Fuji-Ya Restaurant

Overall Fuji Ya has to be my favorite place for sushi in the Twin Cities that I’ve found thus far. It really does have the whole package. The atmosphere is laid back, there is a sushi bar and drink bar, a patio, private dining rooms, a patio and a friendly staff.

They have happy hour specials twice a night for drinks, apps and sushi. I think my 2 favorite things about Fuji Ya are the bartender ladies (Hi, Ellen!) and the toro. I was also happy to learn that they are moving towards using farm raised tuna rather than Atlantic or Mediterranean which are currently facing the probability of extinction.

Get there early for the 5-7 happy hour because the bar side fills up quick and the specials don’t apply to the dinning room area. I’ve been to Fuji Ya many, many times and have only had to wait for a table once or twice. The staff however was extremely accommodating and apologetic for the wait. They even brought us beer.

Love the futo maki (an assortment of vegetables, marinaded radish, and usually fishcake, tofu or another protein), tekka maki (super simple and cheap tuna in rice and nori), toro sashimi (market price. They usually have the big eye toro as well as the bluefin toro. Toro is actually the oily fattiest cut of the tuna belly. It melts in your mouth!) and $3 Sapporo during happy hour. The gyoza is also delicious and a good segue into the world of Asian food for those not down with the raw fish scene just yet.

I would highly recommend Fuji Ya. It’s a great Minneapolis dining experience.

I’ve only eatten here once but the sushi was great. We had a order of philly rolls and some eel too. It was great, we also had the chicken thats on a stick (cannot remember the correct name).