SHIMA — Restaurant in Islamorada

Had I known this place was called "sushi and champagne" in a strip mall, without a liquor license, I would have thought I caught the punchline and missed the joke.

Needless to say, you can spend 10 minutes deciphering half their menu that's trying to dodge liquor law to find out they're charging $18 for a complimentary beer.

The food is about 2x the price of your average solid sushi restaurant. That's setting a very high bar. Hell, I've had cheaper sushi in Kyoto.

You can tell he's trying, but the rolls are too cute. Most of them overwhelmed the fish, at which point, why are we calling it sushi? There was also something very off about the crab. Like the flavor was cooked out of it and it was drowned in mayo or something.

We did have a good tuna sashimi that earned it's price tag. Maybe just stay away from the sushi. Or maybe they're aiming at more money than sense.

In reply: Last I checked, charging $18 for a $2 beer doesn't align with market practice, nor match the awful, but nowhere near 200% inflation. Your reply is also missing the point. Half the review is about the food itself. Your business practices, regardless of fault or misfortune, don't justify a substandard experience...

This is my third time coming to SHIMA with excellent service from Chef Camellien, Chef Emilio, our server Erin and fellow server Reggie. I brought some friends with me for my birthday weekend and we decided to make this our last stop before going home and we were more than satisfied. It was such a delight to see all three of my friends, two of which had dinner here for the first time, enjoy all the food and they are coming back! Also, I was surprised with a pistachio tiramisu served with green tea ice cream (the ice cream kinda tasted like light coffee) which was SO good and I had to share because I was full from The Royal sushi roll, Wakame Salad, and Avocado Tuna Tower. If you are skeptical about sushi altogether, there are cooked options like the Island Crunch Futomaki which has a fried outer core and they also have Chicken & Waffles, different Fried Rice versions, Chicken & Waffles, Coconut shrimp, etc if you desire something else. I'm coming back again because the quality of food is superb and they make you feel comfortable like you're having...

Very pleasantly surprised at the quality of sushi to be had here. Lots of options that feature less common and interesting (local?) fish such as grouper or wahoo, although one notices lots of reliance on crab in the majority of their rolls. The sweet chili sauce used in a few of our rolls was a bit incongruous and might be a holdover from the owners' successful catering background. That said, the spicy tuna was a standout, and is noticeably different than and superior to the garden variety red paste you see most places.

The crispy rice appetizer was an especial standout; our table ordered a second round and nearly a third. On the other end, the blistered shishito pepper appetizer needed a little work, but could have easily been improved by a quick soy ginger / shoyu dressing.

All in all, this place can definitely hold its own against any comparable sushi place in any world-class city. They've only been open for six months as of writing this, so I'm excited to come back on my next visit and see how...