Sushi from Hanami is big on taste but small in portion.
For those who aren’t squeamish about the thought of ingesting raw fish or veggies wrapped in seaweed, sushi is a tantalizing experience for the senses. While there are multiple options for sushi in College Park, not all sushi is rolled equally. Here are some of the best, cheapest and quickest options if you need a sushi fix.
Hanami Japanese Restaurant
It must be because I lived on South Campus during my first two years of college, but I’d never heard of Hanami Japanese Restaurant until recently. Tucked behind Town Hall Liquors across from The Varsity, it’s easy to see how I might have missed it. Their advertising was persistent though: I’m pretty sure I have three of Hanami’s menus in my apartment now. I figured there would be no harm in trying out a new sushi place, especially one voted “Best Sushi” in the Diamondback readers’ poll in past years.
Hanami’s sushi is solid. Its quality ingredients make it tasty, and it has the cheapest prices of all the restaurants I have reviewed; various vegetable rolls start at about $4, and most of the regular rolls average about $5 each. However, the sushi mirrors its small price: Each roll is split into six pieces, which are a bit on the smaller side. Hanami offers a couple of lunch specials, which are decent deals for a couple rolls and a side salad or a cup of miso soup. Yet I was left wanting more after finishing off my spicy tuna and California rolls fairly quickly. So much for advertising.
Sushi by Panda Express
Sushi by Panda Express is to sushi what Ratsie’s Pizza is to pizza: You are pretty desperate when you buy it, and you’re probably going to regret it as soon as your digestive system realizes what you did. It’s obvious why you’d go there in the first place: It’s convenient.
That’s the best thing I can say about it though. In my young and innocent days, I used to grab a California or spicy roll from Sushi by Panda Express if I was hungry and nothing else in the Stamp Student Union food court was tantalizing. The rolls cost about $5 to $7 for about eight to 10 pieces, but it barely looks like sushi. For the price you pay, the rolls are big, but they are needlessly bloated. The large rings of sushi-like product are mostly packed with rice, which does a decent job as filler, but the gobs of mayonnaise in the California rolls can barely hide the refrigerated taste of the fish-like substance in the middle. I drenched it in soy sauce and the gross, green faux wasabi paste in order to pretend it was the real deal.
Bottom line: This is not the sushi you want. It can trick you into thinking it’s real sushi, but don’t be fooled. If the temptation proves overwhelming, remember that most good sushi places in College Park deliver.
Kiyoko Express Restaurant
When I first started craving sushi while living in College Park, Kiyoko Express Restaurant was one of the first places people recommended. Located across the street from the College Park Shopping Center, Kiyoko boasts generally reasonable prices, averaging about $5 to $6 per roll.
The menu advertises “six to eight pieces per roll,” though I don’t think I’ve ever gotten less than eight, and the slices themselves are usually quite plump. The ingredients taste fresh, and you can watch the chef make your rolls to order behind the counter.
I am always pleased with the amount of wasabi given; I’m pretty sure they give the biggest glob of the green stuff in College Park, which is a delightful way of demonstrating they care about their customers. Though they deliver, I’d recommend eating in at Kiyoko because they leave the soy sauce and Sriracha bottles out to complement your sushi as you please.
Wasabi Bistro
My brother, now a university alumnus, used to tell me stories about his amazing experiences with Wasabi Bistro. Tucked away on College Avenue, Wasabi turned out to be an even better find than I expected. The rolls are big; you usually get eight pieces per roll, which are stuffed full of fish and avocado. The rice is soft, and you can tell the ingredients are fresh.
The price is very good as well: None of Wasabi’s basic rolls cost more than $6, and most rolls are slightly cheaper than the competition in the area. Wasabi’s meal deals are even better; while not quite a steal at $13.95, the three-roll Maki combo is good for those who want to eat a lot of sushi without breaking the bank. With Wasabi’s extensive menu, it’s in your best interest to try as many as possible.
The only real drawback of Wasabi is the sushi comes with one container of soy sauce; any more costs a little extra.
My boyfriend, a recent graduate of this university, swore by Kiyoko’s rolls for several years. Though it took a little prodding to get him to try Wasabi, it only took one visit for him to admit that the sushi rolls were bigger, tasted better and gave the customer a better value for the price.
Diner Sushi
If you have a dining plan and are a sushi lover, Dining Services will take pity on you a few times a semester with sushi lunches and dinners that are covered by your dining points. Diner sushi is not the train wreck it may sound like. While it’s not the best sushi in College Park, it doesn’t taste terrible. The sushi chefs roll it in the dining hall as you order,so you can tell the rolls are fresh.
When you pass through the checkout lines though, you can hear the familiar complaints being launched: The rolls are small and only yield about six pieces of sushi. For this quality, the sushi is expensive, costing about $8 for one roll. Each roll comes with edamame or a dumpling, which are nice additions, though still not enough to justify the price.
If you are on a dining plan and have extra points, I recommend getting to the dining halls early to grab a couple rolls on sushi days. It’s a good break from the monotony of the typical dining hall menus. Otherwise, head somewhere else if a sushi craving strikes.
