If you’re the type who finds romance in a perfect slice of sashimi or believes first dates should involve cocktails you can’t pronounce, this new spot might just be your love language.
This is not your typical restaurant. Yes, there are handrolls, seared scallops and duck fried rice that deserves a serious commitment, but Bondi Sushi’s newest and most ambitious location feels less like a restaurant and more like a mood. The lighting dims as the sun goes down. A local DJ eases into the playlist. The drinks arrive in glassware you want to take home. Suddenly, you’re not just out to dinner. You’re in it.
Bondi Sushi is known for its fine-casual roots: New York energy, fresh cuts of fish and just enough edge to make a Tuesday night feel exciting. But this location is something else entirely. Here, they’ve built a standalone cocktail bar (yes, an entire bar) in collaboration with Shinji’s, one of the top cocktail spots in North America. The result is a drinks menu that flirts with tradition but creates a fresh flourish—think Sesame Chocolate Old Fashioneds and Cherry Blossom Martinis that somehow manage to taste like both restraint and excess.
The food also has a playful side: Lobster Tacos, Wagyu Sliders and a grilled seabass with yuzu-shiso butter that begs to be shared, if not stolen right off someone’s plate. There’s even a kakigori stand: shaved ice piled high with syrups that lean more Tokyo street snack than county fair.
So, if you’re looking for a place to take your Valentine (or meet one), Bondi Sushi could be the spot where your love story starts. Or at the very least, where you fall hard…for the Duck Fried Rice.
