JAPANESE/SUSHI

HANA JAPANESE RESTAURANT
8116 Hampson St., 865-1634
A lively atmosphere and neighborhood vibe keeps things hopping at this sushi bar, which is known for its extra-large special rolls. Combinations of salmon, tuna, snow crab, cucumber, avocado, egg and shrimp tempura abound. One particularly popular house special is the fried soft-shell crab roll with spicy mayo sauce. Reservations accepted for large parties. Lunch and dinner daily. Credit cards. $$

HORINOYA
920 Poydras St., 561-8914; www.horinoya.com
Artistic presentations of sushi and hard-to-find delicacies like monkfish liver and Japanese favorites like natto are the hallmarks of this chic downtown Japanese restaurant. Horinoya's lunch specials are ideal for a quick midday lunch and it also features an extensive menu of raw and cooked cuisine that is worth exploring come dinnertime. Horinoya's menu includes many Japanese ingredients not found in all local sushi restaurants. Reservations accepted for dinner. Lunch Mon.-Fri., dinner Mon.-Sat. Credit cards. $$

KANNO CALIFORNIA SUSHI BAR
3205 Edenborn Ave., Metairie, 455-5730
Sushi lovers swear by the innovative specialty rolls and signature Fantasy Sauce that Japanese-born chef "Elvis" dreams up at the cozy, authentic sushi bar he owns and runs with his wife, Lin. Spicy snow crab, lobster tail meat and wasabi cream sauce come together in the lobster dynamite roll. The lighter South Beach roll has tuna, crab and avocado but no rice. The spicy soft-shell crab soup is a must-have starter when available. Kanno regulars like to conclude a meal with a plate of Lin's homemade chocolates. Reservations recommended. Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sat. Credit cards. $$

KYOTO
4920 Prytania St., 891-3644
Named for Japan's ancient capital, Kyoto is an intimate restaurant with a sushi bar and small dining room. The menu features a full range of Japanese cuisine including tempura, soups with thick udon noodles and creative handrolls from the sushi bar. The Sara Roll features spicy shrimp and avocado topped with crunchy bits and chili sauce. The ceviche roll wraps fresh vegetables and sprouts in fresh whitefish and tops it with lime cilantro sauce. Reservations accepted for large parties. Lunch Mon.-Fri., dinner Mon.-Sat. Credit cards. $$

LITTLE TOKYO
310 N. Carrollton Ave., 485-5658; 1521 N. Causeway Blvd., Metairie, 831-6788
Little Tokyo's large sushi bar features an extensive list of nigiri pieces and rolls. There's nothing little about the restaurant's signature Love Boat for two, which includes tempura shrimp and vegetables, chicken and beef teriyaki, sashimi, sushi and fresh fruit. Salads, noodle soups and cooked dishes offer diners plenty of alternatives to sushi. Reservations recommended. Lunch and dinner daily. Credit cards and checks. $$

LITTLE TOKYO
590 Asbury Drive, Mandeville, (985) 727-1532; www.littletokyosushi.com
When Northshore residents want a hometown spin on sushi, they might look to Little Tokyo. The Mandeville roll is made with whitefish, snow crab, asparagus and roe wrapped up in seaweed and fried, with sides of chef sauce and eel sauce. New on the menu is the Twinny roll, with tuna, fried shrimp, yellowtail, avocado and snow crab. For a little heat, try the Tamaguchi roll with spicy salmon and snow crab wrapped in soy paper. No reservations. Lunch and dinner daily. Credit cards. $$

MEGUMI YAKIMONO AND SUSHI BAR
4700 Hwy. 22, Suite 11, Mandeville, (985) 845-1644; www.megumirestaurant.net
You can find sushi here, but the Yakimono grill is a less common feature of local Japanese restaurants. Skewers of marinated meat, seafood or vegetables are carefully cooked on Megumi's special grill. There's also a noodle menu, numerous teriyaki dinners, and, for a quick Creole fix, New Orleans-style crab cakes. Reservations recommended. Lunch and dinner Mon.-Sat. Credit cards. $$

MIKIMOTO JAPANESE RESTAURANT
3301 S. Carrollton Ave., 488-1881; www.mikimotosushi.com
The petite sushi bar here turns out an enormous variety of raw and cooked fish creations, like the Bayou roll with seaweed salad and cucumber rolled in rice and wrapped with tuna tataki and whitefish. Mikimoto is home to a unique drive-through lane for phone-in orders to go. No reservations. Lunch Sun.-Fri., dinner daily. Credit cards. $$

