Frequenters of the CBD will not have failed to notice the closure of iconic Japanese restaurant Sono, who is apparently due to reopen in Queens Plaza some time in July. In its place is newly opened Ichiban Sushi, a modern and casual kaiten style sushi restaurant. With a standard price of $3.80 per plate, it provides direct competition to market leader Sushi Edo on Elizabeth Street. I was lucky enough to go during their opening special where plates had been reduced to $2.90 whilst Adam was away on some food induced adventure.
Compared to Sono, the space was modern, open and fresh.
I was put on a table of four, despite being only a party of one. Being used to bar height seating, it wasn't easy to peek up at the offerings on the conveyor belt. I wish I had a bar seat instead.
Luckily for me, there was an ipad ordering system so I didn't have to strain myself in ordering what was on the train. Whilst fundamentally easy to navigate, there was a stark deficit of table water as an option on the menu.
Quite soon after ordering, my table was abound with food.
First off we had the unagi nigiri. Small in portion and with one piece noticably shorter than the other, it was abundant in sauce, perhaps overly so, but still provided a delectable morsel to start off with.
Having ordered only one dish of aburi beef nigiri, I was surprised to be handed two plates. I was even more surprised that they looked so different with one dish completely lacking in chopped onions. Again the portion size was small, but the beef was smooth and tender.
Never one to forgo the opportunity for a hand roll, I had the salmon avocado and the soft shell crab. Both were smaller than what you'd get at sushi edo, but had a better topping to rice ratio. The salmon was fresh and avocado was ripe, but there was a tad too much mayonnaise in the roll. I liked the combination of perilla leaf with soft shell crab, being a nice change to the usual cucumber pairing. The piece of crab wasn't too big though, with most of it consisting of batter.
Feedback for the salmon avocado and crab meat avocado were the same as most other dishes with excessive amounts of sauce (this justifies to me Sushi Train's option of adding your own kewpie and teriyaki to tailor your preferred quantity) whilst the sushi was small albeit fresh.
What stood out for me was in fact the tobiko ship. Where competitors only half fill the ship with flying fish roe and top it up with cucumber, this was completely filled and most satisfying.
Normally at other sushi places, it would take about 6 plates to fill me up for lunch, but at Ichiban, it took 9 to achieve roughly the same level of satisfaction. Whilst worth a try to satisfy curiosity (especially when it's on sale), I doubt I'll be back any time soon.
Price Range: $3.80 per plate
Value: 6/10
Service: 7/10
Environment: 8/10
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