Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar
308th W. 58th Street, New York
●●●●●●●●☺○○
8 1/2 out of 10
Sushi
I was looking for sushi in New York. Simple, right?
My Criteria:
1. Must be very high quality (compared with Montreal, this is relatively easy to find)
2. Must be open on Sunday for lunch
3. Must have many sustainable fish and seafood options
4. Must be in an easily accessible, preferably downtown area of Manhattan
Four simple rules, but almost impossible to find. A simple google search for “sustainable sushi New York” has a few good results but none are open on Sunday for lunch. Even the not necessarily sustainable but very expensive, high quality sushi places were mostly closed. And the “affordable sushi New York” options? Mostly also closed. So when I found a website for a mini-chain of sushi and steakhouse restaurants, I was wary. Plus it was in a hotel. That can’t be good, right? Turns out a lot of great New York restaurants are in hotels (maybe because the city has so many gosh darn hotels, so where else can they put the restaurants?), and I’m the newbie that didn’t know. I’d figure it’d be over-priced too, especially since it was in the Columbus Circle (right next to Whole Foods, to give you an idea of the demographic of the inhabitants of the area) – and it was expensive – but for the quality, it was great!
The knowledgeable sushi chef even asked the server to come back to tell me that one of the fish I had ordered was not, in fact, sustainable as I had thought, and he suggested a replacement (that I turned down because of the size of the fish – too big and toxin-accumulating), and then a second replacement, all the while understanding that only I at the table cared, as other diners had ordered salmon and tuna from who knows where (could have been sustainable BC stuff, I suppose, but I doubt it was based on both the price and the generic naming – “salmon”, “tuna”).
So, Blue Ribbon Sushi, two thumbs up if you’re a conscious eater and ask for eco-friendly options. The chefs greet the servers as new customers enter the room. A Japanese group of business men had a small booth in the main seating area with glasses of wine in front of them – a very good sign on a Sunday afternoon.
The fish and seafood: Best uni (sea urchin) I’ve ever had – the orange goo in the photo above. So fresh, not salty and old and defrosted.
A suggested Japanese white bass was fine as nigiri (on left of photo above). Very light, and a large step before chewy. More importantly it was more sustainable than the mackerel I’d initially requested.
To-die-for buttery scallop nigiri, though the little bit of hot pepper and overly generous amount of pungent green onion took away from the sweetness (second from the left in above photo).
The live clam was pretty fascinating – one giant opened half-shell of rubbery clam tendons, plus the main meat of the jewel of a clam cut in half that was so tender. I think I still prefer my clams steamed or in chowder (like at Ed’s Chowder House up by Lincoln Centre), but this clam sushi option is a rare find to be sure.
They didn’t have the sardines I asked for (sardine sushi! Ultimate sustainability but maybe not amazing. Who knows? Not I).
And fresh crab in the California rolls was a nice addition. California rolls, really, you ask? I didn’t want sashimi? I wanted avocado, crab, tobiko caviar, and cucumber? Yes, yes I did. And it was great. I also think the special lobster and crab rolls would be amazing. Skip the imitation crab surimi options. Farmed pollock. Sustainable? Debatable. Most say yes. I say gross.
The other roll on my plate is natto. Fermented soy beans that are sticky and savoury (very ‘umami’). I don’t think they’re usually served as maki rolls, but that’s what was on the menu, so that’s what I ordered. I love it. But I understand that it’s an acquired taste.
Of course, it’s easy to skip sushi here, or get a mix of it with other dishes. They had teriyaki lunch special options (a fair bit nicer than your generic cheap teriyaki bento box options, I’m sure), unagi don, soup dishes, and the great miso black cod, but they also had a beautiful selection of upscale, more original appetizers and mains involving tamari butters, wild greens, and other exotic ingredients. You can check the menu here, but the “turf” part of the “surf and turf” menu was non-existent. No harm done. None of our party wanted steak. Just very expensive imported Japanese fish and slightly more local options.
So a conscientious sushi eater can eat well here. And ocean trawling mouths will probably think it’s over-priced.
Where: 308 W. 58th Street, New York (Columbus Circle area)
When: Daily from noon
Price: An arm and a leg
Best: Uni, natto, scallop, crab, and anything oily, sweet, and sustainable recommended by the knowledgeable sushi chef
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