MIYAKO SEAFOOD & STEAKHOUSE
1403 St. Charles Ave., 410-9997; www.japanesebistro.com
Variety is served well at this Japanese bistro on the Avenue. Patrons can reserve a seat at the hibachi grill for a dramatic presentation of surf 'n' turf specials like the Hibachi Miyako special which comes with Japanese clear soup, house salad with ginger-carrot dressing, mixed vegetables, hibachi noodles, filet mignon, shrimp and lobster. The sushi bar offers a similarly comprehensive selection of fish and handrolls. The Ichiban Roll Combo includes miso soup, house salad, a dragon roll, double spicy roll and California roll. Reservations accepted. Lunch Sun.-Fri., dinner daily. Credit cards. $$

NINJA SUSHI
8433 Oak St., 866-1119
On busy nights, guests at Ninja lounge around the ground-level bar before being ushered up to what the restaurant's many fans regard as the Mt. Fuji of sushi. Fresh cuts of maguro, salmon and snapper issue forth from the long sushi bar and the kitchen produces a full array of soups and cooked Japanese dishes, including the broiled neck of yellowtail and ice cream balls in rice paper wrappers. No reservations. Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sun. Credit cards. $$

OKI NAGO
2712 N. Arnoult Road, Metairie, 780-8588; www.okinago.com
Oki Nago's diverse buffet has a wide variety of new and traditional Japanese dishes including cold noodle salads, pickle salads, shrimp dishes, breaded and fried meats prepared katsu-style, yakimeshi, which is a Japanese version of fried rice, and a host of other popular dishes. Domburimono dishes feature bowls of rice topped by meat or omelets. There also is a large selection of rolls and sushi from the sushi bar. Reservations recommended. Lunch and dinner daily. Credit cards and checks. $$

ROCK-N-SAKE OF NEW ORLEANS
823 Fulton St., 589-7253; www.rocknsake.com
Rock music and saketinis set the tone at this urbane sushi restaurant. The LSU roll is made with tempura shrimp and cream cheese seaweed paper and is topped with crab, avocado and tuna, plus a dash of eel sauce. There also are creative cooked menu items like the beef and asparagus maki with thin-sliced beef rolled around asparagus, grilled and topped with teriyaki sauce. No reservations. Lunch Fri., dinner Tue.-Sun., late-night Fri.-Sat. Credit cards. $$

ST. CHARLES JAPANESE SUSHI BUFFET
2100 St. Charles Ave., 267-0799
The Avenue's newest Japanese restaurant offers all-you-can-eat sushi and an á la carte menu. Lunch specials include roll combos and bento boxes filled with sushi, shrimp tempura or chicken, beef or salmon teriyaki. The kitchen also prepares rice and noodle dishes, breaded chicken katsu and chicken tempura. Nigiri sushi choices include a familiar lineup of tuna, salmon, yellowtail, eel and sea urchin, and handrolls feature American favorites like California and Philadelphia rolls. Party platters are available. No reservations. Lunch and dinner daily. Credit Cards. $$

SAKE CAFÉ
126 Lake Drive, Covington, (985) 809-6689; 817 W. Esplanade Ave., Kenner, 468-8829; 1130 S. Clearview Pkwy., Harahan, 733-8879; 4201 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Metairie, 779-7253
Sake Café put a little local inspiration behind the New Orleans roll. It combines spicy crawfish, crunchy tempura bits, avocado, tuna and snow crab with tobiko caviar, topped with an avocado-eel sauce. The sweet chili crispy fillet is grouper served in a sweet chili sauce. Sake features happy hour specials every day from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Reservations accepted for large parties. Lunch and dinner daily, late-night Fri.-Sat. Credit cards. $$

SAKE CAFÉ UPTOWN
2830 Magazine St., 894-0033
Occupying perhaps the city's most radically redesigned drug store, Sake Café turns out elegant sushi creations in a hip, upscale environment. For an appetizer, try the pan-seared scallops with a sake martini. Stand back for the TNT sushi special, which pairs yellowtail and tuna mixed with a layer of tobiko and sushi rice, topped off with a quail egg. Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner daily. Credit cards. $$

SAPPORO JAPANESE RESTAURANT
5000 W. Esplanade Ave., Metairie, 779-9288
Sapporo features sushi and hot entrées from the kitchen including a popular fried rice dish. The extensive menu includes all the classic sushi specialties, plus some new creations like the Sapporo special roll with snow crab, salmon, tuna, vegetables and special sauce. Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner Mon.-Sat. Credit cards. $$

