The 13 Best Sushi Restaurants In Austin - Austin - The Infatuation

"You can’t talk about sushi in Austin without Uchi’s name entering the conversation. The team behind this sushi and Japanese fusion restaurant have built a mini-empire spanning multiple states and concepts, but it all started right here in a cozy renovated house on South Lamar. Uchi has a core sushi menu with classic pieces like salmon or yellowtail, but the really good stuff is on their toyosu section—named after the famous fish market in Tokyo where the fish gets flown in daily. The sushi here tends to be on the smaller side, like well-proportioned nigiri that hasn’t fully grown yet. They also have two other spots in town, Uchiko and Uchiba, with similar menus. Reservations at Uchi open up one month in advance, and they tend to go fast. If you want to secure a prime time seat, you’ll want to be there right when reservations get released, but even the off-hour tables get snapped up about three weeks out. You can also show up right when Uchi opens and usually snag a seat at the bar (or sometimes even a table). The plus side to an early dinner is you’ll also have access to the excellent Happy Hour. Uchi also has two sister concepts—Uchiko in Rosedale, and Uchiba Downtown—both with very similar menus, and tables that go about half as fast." - nicolai mccrary, raphael brion