If you’re looking for a small restaurant with an authentic sushi experience, look no further than Takumi sushi. Takumi is just 10 minutes from Truax campus and within two blocks of East Towne Mall in the Essex Square Shopping Center.

As you walk in Takumi you will see a cozy bar that seats 10, and the sushi bar where your meal will be prepared just beyond the entrance.

Takumi restaurant sets itself apart from other sushi restaurants with its Tatumi room and Hibachi grill. These specialized rooms are designated for private parties.

The Tatumi room is set intimately where you sit cross-legged at a table low to the ground are set apart from other guests behind rice paper walls. 

Takumi also sports a hibachi grill, a growing attraction among Japanese restaurants. The hibachi grill room seats approximately 20 people and has a metal cooking plate the size of a small table in the center where a chef makes a spectacle of his culinary prowess to dazzle and awe the patrons.

Birthday celebrations can also be held in the hibachi room.

The hibachi chef amused the intimate audience of hungry restaurant patrons by throwing pieces of vegetables in the air and catching them with his spatula, all while a traditional Japanese drum was played to the birthday song.

The hibachi grill becomes a pyromaniac’s dream as the chef lights the metal cooking plate on fire with flames that illuminate the room like lightning followed by the thunderous applause and laughter of the crowd.

If you’re new to sushi or are hesitant about eating raw fish a la traditional sushi, Takumi is the perfect place to try a California roll. The California roll is made of sushi roll, cucumber, avocado and cooked crab meat. This makes for a perfect starting point for a beginner at a sushi restaurant. For those more daring, the dragon roll melts in your mouth with its combination of fried and flaky shrimp tempura, cucumber and avocado.

Perhaps sushi is a monthly dietary item for you, and even though sushi is slightly more costly than a sandwich, there is nothing like the festivities of having your meal prepared within sight at the sushi bar.

If you’re looking to take your date out on a budget, Takumi has some options.

On Sundays Takumi has $4 glasses of house wine and specials on saki, a Japanese liquor that compliments sushi. Mondays are half-price appetizers at happy hour, and there are two rolls priced under $10.

Takumi has over 300 reviews on Google with an average of four and a half stars, despite its size and quaint location. 

The treat of Takumi’s food is how beautiful it looks — almost too pretty to eat. Beyond the food, the waitstaff are patient and helpful, and the environment cozy and warm.

If you’re eager to change up your weekly meals and get out of the house, a visit to the exotic ambiance of Takumi may be something to consider.