Hometown Slop: Red Ginger Bistro: Should 1/2 price Sushi scare you?

Would you trust a place that advertised "50% off all Sushi Rolls?" There have been many cheap sushi joints popping up. Most of them scare you to look at and make you feel like you would be better off buying sushi from the grocery store.

I truly fell in love with sushi when my sister was managing The Happy Sumo. This was the pinnacle of Sushi restaurants. A place where you could come and enjoy a 1 1/2 hour lunch-and this is coming from a Teetotaler. Each roll was either put together with love or an addictive chemical. A good lunch would also run you about $80 for two people.

Sitting at the Bar, I began dreaming of "Jiro Dreams of Sushi."

Today my plan was to actually head to an Italian restaurant downtown. As I approached Red Ginger, I knew that I was too hungry to keep driving; that would have taken 5-7 more minutes. It didn't look like the kind of place that the health department would shut down without further warning. I was seated at the bar and got really excited having just watched Jiro Dreams of Sushi. Reality sank in when I remembered that eating at Jiro's restaurant in Tokyo will run you 30,000 Yen ($375).

Lover Roll

Looking at the menu I saw what looked like a lot of good sushi rolls for $8.95, $9.95, $11.95, etc. I had to ask the waiter if this was the 50% off price or if it is taken off from there. He said that it's 50% off from the listed price. Wow, with that in mind I thought "I'm American so I might as well buy more than I can eat." I ordered the Spider, Lover and Vegas rolls.

Spider Roll

The salmon on the Lover roll was a little mushy but everything else was actually pretty good. I love the spicy mayo. You can't go wrong with a Vegas roll. It has cream cheese and is deep fried-heaven.

When the bill came, the total was $14.50. That is for 3 sushi rolls. Maybe not on the same level as The Happy Sumo but not bad. I don't know if this 50% off each roll is limited or permanent. While it is 1/2 off, definitely stop by and indulge.