Saving Money on Sushi

I love eating sushi. I didn't always. I didn't take my first bite of sushi until I was 24. But somewhere along the way I grew to love it. The problem with Sushi is that it is very expensive. Almost anywhere you go, sushi is going to run you about $5-$8 for two sushi pieces. This makes it prohibitive to eat very much of it very often.

I went to eat sushi for lunch today. I spent $23 for three orders of sushi (Tuna, Yellowtail, and Salmon) and a roll. This is probably pretty standard. However there is a place in Seattle called Sushi Land. I miss it. I traditionally go to the one in Redmond, and it is great. The service isn't always the best, and they tend to be pretty inefficient when it comes to cleaning tables and seating people, but you can't beat the overall experience.

For the exact same meal I just got at this other restaurant, I would have spent $6.50. That's about 70% cheaper! Each of the sushi pieces would have cost me $1.50. The roll would have also cost me $1.50 (I would have had to get two roll orders at Sushi Land to equal the one I got at today's restaurant). And here is the kicker. The sushi at Sushi Land would have actually been better. It isn't the best sushi I have ever had, but it is definitely better than average. And for the price you can't beat it. I can get a meal there cheaper than I can at most fast food restaurants.

Add the fact that because it is a conveyor belt system, and you can just pick your sushi off the belt without having to ask for it, and you have a great situation. You can come in and eat in a matter of about 5 minutes or less. So it's better, cheaper, and faster than you can get at almost any other dining experience. I've introduced a few of my friends to this place and before I left, we use to go all the time. Rick is one of those individuals. If you really want to pay him back for developing Paint.NET, just buy him a couple of plates of the spicy tuna roll. Then again, he probably would be happier if you just donated the money.

If I could use the money for this experiment to buy a franchise, and I was at all interested in running a restaurant, I would. Then again, I might eat away all my profits :)