the crunchiness."

Sushi Tsune needs to GO AWAY!

Sushi Tsune is located at 3417 Hillsborough Street.

                        

Their menu is the same as the inside of the building; small. From their little selection of sushi rolls they are all for a great price of under ten dollars. What a deal! They even have a section for you vegetarian lovers. 

 Sushi Tsune offers specials such as, two rolls for $8.95 and three rolls for $9.95 of their choice.

 Two students from the University of North Carolina State said, "This is our favorite place to come to, we have tried almost everything on the menu."

 The service at Sushi Tsune was so nice. My waitress was very friendly and talkative. She made sure I had everything I needed from my glass being filled to the top of water to the soy sauce for my sushi.

Being able to sit at the sushi bar eye level was neat. I was able to see through the glass where they prepared my sushi roll of choice.

 $5.95

The sushi roll I chose was their most popular, the Crunchy Spicy Tuna Roll. Inside this sushi roll there was spicy tuna, cucumber, mayo, and tempura drops.

Unfortunately, it wasn't as good as it looked. The crunchiness wasn't all the way around the roll, the spicy taste was only two out of the six rolls, the seaweed was extra chewy, and the worse thing of all it didn't have any flavor. It was like eating crunchy rice with a side of mushiness.

Overall, the service is great but the sushi isn't.

SONO is SO YES!

Sona is located at 319 Fayetteville Street. It is right beside your local news station, ABC 11. Inside Sono they dark colors of red and black, which really make a bold statement about the restuarant. It gives a really neat vibe and definitely a place I would go back to during the night life.

My boyfriend, Brian Reites said, "I could eat Sono seven days a week, it's the best first sushi I have ever had." 

My waitress, Jennifer, was very helpful and friendly. She gave me a few of Sono's favorites and I chose one out of the four she told.  They have sushi specials everyday consisting either two rolls for sixteen dollars or a soup, salad, and sushi roll for twelve dollars. 

Their easy to read menu was great. Being able to see the color photo of the sushi with the description below made it easier for me to make my decisions. 

Sono has a great selection of seating. You can sit by the window for a table for two, at the bar with it's glitzy, sparkling countertops, the dinging area or next to the wall with its table of an option to sit on one side for the booth effect or across the table in a chair for more of a table effect. If you choose to sit 

$9.00

The sushi roll I chose was the Crunchy Diablo. This sushi didn't come out in a circle form, it was cut so you could see what was inside the roll on the outside. The crunchy, spicy, creamy, sweet taste in your mouth is to die for. 

Miso Hungry for Mura

 Mura is located at 4121 Main at North HIlls St.  Mura is located to the right of the Renaissance Hotel. 

The menu has a great easy to read selection. Not only does it have the description of the sushi roll but a clear colored image of what the actual sushi looks like.




I find this easier and more appealing because I get to see what I'm actually going to have on my plate right in front of me.



While reading about the sushi roll it is very descriptive in letting you know what's inside, on top and covered in and on the sushi roll.






                             




Mura holds a special everyday of buy one roll get the next roll half off.

Maddie Carney a student at Peace College said, "I enjoyed the Screaming "O" for more reasons than just the riske name. It is like heaven in your mouth."

                                             





The seating is really great at Mura. Along with a great area for outside seating, in the front the restaurant is a bar with seating room around it along with other tables for two to four people. When you make your way to the back you notice on the sides there are tables for six sitting low to the ground with walls in between the rooms for a little more privacy for dinner with family and friends. All the way back to the dining area you notice the lighting getting a little darker. With dim lighting and romantic feel, Mura is definitely a sushi date night go to.


The service at Mura was great. Not only did my waiter make sure I was doing good but the manager and the hostess herself came to my table. My waiter was very friendly and attentive. He made sure my glass was always filled with water and made sure my sushi was to my expectation.

$14.00

My waiter told me the Screaming "O" was a real popular sushi roll. After hearing about this from a student at Peace College and the waiter suggesting it I knew I had to try it. Screaming "O" includes, Spicy tuna and shrimp tempura inside seared tuna on top served with creamy "O" sauce and eel sauce.

After taking my first bite into this creamy, spicy, fresh sushi roll my mouth was drooling for more. My plate was demolished so fast even my waiter couldn't believe it.

Next time I'm "miso hungry for sushi," I will definitely go back for more.

Sushi Blues or Sushi Blah?

  

When I walked in I had the option to sit at the bar, sushi bar or in the dining area. With lots of different places to sit and great people working there I am sad to say the sushi doesn't own up to the restaurant itself. 

The waiter I had at Sushi Blues was very friendly and really helped me make my decisions easier while choosing the sushi I wanted. He told me the most popular sushi then I chose one that sounded different to me.

What made their menu unique is on one side of the menu they had sushi rolls named after celebrities.

                                        The two I chose were the Wolfpack and the Dylan roll.

Jami Upchurch a student at Peace College said, " I don't really like Sushi Blues because I don't feel like the sushi isn't as fresh as other places and it's a little over rated because it's cheap for the college crowd. I rather have quality sushi than a social outlet." 

The Wolfpack has crab, tempura flakes, asparagus, avocado, sesame seeds, spicy mayo, and tobiko.

The Dylan had tuna, cream cheese, avocado, cucumber, roe, and sesame seeds.

I was disappointed in not one but both of my sushi rolls. While trying to dig my way through the sushi to even find the fish I choose it did not taste fresh at all. 

When I took my first bite into my Wolfpack sushi roll all I could taste was the seaweed, rice, and a crunch of nothing. There was really no flavor at all. 

While eating the tuna roll I thought my cream cheesed would be smothered all around the inside of the sushi instead it was a block. It was like biting down into cream cheese by itself. It was not appetizing. 

After all said and done, I do not recommend Sushi Blues.