Biting Into Sushi
We take a look at the latest trends in sushi, its growth in popularity over the years and the outlook for the sushi industry.
By Jessica Chen : December 12, 2007

During the past 20 years, sushi restaurants have sprung up in cities across the U.S. Included in the mix are traditional corner sushi restaurants, hipster bars flaunting innovative fusion cuisine, and combinations of the two paired with flashy displays and a bustling night life.
At Tengu in Santa Monica, California, Chef Shunji Nakao creates a colorful mikuno roll packed with fresh crab, avocado and seared albacore. He adds a splash of color with a crispy shallot and carrot topping and a hint of ponzu, a green Japanese citrus chili paste. As with most art forms, knowing the basics of the tradition allows an artist to truly innovate. Nakao says he prefers traditional sushi, but he knows the fusion sushi rolls get the biggest buzz in the U.S. Having studied under the world-renowned Chef Nobu Matsuhisa, creator of the sushi fusion concept, Nakao offers specialty rolls like the mikuno roll to delighted American customers looking for an exotic dining experience.
Anne Lee, co-founder of Sushi Twist, experiences the same dynamic at her New York City restaurant. "It's really hard to really do traditional [sushi]," she says. "Now you have to set yourself apart to either a much healthier or high-end palate."
Lee founded Sushi Twist with her mother, Rosemary, in 2005. Like Nakao, Lee notices the majority of her customers splurging for the flashier specialty rolls that focus less on traditional Japanese tastes than on mixed flavors and flair. Their fusion includes toasted rolls, sushi topped with mozzarella cheese, Korean-Japanese mixes and even healthy, no-carb sushi wrapped in cucumber skin instead of sushi rice.
"We're trying to match the traditional with the contemporary, like the music, décor and the food," Lee says. In a sink-or-swim restaurant industry, sushi has become about offering a unique dining experience unparalleled by other restaurants. "It needs to be a little different to give people a reason to come back," Lee says.
As the debate between the sushi traditionalists and non-traditionalists continues, sushi in the U.S. is an ever-changing ecosystem of authentic Japanese ingredients altered by the changing trends around it. In The Sushi Economy, author Sasha Issenberg explains the globalization of sushi and how it's grown popular in the U.S.
According to Issenberg, the early '70s was a revolutionary time for sushi, particularly as young Japanese sushi chefs traveled to bustling West Coast ports to start their own restaurants. These chefs that pioneered the new sushi frontiers were introduced to new ingredients and a combination of appetites--ranging from Japanese business travelers to American locals. Thus, the chefs began developing fusion dishes like the California roll and spicy tuna roll, which in turn are served as "American style" sushi in Japan today.
"The influence will go both ways," Issenberg says. "Often, what we think is traditionally old [such as spicy tuna rolls] is actually incredibly modern. I think sushi will continue to change in that way."
Sushi may have inundated nearly every corner of the U.S., but globally there's still plenty of room for growth. Sushi restaurants tend to open up where urbanization and economic growth occurs. The reason, according to Issenberg, is that the areas becoming more worldly and luxury-oriented are the places that attract Japanese business travelers. And since sushi seems to follow global development, Issenberg predicts that China will be the final sushi frontier, being a widely untapped market ripe for the next sushi craze.In the U.S., however, the evolution of sushi will continue to be a product of its environment--advancing with the local tastes and popular trends. In areas where sushi is most established, Lee says the traditional and the non-traditional are likely to branch off into extremes. "There is more catering to people who don't like raw fish," she says, noting the growing popularity of Nobu-style fusion restaurants. "[But] in New York City, you can get away with more of the traditional Japanese."

note: I know I am not an expert, but am still honored I was asked my opinions for the article.

Feast with Famous Faces event


The Feast with Famous Faces event went great. Guests loved our food, and we got to see some celebrities, but since i dont watch soap operas, have no idea who they are.

anyone know who this is?

pictures from our table.

Monday, October 22, 2007

Sushi Twist, with Head Sushi Chef Iwan Soegiarto will be at Chelsea Piers this Monday from 6:00pm to support the League of the Hard of Hearing at Pier Sixty in Chelsea along with the city's finest chefs, NYC news broadcasters, and soap opera celebrities.

On Thursday and Friday, Sushi Twist participated in the annual Madison Square Park Fall Flowers Market, thought i'd post some pictures. The first day was bad, since we sat in the sun all day, which is NOt good for sushi, so had to run back and forth every 15 minutes or so and bring out fresh sushi, the second day was a little better, we sat in the shade, only had to run back every 30 minutes.

i spent alot of time on the flyers and menus, so alot of the pictures are of them!

Hi.

October is Sushi Month at Sushi Twist, so thought I’d talk about sake for a bit, and maybe teach those who don’t know too much about it what exactly sake is. aaand.. starting Oct. 15th, we will be featuring a “Sake of the Day” and those who ask, guests will be able to taste the sake compliments of Sushi Twist.

Sake refers to Japanese alcoholic beverage made from wine. Sake is produced by the multiple parallel fermentation of polished rice. The process removes the protein and oils from the exterior of the rice grain, leaving behind starch. The starch converted to sugar, which then is converted to alcohol by yeast.

My favorite sake:
Shoin Junmai: it has a blossoming bouquet of floral fragrances of violets and lilacs, with a fruity aroma of granny apples. It possesses a graceful richness. Its clean and refreshing, and it comes in a pretty bottle haha.

welcome to sushi twist

Sushi Twist is excited to post our first blog post with a review from Shecky's New York. For those of you who enjoy the New York City nightlife, Shecky's has become the Zagats for partiers. I personally feel that the best feature on it is the "search by neighborhood" option, for those lazy nights where I want to go out, but dont want to travel far. Well, we are honored to be reviewed on this site.

"Sushi Twist: While it’s chic to have a twist (because irony is dead), it’s even hotter to be a lounge and eatery. Sushi Twist may not sound like the most enticing spot, but therein lies the twist—it is. With fresh and creative rolls (ooh baby I like it raw!), plus numerous entrees, this spot also has a highly impressive cocktail menu (so much more than just some plum wine and sake, even though they offer a dozen varieties). With sixteen specialties, the Twist’s best are the Green Tea Martini, Red Lotus Lycheetini, and Orange Ginger Caipirinha, all expertly poured in their sexy front bar area. And the plot thickens—on Mondays, they offer Live Jazz with a prix fixe menu and Sax On The Beach cocktails."

Thank you Shecky's for the review, and thank YOU for joining me on my first blog!