In our second installment of reviewing different Omaha sushi restaurant, we tried out Ponzu, which is located in the heart of a thriving business, housing and food district: Aksarben. Being in a heavily college-student-populated part of town, a restaurant such as Ponzu is an essential dining option for everybody as it offers a trendy and modern take on traditional sushi.
We went on a Saturday afternoon, and it was not very busy, so we were able to walk in and get a table with no reservation (although it would be smart to have a reservation during busier times like Friday and Saturday night). The restaurant itself is modern with lots of natural light coming through the tall glass windows of the building. The atmosphere, even with other parties in the restaurant, was clean and welcoming. They have plenty of room for larger parties and sushi bar seating; they also have seating at a bar and a good amount of outdoor space for when the weather is nice.
We were seated promptly upon arriving and ordered quickly once all our guests arrived. Since it was a slower day, the service was good, though it did take a little longer to have our food brought to our table than we would have expected.
Ponzu has many of the traditional favorites at Japanese-style restaurants, such as Miso Soup, Nigiri, and Maki, but it also some modernized takes on dishes like Kobe Beef Sliders, Korean Street Kebabs, and more. We decided to get two appetizers, two miso soups, a selection of three rolls, and two orders of nigiri.
For our appetizers we got Pork Gyoza, Calamari, and Miso Soup.
The Pork Gyoza was excellent, and the miso soup was at the right temperature and very flavorful. The calamari was cooked very well with a perfect texture.
The sushi was fresh and was portioned well for the four of us. Further right was the “Hot Mess” Roll, middle is the traditional sake rolls, and on the left is or sake and tuna nigiri. In particular, the sake rolls were very good. The “Hot Mess” roll had the perfect amount of spice, which complimented the tuna and crab flavor well. The tuna and salmon nigiri we had, were all also excellent.
Overall our experience at Ponzu was a very positive one and we will be back again. We are excited to sample more sushi restaurants around the Omaha Metro area and compare them with one another.
