Gen X Chronicle’s visit to Seattle continued with a trip to Sushi Land, a conveyor belt sushi chain that has locations around the world. Conveyor belt sushi is a unique innovation that started in Japan, and it involves pieces of raw fish whirring around a conveyor belt in front of diners. When something looks appetizing, you simply grab the plate of sushi off the belt, place it down on the counter in front of you, add soy sauce and wasabi as desired, and dig in.
It’s an exciting concept, and we were psyched to try it. We went to a Sushi Land franchise near Seattle’s trendy Capitol Hill neighborhood. We brought along our awesome brother Ken, who has lived in Seattle since the grunge-infused 90’s, as our dining companion. We sat down, ordered water and diet cokes, and let the show begin.
The first piece to roll around the belt was scallop, white-yellow in color and quite appealing to the eye. We grabbed it, gave a piece to Ken and one for ourselves, and dug in. The verdict? Delicious! We agreed with Ken that we both love cooked scallops, but we were a little dubious about raw scallop. But once we let our inhibitions go and gave ourselves over to the experience, we were rewarded with pleasures abounding. The scallop was salty, sweet, and briny, and it literally melted in our mouth. Thank you fish!
Over the next hour we were treated to a dazzling array of fish and seafood from around the world whirring by on the belt. There was tuna, there was mackerel, there was seared salmon. An interesting yellowtail scallion roll also made it onto our plates, and we appreciated its existence. We dipped most of the sushi in the tried and true combination of soy sauce and wasabi, and in between bites we ate little bits of ginger to cleanse the palate.
We also tackled an interesting order of Takoyaki, which are Japanese grilled octopus pastries, breaded on the outside and stuffed with diced octopus, pickled ginger and green onion. Some might think this sounds like an acquired taste, but we can assure you there is no learning curve, it’s just fantastic from the first morsel.
Of all the dishes we tried, there’s no question that the star of the show was the Ikura, also known as salmon roe. Its magnificent appearance on the plate created an intense sense of anticipation, as if it held secrets to be unlocked with the palate. And the way the large orange salmon eggs aligned inside the seaweed roll made it seem like a spawn from some faraway planet.
More importantly, the taste was simply incredible. The fish was rich, it was salty, it was buttery, it tasted like the sea, and it made our hearts pound with pleasure. All in all, it really lived up to its reputation as a full throttle paradise for the senses. We endorse Ikura, we most certainly do.
After each small plate of sushi was consumed, we stacked them one on top of the other in front of us. By the end of the hour there was a twin towers of empty sushi plates littered with bits of ginger, wasabi and soy. It looked kind of like a war zone actually, as if a group of F-18 Super Hornet fighter jets had strafed the sushi with cannon fire, then doubled back to drop bunker bombs while simultaneously firing Hellfire missiles at the fish plates. Which is to say, it was a mess, it was a disaster, but we were stuffed and content, so it was all worth it!
As the meal came to a close, we lifted our now-heavier selves — with difficulty — out of our seats and paid for our meal. It was a bargain at under $50 for two. We left the restaurant feeling, well, very full, but also happy and warm inside. Our assessment? Conveyor belt sushi rocks, Sushi Land is an awesome chain, Seattle is a cool town, and we recommend all of it!
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