One of the best things about living in New York City is the access to great restaurants. This city is really a fantastic place for foodies. Generally, I like to walk around and look for a place that looks like its doing a good business and give it a try, but last night I decided to check out a sushi bar based a recomendation from the book “The Nasty Bits”, by Tony Bordain.
Sushi Yasuda was recommended based on its attention to detail, and I have to say I agree with this statement 100%. I had never had such tasty yet simple sushi. There were no frills — no special maki or anything else. Just simple sushi — they way it is supposed to be.
I started by ordering an Yebisu beer. This is really one of my favorite beers in the world – I grew to love it in the time I spent in Japan, but lately it has become very hard to find in the US. It has also become VERY expensive here. One bottle at Sushi Yasuda was $11.50. I thought this was too high, so I switched to Asahi after my first. Anyway, I was not there to drink beer but rather to eat.
I ordered a variety of al-a-cart sushi and maki and each was prepared individually for me as I was sitting at the bar. As we tried the different fish, I was shocked at how different the taste and texture was from the typical places I eat, which are quite good as well. As the meal went on and we switched to more interesting things like Uni, we decided to ask the chef what the difference between Yasuda and other places were. He explained that it was the fish buyer. Apparently the buyer is VERY skilled and knows all the ins and outs of where to get the best fish.
In general, I found Sushi Yasuda to be a bit expensive compared to other places, but the food is more than a step above any other place I have been in New York City or Tokyo for that matter.
If you are in the mood for great sushi with every attention payed to the details I would recommend giving Sushi Yasuda a try. It is worth the extra cost.