Lunch: 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday
Dinner: 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday 5:30 to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays
58 W. Buffalo St., Chandler 85225
480-686-8183
Entrée Price: $2.75-4.50 per plate, average price of a full roll $10 • Takes reservations • Dress code: casual
In the Valley's growing sea of sushi restaurants, it's becoming increasingly difficult to discern between one California roll and the next.
Sushi Eye in Motion has cornered the market on presentation, however, by being one of the only sushi bars to serve its rolls in true Japanese style. It shares its ownership with the successful Sushi Eye in Tempe but the recently-opened Sushi Eye in Motion distinguishes itself from its parent restaurant by taking the same delicious rolls and placing them on a conveyer belt running down the middle of the sushi counter. It's how they traditionally serve sushi in bustling Japanese joints, and now it's catching on with American sushi lovers.
Sushi Eye in Motion's counter is longer than most sushi bars', enabling it to accommodate more circling plates and more diners. There are a handful of tables, but the main event at Sushi Eye in Motion is the motion. House music plays in the background, contributing to the energy of the sushi bar. Excited patrons peer through glass lids covering the different moving plates.
What's nice about conveyor belt sushi is that each plate only holds three or four pieces of a roll, allowing diners to try a broader range of sushi. The plates are color-coded according to price, ranging from $2.75 to $4.50. In addition to samples of the various sushi rolls, the plates hold edamame, seaweed and calamari salads, tempura, potstickers and more. The busier the restaurant, the more variety customers will find on the belt. Therefore, the best time to hit Sushi Eye in Motion is during its dinner rush between 6 and 8 p.m., especially on weekends.
The conveyor belt is responsible for the success of Sushi Eye in Motion. The sushi isn't half-bad, either. Like the original Sushi Eye, Sushi Eye in Motion offers colorful, flavorful rolls made with fresh fish cuts and unusual ingredients like macadamia nuts. The menu features photographs, a helpful touch for sushi newbies and a great way to figure out what you've grabbed off of the belt. Diners who don't see what they like on the belt can order from the full menu.
One of the nicest things about Sushi Eye in Motion is that it doesn't scrimp on ingredients. Rather than pairing a small amount of fish with a lot of rice like some sushi joints do, the rolls have generous portions of yellowtail, tuna and more. The only downfall is that the rolls are often drizzled with wasabi cream sauce or unagi (eel) sauce, a sweeter glaze. While both sauces are tasty, their flavors can sometimes be overpowering and dominate the sushi roll.
But with sample sizes of just a few pieces, it's easy to try all the rolls that roll by you. Even if you don't like what you grab — which is unlikely — the process is so fun it's worth the risk.
— jessica.kokal@asu.edu or foodinphoenix.com
