SUSHI 99 （St Augustine） — Restaurant in Florida

We visited Sushi 99 for the first time today. The interior has been recently renovated, but it lacks any charm or cohesive design concept. However, we are here to review the food, not the decor. We took our time selecting our dishes. We ordered various rice dishes (both vegetarian and with shrimp) and a large platter of different types of sushi. As starters, we had miso soup and an amuse-bouche, which was fish tempura in an indeterminate sauce.

First, the good points: The rice dishes were well-seasoned and generously portioned. The service was always friendly, attentive, and helpful.

Now, the not-so-good points: The sushi. Unfortunately, the rice wasn't properly vinegared, and the ratio of filling to rice was completely off. While many restaurants tend to use too much rice (probably to cut costs), Sushi 99 uses too little rice. The freshness of the fish was okay. What really bothers me: Why use salmon tartare instead of whole pieces? Using tartare makes me slightly suspicious. I know some restaurants use tartare to mask fish that's not so fresh. I don't want to suggest that's what Sushi 99 is doing, but it might raise some doubts. My advice: Never use tartare.

There were also issues with the miso soup. If I hadn't known it was supposed to be miso, I wouldn't have been able to identify it in a blind taste test—it tasted like... nothing!

These issues are easily fixable by the restaurant. I sincerely hope this review helps bring about some improvements. Otherwise, this restaurant wouldn't be worth mentioning or visiting again.

Thank you...

I was very excited to try this place, and to date I've ordered take out twice and dined in once, all for lunch.

The interior is gorgeous, very pleasant atmosphere. The booths are large and comfortable. The server was very helpful. This is located in a strip mall, so there is plenty of parking.

We have a lot of sushi places around, so for me this is what determines my final score. My go to is spicy tuna and spicy salmon rolls, and that is what I ordered from their reasonable lunch menu. Both were good. Not great, definitely not spicy enough, but very fresh. The second time I ordered takeout, there was a bone in my sushi roll. I've never encountered that before at any sushi restaurant I've eaten from, but it wasn't a big deal.

When we dined in, we tried the beef Negimaki for an appetizer. It was okay, but again, not exceptional. A little bland, a little dry, but somewhat tasty. The miso soup was also okay, but could have used a little more flavor. The presentation of the sushi is absolutely gorgeous! I loved the display on the plate. Super cool.

Overall, I will go back here again but I can't rave about the sushi rolls I tried so far. I might sample something else from the menu to widen my scope, such as hibachi or teriyaki, or a specialty roll, and update my review accordingly. They do have a very nice range of options, and I believe a dinner is in our...

This sushi joint has a good feel when you walk in. The decor is modern, the seating is great, and the lighting is spot on. Sushi was on par with higher end sushi bars but at a much more affordable price. Beer, saki, and wine options are smaller which is a nice change to some places that offer a full page of drink options; keeping it simple is sometimes much better than being overwhelmed with options.

We were on a date so we decided to do the love boat (12 pieces Sashimi, 12 pieces of sushi, 1 special role, and 1 California role). Was quite a bit of food for both of us. Presentation was absolutely fantastic! On the boat a small ceramic bottle had dry ice and added such unique touch. All of the fish was fresh, served with plenty of wasabi and ginger. They let us pick the special role which was nice. The server said it is usually served with the “sushi 99” role.

If you’re still reading because you’re looking for a good sushi joint in the area, give this place a try! We really enjoyed it and will definitely...