Monday, March 11, 2013

Weekend Fun- Ohashi Sushi

What an amazing weekend in Cleveland! "R" and I had no plans, on purpose (I'm not very good at that), and we took full advantage of the nice weather.

Saturday, we found ourselves in North Olmsted running errands around lunchtime. We were headed to Washington Place Bistro for dinner that night, so I wanted something light for lunch. Ohashi Sushi on Lorain Road immediately came to mind. It's on my 2013 "To Dine" list, and sushi sounded great.
Located in the strip of businesses tucked behind Fat Heads, parking was free and easy to find in the large parking lot.

It is a small-ish place, with about 15 tables. Only two other tables of diners were there when we arrived, so service was quick and attentive.
Tucked inside of the standard menu was a sushi checklist, which made ordering super easy. Each roll provided a description of its contents, and so many of their House Special Rolls sounded great. "R" and I decided to share three House Special Rolls (cut- 8 small pieces each).
Pictured above (left to right) is: Fire Mountain Roll with spicy crab topped with spicy tuna, spicy sauce, and crunch batter ($11.50); Crunch Munch Roll with spicy crab topped with shrimp, crunch, and wasabi sauce ($10.50); and Mustard Roll with white tuna, cucumber, and topped with tuna and wasabi sauce ($11). The wasabi sauce was killer on them; I loved it! So many rolls also had "crunch" by including tempura flakes, which is a favorite of mine.

"R" also ordered an additional roll for himself from the Chef's Special Rolls section--- Kanpai with fried spicy tuna, cream cheese, shrimp, avocado, and asparagus, topped with eel sauce, wasabi mayo, and wasabi tobiko, and rolled with mame nori ($13).
Overall, the fish tasted fresh and I liked their roll combinations. However, it was a really expensive sushi lunch for what we received. The three House Special Rolls were very small (which was great for lunch, but not for the price). With prices varying from $10 - $13.50, I expected them all to be the size of the Kanpai roll from the Chef's Special Rolls that "R" had. They were more like the traditional hand rolls from the basic section of any sushi menu. Prices should have ranged more like $5 - $8. This opinion is just based on my experience at other local sushi restaurants. If the prices had been a tad lower, I wouldn't have thought twice about it.

So, we enjoyed the sushi and our waitress was simply charming. However, I think the prices are too high for what you receive, and I personally enjoy the Specialty Rolls at Mizu Sushi in Parma more. For affordable sushi on the west side, I'll stick to Mizu. Also, their menu is limited to just sushi, sashimi, and only a couple of appetizers and teriyaki/noodle dishes. But it was a fun Saturday excursion on a beautiful day in Cleveland!

Ohashi Sushi
24539 Lorain Road
North Olmsted, OH
440-716-0988

3 comments:

CMU5209 said...

We went here a few years ago and it seemed better than it is now. We also have been to Gingko. They have the best sushi I have ever had. You can tell it is fresh. Gingko sets the bar really high for any other sushi place. After eating at Gingko, we went back to Ohashi and I felt like I was eating plastic. You should definitely try Gingko, if you haven't already!

Kristian said...

I'm pretty much in agreement with your review.

I enjoy the fire mountain and mustard roll and REALLY recommend the super dreamy roll which has an incredible sauce - but I admit that the rolls are small, especially for the price.

It's been a critique I've brought up to my wife countless times, but it's also the location of our first dinner date (and it's reasonably close) which both account for our frequenting of the restaurant.

Bite Buff said...

Thank you both for sharing your experiences!

CMU- Haven't been there yet, but I'm dying to go. It'll happen soon.