Kikku… Trying to prove there is such a thing as good, cheap sushi in Midtown
Searching for good, cheap sushi in Midtown has always been a difficult proposition. It is not hard to find since every single deli now has a sushi bar. But how cheap is too cheap? At some point, when raw fish costs too little, you have to wonder whether eating this food that makes no financial sense for the people selling it, is going to make you sick (or taste just plain terrible). Now, some people can’t or won’t eat cheap sushi, and I can totally appreciate that mentality. After a meal at Sushi Seki or Soto, it’s easy to understand why there is a group of people (usually with a ton of money) who would never eat cheap sushi. I’m not one of those people. I can appreciate both ends of the sushi spectrum- in the same way I can enjoy a fast food hamburger while still appreciating the greatness of a steak from Peter Luger’s. Similar ingredients, of very different quality, with different preparations.
In the end, it’s all about balance. The goal- finding something that is not so cheap it’s just gross, but not too good, because then it ends up being too expensive for Midtown Lunch’ing. I’m pretty excited for the new conveyor belt sushi place opening at the end of the year, but I know in my heart that filling up at Sakae Sushi for under $10 is going to be a very difficult task. In the end, I can’t seem to find an end all be all for cheap sushi. There are some delis with decent sushi counters (Cafe Duke is ok, as is Variety Cafe on 48th btw. 5+6th), but none that I would wholeheartedly recommend. Yummy Sushi in rock center is pretty bad. Kiiroi Hana, a restaurant that served to go sushi on the sidewalk of 56th St. was pretty good, but it closed. In the end, even good pre-packaged sushi is still pre-packaged, and your best bet is to find a sit down place with a really good lunch special
My favorite, hands down, used to be Wu Kong on 46th, a Chinese/Japanese combo, but it closed over a year ago- leaving me searching for a replacement. Taki Sushi on 48th btw. 5+6th is pretty good, but when I wrote about that place I got a ton of people who recomended Kikku on 55th btw. 5+6th, claiming that it is the best cheap sushi in Midtown.
I finally made it down there last week. What we ordered, and a +/- after the jump… Read more »
Posted by Zach Brooks at 8:59 am, October 29th, 2007 under 55th btw. 5+6th, Sushi.
There are two kinds of Chinese steam table places in Midtown. The kind that’s made for people who like “Americanized” Chinese food (i.e. 
But what if you are in the opposite corner of Midtown? Well, I found your place. For those of you working in the Northeast corner of Midtown, there is East Ocean on 55th btw. Lex+3rd. On the outside it looks like your average Midtown cheap Chinese place… but at lunchtime they put a steam-table that is not quite for everyone. Let’s put it this way, if you’re looking for Chinese food, where you have to ask what each item is (and General Tso’s chicken is a rarity), than this is your new favorite place.
