by Stephen H. on Ah! An oasis in a pretentious desert of wannabe fish hockers. *cough* geisha house *cough* Sushi House Hayakawa is in my opinion the best sushi restaurant in all of Atlanta. The chefs and staff are incredibly friendly and generous, the fish is fresh and delicately prepared, and the ambience is perfect for what it is: an incredible find. My girlfriend an I come here on an expense account frequently, so we pretty much order everything. Pretty much. The sushi chefs and the friendly patrons always gaze upon us with astonishment as we order Omakase (chef's choice at $50), a special box roll, two hand rolls, one uni ikura don (uni and amazingly fresh salmon roe on a bed of excellent sushi rice), and whatever random fish we've never tried before (the list is diminishing by the visit). Born in San Francisco, being Asian, loving sushi, having just come back from Japan, and thoroughly enjoying adventure taste-testing, I was dismayed to have been relegated to poor man's sushi when I moved to Atlanta a few years ago. MF Sushi is pretty decent, but for the exorbitant prices and the smallace portions, the only time I ever go there is if it's my birthday and everybody else pays for me. Poor everybody elses. But this year, I found Hayakawa through a well-taste-budded doctor friend, who treated us to rounds upon rounds of succulent sashimi, sake, and utter happiness. Just like finding an oasis. In a desert. Of pretense. p.s. For the well-initiated, you can pretty much order any sashimi and be satisfied with your selection. Everything will be good, and most definitely the uni, ikura, mackerel, scallop, and sake. For the bai ren, you'll be happy with any of the rolls created to compete against the likes of Midtown and Buckhead. Tempura flakes, mayo, sriracha, it's all in there for your enjoyment. p.p.s. Go to the karoake house next door afterwards. It's my favorite karaoke spot in Atlanta. I had my birthday there.
by Napoleon Malhotra on Vertigo is a great place for anthropologists and others with an interest in ethnic ceremonial masks. I suppose other people will like it too, as the bartender is good and there's a smoking area and a dance floor and it's not too crowded.