SEKISUI SAMURAI
239 Decatur St., 525-9595; www.sekisuiusa.com
Some of the specials at this Vieux Carre sushi bar have more to do with Louisiana flavors than Japanese traditions. One delicious example is the Decatur roll with spicy crawfish, fresh garlic and cilantro rolled up with seared white tuna. The ocean pyramid special appetizer is an edible sculpture of tuna, salmon, yellowtail and green and orange tobiko, plus avocado and ponzu sauce. Recent additions include a host of new skewer appetizers and grill items. Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner daily. Credit cards. $$

SHOGUN JAPANESE RESTAURANT AND STEAKHOUSE
2325 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Metairie, 833-7477
One of the area's oldest sushi establishments, Shogun features the zen balance of raw fish and hibachi grilled meats. Table seating is available, but many regulars head straight for the hibachi tables where an array of steak, shrimp, chicken and vegetables are cooked with flair by chefs working a chopstick's length away. No reservations. Lunch and dinner daily. Credit cards. $$

SUSHI BROTHERS
1612 St. Charles Ave., 581-4449; www.sushibrothers.net
Sushi Brothers offers a wide range of nigiri sushi and special rolls. The restaurant's namesake roll wraps salmon tempura, cream cheese and avocado inside seaweed, puts more salmon and avocado on the outside and tops it all with the house special sauce. The Sunshine roll binds tuna, salmon, yellowtail, barbecued eel, snow crab, asparagus and avocado with soy wrap. Other Japanese specialties include soba and udon noodles, tempura, grilled meats and teriyaki dishes. No reservations. Lunch Mon.-Fri., dinner daily. Credit cards. $$

Takumi
2800 Magazine Street, 265-0421; www.takumineworleans.com
Takumi combines refined modern Japanese cooking with sushi. There is sushi, sashimi and marbled Kobe beef as well as specialty dishes like Ise-Ebi Taraba, grilled Japanese spiny lobster stuffed with shrimp and wild mushrooms and king crab with sea urchin paste served with wasabi steam rolls and vegetables. For a New Orleans spin, try the Spicy Miso Gumbo that comes with oysters, shrimp, fried soft shell crab, okra, cilantro, Cajun and Japanese spices. Reservations recommended. Lunch and dinner daily. Credit cards. $$$

TENNOU SUSHI BAR
1818 Manhattan Blvd., Harvey, 366-3898
Fans of this West Bank sushi bar often opt for combinations of sushi, cooked meats and soups. There are also bargain-priced bento box dinners. In addition to large sushi rolls and sashimi, dishes such as baked green mussels and fried dumplings are popular choices. Reservations accepted for large parties. Lunch and dinner daily. Credit cards. $$

WASABI
900 Frenchmen St., 943-9433; www.wasabirestaurant.com
This Marigny sushi spot offers traditional rolls like the Philadelphia as well as creative options like the specialty French Quarter roll, fresh salmon and yellowtail tuna in spicy mayo and tempura batter with snow crab salad in the house pink sauce. Appetizers include barbecued tuna, pan-fried gyoza dumplings and shitake mushrooms stuffed with shrimp and sautéed in sake and soy sauce. Entrée selections include an array of noodle dishes, soups, sushi and combinations and jumbo shrimp covered in a velvety cream sauce. Plum, ginger, green tea and red bean ice creams and tempura cheesecake are served for dessert. Reservations accepted. Lunch and Dinner Mon.-Sat. Credit cards. $$

YUJIN JAPANESE RESTAURANT
323 N. New Hampshire Blvd., Covington, (985) 809-3840
An assortment of Japanese specialties and sushi rolls beckon at Yujin. The Burning Man roll combines spicy tuna, tempura crunch, hot pepper and avocado. Cooler heads prevail with the snow crab salad, a creamy, crabmeat-stuffed avocado served over greens with carrots and asparagus. Desserts include pineapple sorbet and exotic ice cream flavors like green tea, plum wine and red bean. No reservations. Lunch Mon.-Sat., dinner daily. Credit cards and checks. $$

YUKI IZAKAYA
525 Frenchmen St., phone n.a.
This new hot spot on Frenchmen Street has turned the former back bar area of Café Brasil into a slice of Japanese night life, complete with a wide range of sakes, Japanese beers and exotic bar snacks. The menu changes frequently, but features small plates of treats like crab dumplings, peppery French fries with wasabi mayonnaise and steamed clams with sake butter. No reservations. Dinner and late-night service Tue.-Sun. Cash only. $

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