Blue Ribbon Sushi Izakaya, NYC

I'm the type of person who always does bring home my leftovers from restaurants.  I actually love repurposing leftovers to create meals that I love at home later.  This applies even when I travel, and hotels by now know that I like to have at least one extra mini fridge and microwave in my room.  I travel with a personal panini press/grill or travel oven.  I'm that kind of person.

So this summer, when I was in New York for a month, I found myself with a bunch of side dish leftover, but no main protein.  Sushi seemed like just the answer: small quantity, just protein, and I could use up the other stuff I had around. 

I have my old favorites for sushi in New York, including Sushi Seki and Nobu if I'm being splurgy, but this time I was looking for somewhere open at lunchtime on a weekend, and neither of those were.  My research lead me to the well regarded Blue Ribbon Sushi Izakaya (which is not to be confused with Blue Ribbon Sushi - Soho, just a few blocks away, nor Blue Ribbon Brasserie, Blue Ribbon Chicken, Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar, Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill, or others in the same restaurant group).  The group also has location is Miami, LA, Boston, Las Vegas, Nashville, Philly. So, somewhat of a chain, but, not one that felt like it.  They do also have packages available on GoldBelly, which I'll admit was a slight detractment.

I was drawn in by the positive reviews of course, but also the really large assortment of options available for nigiri/sashimi.  They had a large daily specials list with unique items I don't see as often.  And better yet, the prices were quite reasonable (and even more with a $5 off discount on DoorDash).

I ordered on DoorDash for delivery, and my order arrived quickly.  It was well packaged, accurate, and included everything I needed (chopsticks, soy sauce, etc).  I'd gladly order from them again.

3 Pieces Sashimi. $26.73 (including delivery).

I went for a bunch of favorites: uni, crab, and the less common eel, anago.  I opted for sashimi for all, as I'm not really one for rice (yes, this is a very similar trio to my order from Sushi Seki last time I was in NY, with uni, anago, and lobster, just swapping out crab for lobster this time).  I appreciated that I could order each individually, and the prices were really quite reasonable.

The uni and crab came in cucumber cups, the anago just as a slice over some shredded diakon.  Standard ginger and wasabi were plated alongside as well.

California Uni (Sashimi). $11.

To satisfy my uni cravings, I went for the California uni.  Sashimi style, because all I wanted was the uni, no need for rice.  They also offer Hokkaido uni for $18.50.

The uni may have suffered a tiny bit in transit, as the top lobe was a bit no longer intact, but it was still delicious. For nigiri, it is a cucumber cup that is lined with a shiso leaf. I loved the shiso, it went very well with the uni. The uni itself was good, a more mild flavor uni, minimal funk. The portion was really remarkable for the price, I think there might have been five pieces? I'd be curious to do a side-by-side with the more pricey Japanese one, but I was very pleased with this. ****.

Anago (Young Sea Eel) Sashimi $8.

When I was first introduced to sushi I ate a fair amount of unagi, as it was a bit of an easier segue into sushi being fully cooked and covered in bbq sauce.  I still like unagi, but in more recent years, I've definitely become a much bigger fan of anago. I see it rarely on menus, so I was very happy they had it.  I think the last time I had it was about a year prior, from Sushi Seki (where it was excellent).

This piece was ok.  Not very memorable nor flavorful.  A decent sized piece.  I'd probably skip it in the future.  ***.

Kani (Blue Crab) Sashimi. $7.50.

I don't think I've ever seen blue crab on a sushi menu before, so I was very interested to see how they would serve it as nigiri. It was cooked and placed into a cucumber cup, and was a bit of a shredded style, compared to when you get king crab nigiri for example that comes as a solid chunk, which I assume is simply due to the considerably smaller size of the crabs.

It too was just ok, but not particularly flavorful nor memorable.  I have not had all that much blue crab in my life, so maybe that is just how blue crab is?  I live on the West coast, so local dungeness is my common crab, or of course Alaskan king crab if I'm splurging.  I added a little okinomiyaki sauce I had left over which helped, the creaminess from the mayo really added something to it, as it was just pretty bland otherwise.  Another one I'd skip in the future. ***.