Sushi Suma, Surry Hills

After stumbling across my blog being forced to read my blog two of my workmates are keen to accompany me on a lunchtime blogging mission.

Lady Jasmine is dead keen to go out for Japanese as her boyfriend is not a fan so she doesn’t get to indulge that often.

Beati3  recommends Sushi Suma in Surry Hills. She tells Lady Jasmine and I that it has some of the best sushi and sashimi in Sydney.

Being the awesome team player that I agree that Sushi Suma sounds like the place to go.   I ring up to make a booking and am promptly told “no bookings”.  Hmmm….I have a particular dislike for places that don’t take bookings, but that’s another story.

We arrive right on the dot of 12.30 to find a restaurant bursting at the seams with people waiting to get a seat. They’ve only been opened for 30 minutes.

At first I have to wait out on Cleveland Street as I cannot even fit inside to wait with my friends.

Not to worry as I get to take a peak at the uber trendy Beteco as I’m stranded outside…it’s probably the closest I’ll get to this hub of cool yumminess for quiet a while.

I also get a chance to check out the outside of Sushi Suma and take some happy snaps. As I’m snapping away I notice the façade is kind of burnt looking and smells a tad…smoky.

When I finally make it inside Beati3 tells me that Sushi Suma has recently relocated two doors down from their old location due to a fire next to their old premises.

As we wait in line we’re given a menu to mull over and our order is taken before we actually get a seat. 

Whilst we're waiting for a table, we also get to spy on all the yummy food being delivered to a table of young guys sitting right in the entrance way (lucky them). 

We pretty much order by looking at what they’re eating and deciding if it’s what we want – which is a more awesome version of a picture menu in my opinion.  One young chappie tells us that they’ve ordered a bunch of combination meals and are sharing two combination meals between three people as the servings are just so HUGE.

Never ones to pass up good advice my little group of three think the guys are onto something so we put in an order for two combination meals ($14.90) to share between us.

We decide on a sushi and teriyaki beef combination, and a sashimi and tempura combination.  Oh one serve of  Agadashi Tofu for me as I’m a piggy.

The sashimi is first to arrive and it is so lovely and fresh. The salmon practically melts in my mouth.   I have to say it is some of the best salmon sashimi I remember having and I can see why people rave about this place (whilst in the same breath hate the place as you always have to wait for a table).

Next up our boat of Sushi docks at our table.  The little salmon rolls are lovely and it’s a bit of struggle not to gobble up all three of them whilst the others are distracted by the sashimi.

The beef teriyaki is an enormous serving and we absolutely did the right thing by not ordering a combination meal each. The teriyaki sauce is sweet and the meat thinly sliced and tender.  The sweetness of the sauce is  offset by the freshness of the cabbage and carrot that accompanies the meal.

It’s quite a hot day and the Sushi Suma is really crowded. By this stage we are all dying of thirst and despite having asked for some water towards the beginning of the meal none has yet arrived. I grab a passing waitress and beg her for water.  I tell her that I’m DYING and she quickly brings us a bottle of water and three glasses.  As she sets the bottle down she tells me she’s sorry for nearly killing me. 

Apology accepted as the tempura is next up and it is good.  Really really good.

The batter is light, crispy and not in the least bit oily.  We all politely offer each other the tempura prawns as there are only two on the plate.   I’m mindful that my wedding is only a month away, and whilst I want the whole tempura plate to myself I settle for two, or what is three, little pieces of vegetable tempura.

Oddly, since it’s an entrée, the silky smooth Agadashi Tofu is the last dish to arrive.  We actually receive a serve each and are told it is part of the combination meal deal (which also included rice and salty, steaming hot miso soup).  My extra serve only cost $1.60.

I cannot believe that one person could consume all of the food in a Sushi Suma combination meal on their own without bursting their stomach. As it is we didn’t finish everything we ordered.

Sushi Suma is at 421 Cleveland Street, Surry Hills.