Dave R.
Yelp
We love sushi and regularly visit our favorite sushi restaurants near home, but we've never tried Omakase-style dining, where you eat what the chef serves you (not order from a menu).
So, when visiting NYC with friends recently (who also enjoy sushi and, like us, have never tried Omakase), we decided to try Sushi by Bou.
It was an awesome experience!
Normally, I am not a big fan of chain restaurants. You'll never find me in an Applebee's, etc.
However, in my experience, there are a handful of small chains that haven't gone totally corporate. They let each location's head chef "do their thing" (while staying in the chain's theme). That works for me in some cases, and I'm adding Sushi by Bou to my short list of smaller chains that qualify for a return visit.
Finding the Times Square location was interesting. They occupy a small portion of a classic NYC restaurant basement, with steep stairs descending from a hole in the sidewalk (normally covered by a large metal plate). In this case, the metal plate is gone, and a makeshift wooden fence and gate adorn the hole in the sidewalk.
Once inside the small space, you'll find it nicely decorated and optimized for the Omakase-style dining experience.
Two Sushi chefs are behind the Sushi bar, each serving four guests at each seating. You watch them prepare each course and are served it with an explanation of the ingredients.
We were served twelve courses that night, and you can order additional courses if you're still hungry -- or just want to try more of one of the things you were served.
We thoroughly enjoyed the Omakase experience and liked this particular restaurant very much!
In fact, we and our friends decided to make meeting up in NYC an annual affair, complete with a return visit to Sushi by Bou.
