These edible masterpieces are created by itamae, the title bestowed on a sushi chef, which translates to “in front of the board,” since only the head sushi chef is allowed to stand in front of the cutting board, interact with/entertain customers, and calculate the bills at the end of the meal. While in the United States, we may not always have this experience, even at a true sushi restaurant, these traditions carry on very strongly in Japan to this day.
Sushi, however, like most other cuisines, is available in a range of qualities, and buyers should beware of bad sushi restaurants and the consequences of eating their food, including potential foodborne illnesses and food poisoning as a result of consuming old fish, poorly stored fish, or even fish that has been substituted for the fish on the menu. Here are some important tips to consider when trying a new sushi restaurant:
You Can Smell Fish When You Walk In The Door
While this first point may not seem like a surprise, when you’re looking to dine on raw fish, you want to be sure that the fish you’re eating is as fresh as it can be. And fresh fish doesn’t have much of a smell - so if you can smell fish as you walk in the door, chances are that your meal may be riddled with bacteria, without the benefit of cooking to kill it off.
A good sushi restaurant should instead smell clean and may smell more like sushi rice. Or, according to acclaimed sushi chef, Hidekazu Tojo, when interviewed by the Vancouver Sun, “In my mind, good sushi restaurant smells just like cucumber or watermelon.”
If something smells fishy, you should turn around, head back out the door, and keep walking, lest you subject yourself to a night of gastrointestinal pyrotechnics.