Sushi Yasuda LTD

magsvaleria

Worst Customer Service! 17th April 2009

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This Sushi Place is the worst. So I am one of those weirdoes that like to eat my sushi dipped in ginger dressing not a far fetched request in most sushi restaurant except for this one. When I asked the waitress for my ginger dressing on the side with my order she refused. I asked her why she said it was against policy. I asked her why she proceeds to give me back the menu and told me to read the first page. Mind you the first page is like 5 paragraphs long talking about how sushi is eaten I did no read it and placed the menu down. They gave our salads first that came with our entree we left the dressing and salad untouched so I can use the dressing for my sushi. Then the manager came over to our table and explained that they want to keep custom and tradition on the way sushi is eaten. It is eaten with soy sauce he also proceeded to explain to me that their fish is "exquisite" and should be eaten according to tradition. Therefore we should stop playing the waiting game with out ginger dressing that we were holding out for our salad. I then replied and said I understand where you are coming from but if I was in Japan I would eat the way Japanese do and I am in New York now so I eat my sushi the way I want to eat it.He said yes but that our fish is really good and should be eaten according to custom. I told me what would happen if we refuse to eat the way they want us to eat it. He was a little taken back by this and he then proceeded to say they would ask the customers to leave without pay. My friend and I discussed this right in front of him and I was thinking whether I should comply then I said no. I want to eat sushi a certain way I should be allowed to and not be forced into doing what this restaurant wants me to do. What a tyrannical restaurant! We did the unexpected and told them we were leaving. We left the restaurant without paying for drinks. My friend also told me that she should have know because when she called to make a reservation at 730 they refused and then she said what time do you have they said 8 when she agreed they where shocked and said ok that’s fine but you will need to be done by 930pm. This place is not worth it they are demanding, forceful and think the customer is there to please them instead of thinking that you are there to be pleased. In the end we went to Sushi Samba which had excellent service and they did not mind giving me ginger dressing on the side. If you are one of those people that like spicy mayo with your sushi because I know a few people don’t go here they will refuse to let you eat the sushi the way you "WANT" to eat it

sulin

Sit at the Counter! 5th October 2008

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We headed to Sushi Yasuda for lunch one day. Reviews online seem to indicate that it’s quite difficult to get a reservation there but I managed to book a place for two at the counter for lunch on a Thursday only a week beforehand. I chose for us to sit at the sushi counter - and I highly recommend the same for you if you visit! We were the second group there for lunch and were seated in front of the first sushi chef of a row of them.

We chose to go with the sushi pre fixe menu ($22.50), which came with a soup or salad to start. This would give us five pieces of nigiri sushi and two maki sushi rolls all from a particular list. Each menu item had its own list. There is also the option to order by the piece or even to have an omakase meal, but we wished to walk out of there with our wallets intact. When we had made our selections (ticking off boxes on a little piece of paper), our counter space was set. The leaf on the counter was a Hawaiian ti leaf and was where our sushi was placed by the chef in front of us.

My lunch came with either a soup or salad and I chose the latter. What arrived was this small bowl of greens, beans and tomatoes with crispy, dried baby jako sardine. If you’re familiar with Malaysian food, you’ll know what I mean when I say they’re like smaller fried ikan bilis!

My five pieces of nigiri were the following: Spanish mackerel, freshwater eel, striped bass, egg custard, egg. I was very curious about the egg versus egg custard and the chef brought both out for me to see, explaining that while the egg custard is common in Japan, it’s less common outside it, and that Japanese people above a certain age tend to be very very picky about their egg sushi and then he suggested that I try both. So I ticked them both off on my sheet.

I was trying not to take photos and instead just sit back and enjoy but I couldn’t help it when such beautiful pieces were placed before me! My egg nigiri was huge and so the chef sliced it into two for me and the freshwater eel, gorgeous! No other photos of the nigiri but a little soy sauce is already painted onto each perfectly sized piece and so it’s all ready to pop into your mouth.

This was the best sushi I’ve ever had (ok, so I haven’t travelled to Japan yet). Honestly, the rice was the best part, still warm and so well seasoned. The fish was extremely fresh and the eel soft and flavourful. And the two eggs? The egg custard had been cooked with fish stock and other various ingredients and was smooth and almost creamy and utterly delicious and the egg was, apart from being a massive slab, slightly sweet omelette and was delightful upon the rice.

For my maki rolls, I chose tuna and salmon skin. When these were being made, the chef’s knife slicing them into pieces made wonderful crunching sounds thanks to the amazingly crisp nori. The nori did turn out to be incredibly crisp and a wonderful contrast to the rice inside. The tuna was a white tuna and again was soft and fresh and the salmon skin was freshly fried and also quite crisp and salty. Delicious with a little dab of their homemade soy sauce.

While we were eating our sushi, our chef would chat with us and give us information about the sushi we were eating as well as about other pieces that were being made for the people around us. This was in stark contrast to the other sushi chefs who seemed to be the strong silent types made sushi for their customers at the counter but also for those seated at the tables. After his talking about it, we were seduced by a large box of sea urchin roe that was brought out for uni nigiri for a woman next to us. And so, to end our lunch, we each chose a piece of uni nigiri ($5) from the a la carte menu. It was topped with large flakes of sea salt and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. Again, fresh and salty and its texture was silky and sigh… it was a good ending.

Oh, and our sushi chef? He turned out to be Chef Yasuda himself.

Photos here: http://tamarindandthyme.wordpress.com/2008/09/28/sushi-yasuda/