Revolving sushi was a concept that started in Japan, and eventually spread to Hawaii, where I first discovered it. Back in 2017 when I lived in Hawaii, every week I attended Jiu-Jitsu practice with my sister and my uncle Nathan. My uncle Scott worked there as an instructor, so after practice he would typically take us out to a ramen shop or revolving sushi for dinner. One of my most fond memories from living in Hawaii was going to the local revolving sushi restaurant, Genki Sushi.
Upon moving to Ohio, I learned quickly that there was no such thing as “revolving sushi” here. To explain: Revolving sushi is a style of eating where a conveyor belt wraps around all the booths in the restaurant and you simply grab sushi off the conveyor belt and enjoy. Since I moved to Cincinnati, Ohio in 2019, I’ve been searching for a revolving sushi restaurant, and luckily one had opened back in June 2024.
Upon entering the restaurant, business was booming. Reservations are not an option at this restaurant, so if you plan on coming on a weekend night for dinner, be prepared for a wait. While my mom waited outside, my girlfriend and I decided to look around the restaurant for a bit. One thing that particularly caught her eye was a decoration on the wall, it had translucent tubes of running water with fake fish in the tubes, simulating an aquarium. She stood and stared at it for a few minutes, completely encapsulated by it. After the wait was done, a hostess escorted us to our table and our waitress quickly stopped by and explained exactly how everything works in detail.
The first roll I grabbed was the Hawaiian roll, containing crab and avocado on the inside with a piece of mango wrapped around the outside. Each plate costs $3.25 and has 3-4 pieces of sushi on it. The mango over the sushi had a barbed texture, and unfortunately, the taste of avocado overpowered the crab in this roll.
Don’t fear, even if you’re not a sushi lover you can still enjoy this restaurant. My mom doesn’t like sushi, so she ordered Tonkotsu ramen for just $7. My mom informed me that the ramen was quite bland, but considering the large portion for such a cheap price, she felt it was kind to the pockets.
Shrimp tempura is a staple that is served at any restaurant with Japanese cuisine, but have you tried a Shrimp tempura roll? When I saw this gliding across the conveyer belt I knew I had to pick this bad boy up. The only thing inside this roll was a fried shrimp tempura with Tentsuyu over top of it, also known as tempura sauce. This roll surprised me, even though it was lacking the complexities it still packed a punch with its fried flavors.
Lastly, I had to try the Chef Special Roll. I had never had anything like it, it was wrapped in fried tofu skin, topped with spicy mayo and eel sauce, the inside containing egg, some sort of white fish, and crab. I didn’t think I’d enjoy this roll because I don’t like tofu, but the flavors in this roll were incredible due to all the sauces that coated it, the one thing I didn’t like about this roll though was that it was warm.
While the sushi here was not the most amazing glorious thing that has ever touched my tongue, I believe revolving sushi is more for the fun experience with family and friends than the actual taste of the sushi. I believe the flavor of the sushi is on par with the price of the sushi, If you’d like amazing sushi for a cheap price, I recommend checking out Kanji OTR on Elm Street. Overall, I would give this place 4/5 stars. I would definitely come back to this place, I got a taste of some of my own precious childhood memories.
