Sugarfish By Sushi Nozawa

I really tried to like this place, and I wanted to be more excited when writing this review, but I guess I am just the type of guy who is hard to please especially when it comes down to sushi. Raw fish in the form of sashimi is my guilty pleasure, and I crave raw fish morsels day and night. I know, I shall be careful with my mercury levels. Enough about me, let's focus on the place. I came here with a friend for lunch. The place offers sushi a la carte and 3 choices of omakase. Based on my friend's recommendation, I went with the Nozawa, which comes with a Toro hand roll. Fatty tuna is my favorite. While I am writing this, I still remember the fatty tuna morsels that I ate once in Asakusa at a place called Hinatomari. What a delight. It is not easy to find nice sushi join in NYC. The freshness of the fish is questionable, and it is hardly believable that the fish is fresh. The small dishes started coming to the table, and my first disappointment was to see that the Tuna was swimming in soy sauce. This, to me, is a sign that the chef in the kitchen might have come from somewhere mainland... Don't get me wrong, some places are run and operated by non-Japanese personnel, and they are great, but please don't dunk the tuna in the sauce. The rest of the sushi morsels were fine. But the Toro hand roll did not deliver to my expectations. Anyway, this quasi-sushi culture in NYC could leave a very mediocre impression on those who have high expectations. The one restaurant that was close to the type of quality of sushi that you would find in Japan was Jewel Bako, which got permanently closed. For those who don't want to break the bank but still want to have something close to Japanese sushi's culinary authenticity, you can try Sushi on Jones ( which is funny because the guys in the kitchen are from Fuzhou) and Chelsea Fishmarket.

Five-star sushi. The warm rice is impossible to beat. This is the best dine-in sushi value in Manhattan. The fish is so fresh and the rice is perfection. Service is always friendly. The menu is limited but this allows the restaurant to focus on delivering the best sushi dishes possible. The restaurant is so popular that they do not need to have a reservation system. It is first come first serve. I do recommend showing up for dinner at 5pm if you do not want to wait. If you are eyeing a 7-8pm dinner time there could be a wait for a couple hours! This place is perfect for families or dates.

We ordered sushi to go the other night...nicely packaged, but average sushi. Definitely no wow effect, but good enough. Fresh for sure. Some restaurants take COVID regulations to the next level...I am a business owner myself, so I know the regulations pretty well. I stopped by to place an order, but was told to order online through one of the platforms. So, I was standing outside and the lady was inside with an open door, she was talking to me - no problem, but no she couldn’t take my order and I had to download chowhow and order myself. Where is the logic, I simply don’t get it. If this continues, this lady won’t have a job anymore, since everything will be done online. The management should put a little logic into their procedures and train their staff better! Then it will make it easier for us customers to support them!!! And I wonder what happens with all those people who don’t feel comfortable ordering online - no sushi for them, I guess?!?!

What can you say about sugarfish that hasn’t already been said? Absolutely fantastic. Delivery is better than most sushi bar dine in but do yourself a favor and sit down for the Trust Me experience. Just hits different. Keep in mind that the Park Ave location does not do indoor seating and does not yet have heaters outdoors.