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Originally posted by wanderingjew
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Originally posted by V960
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Originally posted by wanderingjew
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Originally posted by V960
NYC best sushi in AmericaI’m a native New Yorker and I’m going to have to say NO WAY! to that. Hawaii is definetely the sushi capital of the USA, however if we’re talking mainland USA, it’s LA hands down. NYC could never hold a candle to sushi from LA. I’m no Sushi expert, but plenty of my friends from the NYC area are and I know they’ll agree with this.
Well the first try didn’t work so let’s do it again.
I worked for a Japanese trading company for twelve years. I got to be pretty good w/ sushi because I hated being the Gaigin who pointed at the plastic food in the window to order. I was an employee of a Japanese company therefore I usually got dropped off after our last sales call and had to fend for myself of dinner. This is in Japan.
In the states, Hawaii is a tourist trap. The sushi bars will have two menus, one in Kanji and the other in English…I can’t read Kanji but the English menu is tourist crap. Even asking for Omakase in Hawaii results in cream cheese this, spam that and generally garbage meant for round eye tourists.
LA? Inside out rolls,THE California roll,salsa maki…oh give me a break. SF however has some very good places. Seattle also.
My family, on my Father’s side came from NYC. Nobu is not truely sushi…Americanized and not traditional.NYC. Hatsuhana at 48th and Mad or Sushisay on 51st are truely great sushi bars. They will make a California roll but you will get second level fish after that because no one who appreciates sushi would ever eat a California roll. Both places flatly refuse to serve Philly rolls, cream cheese on sushi?
Sushi has a long and wonderful tradition that just as Italian and Chinese cusine have been corrupted so has sushi.
I traveled w/ Japanese for twelve years and they rated Hawaii as the same sushi quality as Atlanta, GA. The fish is wonderfully fresh but poorly handled. Sushi for Gaigin. For really good sushi you need a Japanese population…San Jose’s Japan Town comes to mind.
Again, I don’t profess to be a Sushi Expert, I’m far from it. However I do have plenty of friends back in the NYC who claim to be Sushi Conneseurs and think that I’m on drugs for not caring for sushi. Those who have been out to Hawaii have told me that the Sushi there is superior to what they find in the NYC, I’ve also heard the same thing for LA as well.
The only observations I can make is that both the LA area and Hawaii have significant Japanese populations, not that the NYC area doesn’t.
I can comment on quantity though, I don’t think the NYC area has any more sushi places than say the Boston area. However I thought that both the LA and San Diego area were inundated with them. I certainly noticed that more than I noticed fast food places (excluding mexican fast food) I’ve never been to Hawaii, so I can’t comment on that.