Restaurant Review: Aki Sushi in Fairfield, California

It is not uncommon to find more sushi restaurants than McDonald's in Northern California. But in the town of Fairfield, one restaurant is quietly growing a reputation that can push them above the rest: Aki Sushi. Located at the corner of Texas Street and Travis Boulevard (707-426-5100), Aki Sushi hides in a tiny strip mall just to the right of the IHOP. The only indication that Aki Sushi even exists is the yellow sign that says "Sushi" above its door.

However, a step through Aki Sushi's door opens your eyes to a quiet, friendly setting that makes an excellent place for a peaceful lunch gathering amongst coworkers or even a romantic dinner for an established couple who need some peace and quiet away from the kids. Whatever your reason is, Aki Sushi has a more -than-welcoming environment with extremely clean place settings, dark wood tables, a small sushi bar to the left and the most friendly and gracious of hostesses in Northern California.

Speaking of Sushi, Aki Sushi's head chef is no ordinary slicer and dicer. He comes with high credentials as a trained chef who honed his skills in Japan. One patron of Aki Sushi was ordering a different Nigiri roll every 10 minutes. "This guy is the best", she told me. "I drive 40 miles every other week to eat his sushi. I've had the best in Japan. He's the best." I ordered a two striped bass Nigiri and gave it a shot. Needless to say, it was definitely the best I've had in Northern California. The bass was perfectly sliced and so tender I could savor every bite over the fresh roll. I summoned up more different rolls: Blue Fin Tuna, California rolls, spider crab...you name it, and he cut it. Each one was just as quality as the previous, especially when topped with the fish roe. It was like little bites into heaven. But heaven was racking me up a few dollars and I had to stop. The sushi isn't very expensive at $3-$4 a roll, but his cuts are so addictive you can find yourself cleaning his knives if you aren't careful.

I returned the next week for lunch. This time I ordered steamed mackerel and Miso soup from the traditional lunch menu, which was fairly priced between $6 and $10 per meal. I can't even explain how tasty and mouthwatering the mackerel was. It's as if Aki Sushi has the South China Sea in their back yard and they're catching fish as you order them. The portion size was more than enough for me to eat at one sitting, but I did it anyway. It was steamed fish, so I didn't feel bad for indulging.

Once I convinced my wife to try this place out, we arrived for dinner. The combo plates were only $13 and they came with a choice of two types of meals, small salad and Miso soup. I ordered the mackerel again with chicken teriyaki for my second item. She ordered salmon teriyaki and California rolls. My kids had California rolls. Again, Aki Sushi came through with no muss, no fuss meals that were so flavorful and hit the right spot. I never had salmon teriyaki before but I'm tempted to make it at home now that I stole a few pieces off of my wife's plate. It was just enough tang to enhance the texture of the salmon without over sweetening the sauce. The chicken teriyaki was better than I've had at even the Teriyaki restaurants around town! And the California rolls? Well, I don't prefer to eat them anyway because I like my fish, but the one I tried had some absolutely wonderful avocado inside it.

To be truthful, I was tempted not to review Aki Sushi, simply because I wanted it to be my best kept secret restaurant in Fairfield, California. Aki Sushi looks like it could only seat 20 or so people. But it's hard to keep a good secret, especially one that salivates your mouth every time you drive by and see the yellow sign. For more restaurant reviews of the North Bay area, visit this link HERE.