Jusco. That’s right, the place across from Fuji Chief has a real name. I wish to inform any readers that I actually planned to write this review of Jusco. I did not go to Fuji Chef, see the big line and then decide to go to the sushi place across the street.
In fact, as someone who has done that before, I would advise against doing so. Even entertaining the idea of going to Fuji Chef is setting oneself up for disappointment if one is going to end up at Jusco.
Although Jusco boasts a similar “all you can eat” lunch special, it costs approximately $2.50 less at $11.50. It seems like a gift from the sushi gods, yes. But it is a Trojan Horse, because for each piece of sushi you do not eat, you must pay 50 cents extra. I know this because the restaurant has posted this fact next to just about every table. I also know that Jusco does not plan on changing this policy, because the pieces of paper are laminated.
Jusco also has a dinner buffet that costs $14.99 Monday through Thursday, and $15.99 Friday through Sunday.
Now that the pleasantries are out of the way, it’s on to the bad stuff. The fried California roll is a lump of food to stay away from. Between the creamy inside and the scalding hot oil that saturates the rice, my senses of taste and decency beckoned me to spit the roll out. However, I placed the previous California roll on different places of my single napkin to get rid of the oil, which rendered said napkin useless as a vessel for spitting the roll into.
My friend also found wasabi in his eye afterwards. I can personally attest to his ability to keep wasabi out of his eyes, and I blame this problem on the main meat of this review: the sushi. Although I do love the taste of fish, especially the raw kind, the nori wraps changed the texture to that which resembles canned salmon bones: They’re edible, but offer an offsetting crunch. And even for raw fish, it had that sitting-out-for-two-hours taste. The specialty rolls were also only available for weekend dinners.
Now, the décor is to die for. The wall mural is aquarium themed. There are fish painted on the walls, which I assume were used in the food. There are tables designed for pairs and groups of four, but it was very difficult to fit into the two-person table, so my friend and I sat at the slightly larger four-person one.
The silverware was a little disappointing. I do love eating with my hands, but I stopped doing so when I was around 2 years old. Until now.
I have little culture, so when someone gives me tree rejects with which to pick up food, and does not offer any silver alternative, I get slightly offended. I also have poor hand-eye coordination, as anyone on my intramural teams can attest to. However, eating with my bare hands was better than trying to impress the owners by eating with tree branches. I suspect this is how the owners find out if a customer lacks culture.
Finally, they do not have orange slices, so I can only imagine that is the reason the restaurant is not as successful as Fuji. As noted before, I would not recommend going to this restaurant if you A) were looking for another place to eat after not getting to Fuji early enough, or B) have had good sushi lately. To get my friend to come with me, I offered to buy his meal.
Sidebar:
In review:
Jusco
228 G St.
Hours: Lunch buffet 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.; dinner buffet 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Food:
Ambience:
Price: $$
Key
Food and ambience quality
I’m eating here everyday
Almost like eating at home
Better than my roommate’s cooking
Only if I’m starving
Budget
$$$$ chancellor $20
$$$ professor $15-$20
$$ graduate student/alum $10-$15
$ undergraduate $5-$10 XXX
