I know there is really good sushi, and sushi that is just okay, but this was my first experience with bad sushi. Hubby and I were going to a party near Brownsburg and thought trying a new sushi place was a good idea so we didn’t eat too much for dinner so we could partake in the hors d'oeuvres that would be served at the party as well.
I was happy to find an independent restaurant on this side of town, amongst what looks like a lot of chains. I was impressed with how crowded the restaurant was as well; especially considering it was pretty early still. I was a little nervous about service after reading some things online, but our server was prompt and brought us drinks right away. I ordered a bowl of miso soup ($2.50) and she brought it quickly. The broth was one of the better ones I have had, a little more depth to it, not just a clear broth. The stuff in it was weak though. Very few very teeny cubes of tofu and just a couple of pieces of seaweed and scallions.
We had already ordered our sushi at the same time and this was the part where I started to realize what people were talking about with service. It wasn’t our actual server; it was the length of time it took to get our sushi. And then after looking around, I realized most people had not gotten their food yet either and they were here before us. So we settled in for a wait. It was probably a good 45-55 minutes before we got the sushi.
I guess the best of what we ordered was probably the caterpillar roll ($8.75) but probably because it actually had the least amount of fish in it. It was a roll that had eel on the outside and was topped with thinly sliced avocado and eel sauce. It was fairly simple and not bad. Not great, but not bad.
So yeah, the other rolls just weren’t very good. I wouldn’t say the fish wasn’t fresh, but it wasn’t the level of quality I have had nearly everywhere else. One roll, the crunch rainbow ($12.99) was particularly bad. The varying types of fish across the top were off. There were at least two pieces of fish that I had to actually remove from my mouth because they were so chewy. The inside of that roll was shrimp tempura, spring mix and avocado. It was really chewy inside too, which was pretty off-putting as well. The shrimp had clearly been fried quite a while ago and the tempura coating on it was soggy. I have seen sushi places use panko-crusted shrimp that were pre-fried, but if you are using tempura, they need to be fresh. And crisp on the edges.
The last roll we had was the cherry blossom roll ($11.99), which was spicy tuna, cilantro and jalapeno inside and tuna on the outside with 3 sauces. Again, the tuna on top wasn’t very good and the herbs and jalapeno, which should have given it crispness, did not.
Hubby also had a couple of pieces of salmon nigiri ($4.99). This really tells you about the fish quality because, in general, sushi places seem to save the best cuts for this type of presentation since it is really just the fish. These pieces of salmon were practically flavorless and were not as tender as nigiri should be.
Part of the problem was every part of the experience was off somehow, not just the fish. The nori inside the roll was too chewy, the rice was crumbly and the rolls were just put together very sloppily. And it sort of seemed like one of them may have been sitting awhile before they brought it to us (which is crazy considering how long it took). Even the soy sauce tasted funny. Almost too salty or something. It tasted cheap. And I am pretty sure they store the wine in the same fridge with the fish. At least it tastes like it.
Needless to say, this is a place that we will not be repeating and to be quite frank, between the quality of the food, and the length of time it takes to get it, I am quite surprised the place is so busy.
Tegry Bistro
1521 North Green Street
Indianapolis, IN 46112
317/858-9505
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