Nori — Restaurant in Old Saybrook

I will start the review by saying that prior to going in on opening weekend I almost cancelled our reservations after seeing the pictures of the menu that someone posted (they had just opened and their website didn't have a menu yet). The prices were eye popping. But my wife and I decided to go on with our plans.

You are greeted right away and we were quickly taken to our table. We had tea and sparkling mineral water to drink and were enjoying the major facelift this building had. It is quite nice inside.

We started with kani salads and although it didn't have spicy mayo like I am used to I can say that was the best kani salad I have had. I would go back there and get two as a lunch by itself because it was THAT GOOD. Highly recommend.

The next course was the Yellowtail Jalapeno and it was phenomenal. The freshness of the yellowtail was abundantly clear upon first bite. Presentation was beautiful. Highly recommend.

We then ordered our two sushi rolls (we were on a budget because one roll alone was $35)- The Spicy Salmon Roll and the Surf and Turf Roll. The Spicy Salmon Roll at $12 was good, fresh, and the tempura flakes used being larger created quite a nice crunch. But the STAR was the Surf and Turf Roll and for $35 it better be!

With that said, the Surf and Turf Roll is amazing, the best single bite of food per piece that I have enjoyed in quite some time. Shrimp Tempura, asparagus, A5 Wagyu beef, and actual truffle pieces on top of each piece of the roll. It was presented beautifully, tasted amazing, and was worth every cent of the $35 price tag.

For me, this will not be a place I go to on a whim but rather a planned special event with my wife and family. But my experience with Nori was exceptional, I highly recommend you trying Nori (and if you don't like sushi they had quite the expansive menu of non-sushi items and meals- their Chilean Sea Bass for $38 or the Lamp Chops for $36 sounded amazing and was around the same cost as the one sushi roll- Surf and Turf) and don't be put off by prices right off the top. The prices for what we had were warranted, we would go back, and I give Nori one of my elusive 5 Stars out of...

Hi expectations, having lived in Japan always looking for state side good sushi restaurants, Appetizers, A5 lolipop, 1 star, tiny slice over seasoned on top of a dried out rice log, @ 18 for 2 is insane definitely not even decent. Duck roll 2 stars, tough meat wrapped in tastelessness, sad and truly boring to include the plating. Entrée Red wine duck 3.5 stars, average, duck cooked ok, plating done with intention of a tweezer restaurant but the skill of a ten year old, the mashed potato was at least home made vegetables decently cooked with a good flavor sauce, side of fried rice that can be beaten by mall fried rice easily.

Ok sushi time 4 stars, they finally have something decent, rice is a bit over cooked but it works texture wise, flavors are above average, tuna nice and dark with pretty good pretreatment of the meat, plating 3 out of 5,

Service 2.5 stars, waitress was going at her best pace, very strange technique of separate every part of the order, drinks, then asked for appetizers then with appetizers recieved and us trying to eat with menus still in hand finally main entrée asked for, opportunity b.c. of how long she remained at the table to even give our order cut short as she ran off attempting to keep up with busy situation. Hostess 1.5 stars, borderline condescending because we had no reservations, but seated us immediately,

2 orders of drinks recieved before any food hit the table.

Definitely not on the radar for a future trip, but if you want to pay this much for that have fun. Definitely room for improvement here, so...

My niece and I came here on a Monday around 7:30 pm. We did not have reservations- so def would recommend even if dining on a weeknight. We were seated in one of a row of lovely little 4 top private booths. Loved the aesthetic inside - felt very much like an upscale Japanese sushi bar in Tokyo. It was pretty quiet ambiance but lovely & relaxing. Most all the other 10 tables were full. it's a lovely little intimate restaurant. Very clean & minimal Japanese aesthetic. We were seated quickly & given menus by the hostess. The waitperson came over and greeted us within a few minutes & took our drink order. I went with a Kirin Ichiban beer which I love. We decided on an appetizer of the spicy edamame & I ordered the lovers roll without the mango sauce. She ordered the roll. About five mins later, our waitress brought our spicy edamame which was steamed & then lightly wok fried in garlic chili sauce. It was delicious. About 15 mins later, we got our rolls. WOW! My sushi roll was divine. I was shocked at how mouthwatering it was. The avocado was like butter: super creamy & perfectly ripe. The peppered tuna juxtaposed with the mango was fantastic. Not sweet but perfectly balanced. My niece had the same sentiment about her sushi roll. It was delicious. The portions of the 8 piece roll was ample too so you didn't walk away starving. I definitely will return. I would love to try the tempura, varied array of appetizers & the Omakase menu.

EXCELLENT FOOD & DINING...