While studying at UNC Chapel Hill (just two hours from my lifelong home of Charlotte), I stumbled into a Japanese minor thanks to a random conversation with a friend that led to a fateful language class. Long hours studying flash cards scribbled with Japanese characters led to time spent abroad in Tokyo during my junior year, and the experience cemented a lot of my lifelong tastes in food.
Though you may not think of sushi as a go-to comfort food, it has certainly become that for me and, by extension, my family. While sushi options in Charlotte continue to expand, seemingly by the week, these are the five spots that manage to tick all the boxes for me: consistently fresh proteins, solid fish to rice ratios (I’m mostly a nigiri or maki/roll devotee versus sashimi), varied offerings, great service, and, controversially, enough added wasabi to be just on the edge of tear-inducing.
Prime Fish
Prime Fish is a postage stamp-sized gem of a spot in an unlikely shopping plaza in the Ballantyne area. Its pieces are sizeable, extremely high quality, and everything down to the ginger salad is done with care; you can taste the attention to detail in every bite. I love the scallop nigiri and the specialty Hokkaido roll, which features tuna, salmon, yellowtail, and scallion with avocado.
Sitting at the sushi bar to see what looks best that day is ideal, but Prime Fish also has a cute little patio area and does to-go orders. Prime Fish keeps an online wait list, which is helpful because it doesn’t take reservations and does fill up. This one is about quality over quantity since the tab, particularly when pulling from the excellent “Prime Nigiri” selection, can add up. Still, this winner reliably elicits a joyful “let’s go” when presented as a post-soccer practice dinner for my son, and you would be lucky to call this your regular sushi destination…