By Susan Stock / Lansing State Journal
Raw fish is the hottest thing going in Lansing's east-side restaurant scene.
At least five new sushi restaurants have opened in the past year and a half, a 50-percent jump in the number of places serving fishy favorites.
Newcomers SanSu, Sushi-Ya and Omi settled in East Lansing this summer while Akagi opened in Okemos' Central Park Plaza about a year ago and Midori has been operating in Delta Township for a year and a half.
"Sushi bars started popping up in the 80s," said Kristyn Sorensen, director of communications for the Michigan Restaurant Association. "Obviously, it's not a passing trend if it's been around for 20 years."
The additions join local favorites such as Murasaki and Ukai and bring a new emphasis on Japanese cuisine.
They also bring added pressure to draw customers, as each restaurant owner strives to steamroll their competition and lure customers.
"(The number of sushi restaurants) creates options, and options are good," said Sami Jun, the manager at Sushi-Ya, which opened six weeks ago at the corner of Grand River and Michigan avenues in East Lansing.
But such options could mean disaster for some restaurants.
Murasaki has been in East Lansing on Bailey Street for nearly 16 years.
It's suffered a double whammy with the opening of restaurants at Eastwood Towne Center in September and, now, three sushi restaurants in East Lansing.
Owner Hiroshi Tanimoto said business has dropped 20 to 25 percent.
"I'm not striving for profits now," he said. "We are trying to survive."
Tanimoto predicted one or two of the area's sushi restaurants will close.
"The one who's going to give up is the one with the most overhead," he said. "I'm hoping that's not me."
One-third of all independent restaurants fail within the first year, Sorensen said. Of those that last three years, only 65 percent survive. "The restaurant industry is fiercely competitive," she said.
And while owners of the new sushi restaurants said they believe there are enough sushi lovers to support everyone, they also reported a recent dip in business.
That drop is likely tied to the opening of so many sushi restaurants at once and the exodus of 45,000 Michigan State University students for the summer.
Won Jin Choi, owner of Omi, which opened in mid-April on M.A.C. Avenue in East Lansing, said business has dropped by half since the semester ended.
"Business was really good while school was in," he said. "We had a line out the door."
That summer lull makes it even more important for businesses to do anything they can to draw customers.
Omi relies on modern blue and silver decor and unique menu items in addition to sushi such as Chilean sea bass for $15.99.
The cost of sushi varies greatly depending on the restaurant and what is ordered. Individual pieces of sushi range from 99 cents to $3 or $4 while sets of rolls (usually six or eight) range from $3 to $18.
Operating a sushi restaurant has been a learning process for Rebecca Jeon, who opened SanSu in the Hannah Plaza in February.
New items have already been added to maintain the menu's originality, and less-popular items such as fluke were removed.
"We couldn't keep it in stock," she said.
"We were throwing out more than we sold."
Another draw for SanSu are the tatami rooms, special areas where larger parties sit on the floor and eat at a low table. They're popular for business meetings and special celebrations, she said.
The window at Sushi-Ya advertises 99-cent sushi. That's for one piece of nigiri sushi (an oblong ball of rice on the bottom with a piece of fish laid on top).
The idea was to offer a kind of sampler for folks who want to try an item before ordering a lot, Jun said.
But some use the deal as a cheap way to get their favorite fish.
Sushi-Ya has more plans to set itself apart. When MSU students return, it's likely the restaurant will offer on-campus sushi delivery, Jun said.
Still, the sushi restaurants say they go through thousands of pounds of fish a week.
"You go to a big city and everyone eats sushi - breakfast, lunch and dinner," Jeon said.
"We're not quite there yet, but (the number of sushi lovers) is growing." | 
