I know OOT has many sushi lovers, so let's talk about what we like and don't like, where we go, what we spend, etc.
I live in Los Angeles, home to hundreds of sushi places. My wife and my favorite sushi place is
Sushi Go 55, an old-school place on the fourth floor of a mall in Little Tokyo. We go there often, and have gone as often as 2-3 times a week, so we're greeted like old friends which I really enjoy at a restaurant. They gave us a baby gift when my son was born and post pictures of my kids if I bring them.
When I say it's "old school", I mean it's not hip and doesn't have lots of crazy drinks and rolls. Trivia note: it's called Sushi Go 55 because the owners are friends with Hideki Matsui, the Japanese slugger called "Godzilla" in Japan who now plays for the New York Yankees. He wears #55. Despite this I still like them a lot.
Standard order:
To start: sweet live shrimp. This is two dishes in one. The freshly killed shrimp bodies are brought as sushi with a healthy layer of wasabi. A few minutes later you'll get the shrimp heads, either deep-fried or in soup. Deep-fried is clearly, clearly, superior imo.
The sushi:
The head:
Then our main order.
Scallop sushi (not sure if it's standard, but Sushi Go 55 puts some mint underneath the scallop, makes it taste even more like the sea, in a good way):
Albacore sushi:
Aji (spanish mackeral) sushi:
Salmon (salmon is often the most boring sushi in my experience, at Sushi Go 55 it's fresh, thick, and buttery, probably my favorite fish here):
Yellowtail:
Then, my wife and I diverge for our final order (unless we're already too full). I usually go with a spicy tuna handroll (unless the salmon or yellowtail was especially incredible in which case I'll just get more of that):
The wife gets unagi (eel):
That's our standard order, but I'll get something different occasionally when they tell us it's especially good or fresh. Sometimes I don't want a ton of rice to I'll do everything as sashimi. It's difficult to get out of there for less than $100 for two without alcohol, which is pretty standard in my experience for good sushi.
That's what I like. The only fish I actively dislike is octopus. I don't like the taste or the texture.
What do you like or dislike? Other sushi thoughts?