by Uppereast.com Staff
Step inside Hawaii Sushi, a recent sushi restaurant addition on Second Avenue, and you feel like you’ve stepped onto the bottom of the ocean floor. The colors - the icy blues, the watery aquamarines, the sandy opaques; the finishes – all smooth, sleek and clean; and of course, the sight of delicious sushi floating peacefully in its glass home.
The ambiance will draw you in and the menu will have you stay. For a very reasonable price, you can enjoy their lunch specials any weekday between 12pm and 3pm. Ask for William.
I ordered the chirashi platter, it’s my personal litmus test for any new sushi restaurant. To me, it’s like the Italian-restaurant version of eggplant parmesan. If it’s good, it can probably vouch for the rest of the menu. The lunch special included the usual staples, starting with a bowl of miso soup. Fortunately, unlike some unfortunate sushi dining experiences, the soup was piping hot and tasty, with ample quantities of tiny tofu cubes and crisp seaweed and scallions, swimming in an appetizing broth. Next comes the house salad: crisp, fresh and refreshing. 
I’m at ease taking in the modern décor, it’s like a glossy Hawaiian tiki hut. Is that Don Ho playing on the stereo? Cool! A nice breeze blows in from the floor-to-ceiling glass doors that open to the sidewalk.
Nice! Now I’m hungry, and little pellets of drool involuntarily form as the main course of chirashi is brought over. It is in a platter, unlike the usual cramped bowl in which I’m accustomed to being served chirashi. Uncommon, but I like it. I eagerly survey the fresh fish: the buttery salmon, the chunky red tuna, the smooth white tuna (mmmm, my favorite!), the filleted jumbo shrimp, the yummy-looking crab and fluke … but wait, what’s this?! … egg shavings and sesame seeds sprinkled over the soft, white rice! Awesome! And to top it off … sweet, Hawaiian pineapple. What else.
Umm, excuse me while I finish my lunch.
Hawaii Sushi1619 York Avenue (between 85th & 86th streets)New York, NY 10028
212-717-1780 |
Read the next Uppereast.com review:Late Night at Lili's
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