Sumo Sushi Thai And Bar — Restaurant in Berry Hill

As a sushi afficionado who has eaten quite a bit of it in Japan, I have a very high bar. And as a foodie who often brags about Nashville's incredible culinary scene, it was imperative that I did my research when a fellow sushi lover came to town. So I scoured the Internet to find Nashville's ultimate Japanese destination. After running the numbers on 30-something sushi joints, it was clear that Sumo Sushi had the highest ratings in the city, sporting an impressive 4.79 across all platforms with 429 reviews! The masses have collectively spoken, but would these lofty ratings hold up for a sushi snob who's eaten the real thing overseas?

YES!! YES!! YES!! Sumo is that good!! This is the freshest sushi I've eaten outside of Asia. And my five-star review just bumped them up to a rarely achieved 4.80 Internet rating and rightfully so! The glowing reviews are accurate, the quality of the food exceeds their competition, and the creativity of this Thai/Japanese fusion cuisine is incredible! The menu is clever, extensive, and very authentic without being pretentious, and the website is very slick. Replacing the lackluster Zushipoke in this cozy Melrose space anchoring the Eighth South condo, Owner/chef Ming Pichidtammarat is at home as a master chef. He personally took our order and highly recommended the white tuna. So I eagerly took him up on it.

Sampling some of their best nigiri, the smoked salmon and seared tuna were impeccable, probably my two favorites and easily among the best things I've ever tasted in Nashville. But the white tuna nigiri is so good that it's nearly equal to the other two, certainly one of the best things on the menu! The eel (unagi) nigiri was sensational, usually my favorite of all nigiri. But the other three items were so good they almost made me forget my beloved unagi altogether! Now that's saying something! The yellowtail was so buttery and smooth that even in fifth place, it was better than almost any other restaurant's best sushi!

I wasn't quite as fond of the octopus nigiri, nor the sweet shrimp nigiri, perhaps because the other choices were so elite! But that did nothing to stop me from raving about this meal for the next few hours and gladly bestowing five stars upon Sumo, something I'm stingy about doing. Even better, the price is completely reasonable. You could acquire 10 pieces of nigiri (smoked salmon, seared tuna, white tuna, eel, and yellowtail) for $34.75, large cuts of meat that will fill you up for a very worthy price without breaking the bank. Sumo Sushi has the highest ratings in town, and they are every bit deserved! Stop reading my review and go...

I had a wonderful meal at Sumo Sushi Thai and Bar. I was in the area, and if it had not been for the two employees outside handing out menus, I am not sure if I would have ended up there, but happy I did. This is an outpost of their Bell Road restaurant - Yoshi Sushi & Thai and they have only been open 5-days.

Service: The staff could not have been any nicer or helpful. They offered menu suggestions, were super attentive and made me feel like I was one of their closest friends.

Vibe: The space is comfortable, but a little cavernous. I spoke with the Sushi Chef, who is one of the family members who owns the restaurant, and he said it is still a work in progress. The mural on the wall was a custom mural and super fun.

Food: On this trip I stuck with Sushi and it was fresh and delicious. I had both the R&B Roll (Spicy Crab, Cucumber, Topped with Tuna, Avocado Spicy Mayo, and Eel Sauce) and Ruby Roll (Shrimp Tempura, Cucumber, Topped with Tuna, Avocado, Crunchy and Special Sauce). I definitely plan on going back and trying some of their Thai dishes.

On a related note, I spoke with a couple from Ohio who decided not to wait in line at a nearby well-known hot chicken restaurant and I said they had made a great choice. I ran into them later that evening and they too had nothing but rave reviews of Sumo Sushi Thai & Bar.

I would definitely recommend you...

I came here with my dad while he was in town, because he loves Thai food:) I'd never been here before, but I was very impressed with the menus and the service. The menus have all these beautiful pictures of the items (my dad really liked that; he's not THAT old, but he loves pictures). My dad, enticed by the picture, of course, got the Dry Egg Noodle. I have no idea how he was on a call the entire time and still managed to finish his food before me... Guess it must have been good! My Teriyaki with Tofu was amazing. Just what I wanted and expected in a teriyaki dish; the tofu was fried to perfection.

I wanted to make a special point regarding the service here. Our waitress was so polite, friendly, and all smiles. She made me happy to be there, what can I say? I had some leftovers (my father did not), and she even boxed/saran-wrapped them for me. I don't think I have ever been somewhere like this, that didn't cost a fortune, and had my food boxed for me and brought back to me. It was the cherry on top of everything, really.

I won't be forgetting Sumo anytime soon. I had a wonderful time with my dad, over some delicious food, and in a wonderful place. I hope to be back...