Sansui Sushi Bar & Grill - Durham, NC

The Triangle sushi scene has continued to be depressing.  Our recent experience at Achira has further reconfirmed that the vast majority of places that serve sushi don't have a clue as to how to prepare sushi rice. Preparing sushi rice requires care; slapping raw fish on rice does not equal sushi - and if the restaurant isn't willing to take the time, then what would you expect on their other foods? We were very hesitant to try Sansui.. for those who have been in the Triangle long enough probably remember the creepy crawly things falling off the ceiling with this building used to be a reasonable Dim Sum place. Needless to say, we stopped going. Even though we'd seen the Sansui half off sushi rolls for months, we had still been very afraid... finally desperate for sushi, we decided to to give them a try.


Every patron gets a little bonus appetizer of cucumber and fish cake - I dearly miss the Little Tokyo days of their "free appetizer". While not impressive, I'll give them a point for trying. We ordered the pyramid, the tonkatsu and two sushi rolls.

The pyramid is pictured above - while probably and excuse to purge edge pieces from the raw fish, it was actually very good. The fish was fresh (and it was Sunday!). I'd strongly recommend the soy sauce bathing the rice on the side... we were still worried about the rice after this dish. 

The rolls, however, turned out to be pretty good - I'm not sure the torch blackened tuna sat in my stomach well, so I'd probably recommend avoiding.

For a quick, relatively inexpensive sushi place, this neighborhood gem should be a good stand in. The ambiance and decor was a bit gaudy.

Sansui
4325 Hwy 55
Durham, NC
(919) 361-8078