For my recent birthday dinner, deciding on a special sushi meal was easy. The hard part was deciding which of the moderately priced sushi restaurants to visit. I feel like there has been an overwhelming number of them in the last few years.
It came down to two – a more traditional Japanese omakase or Rosella. Rosella was a revelation in concept when it comes to sushi in this country. It’s the first sustainable sushi restaurant with a focus on local seafood that is not flown in thousands of miles across the world.
Rosella feels a lot more like a hip East Village restaurant than a cathedral of sushi. The waiter/bartender was phenomenal and while they did not offer an omakase when we visited, he essentially designed an omakase for us from their modest menu and our interests.
The fish here was fantastic – the salmon was steelhead trout from New York State, the tuna was bluefin from Massachusetts, and the uni came not from Santa Barbara or Japan, but from Maine.
The local fish was by definition fresh and had incredible flavor and texture that was enhanced by little chef touches, like pickled radishes or shiso leaf.
The bagels-on-hudson roll was similar to the requisite Philadelphia Roll, but with smoked trout, dill cream cheese, and a Japanese style omelet. The breakfast of champions indeed.
There were also unique sushi offerings that I would not have found at the Japanese place, like an inspired pickled mussel roll from Prince Edward Island.
I was worried that I chose wrong by going the less traditional route. Ahi, Kampachi, and Unagi were nowhere to be found on the menu, but I found equally delectable sushi pieces with a side of sustainability, which are two things I am very excited about. Happy birthday to me! Price: $7-$35
| ROSELLA |
| 137 Avenue A (between St. Marks Place and East 9th Street), East Village (646) 422-7729 |
| rosellanyc.com |
