Sushi Burrito is a new Chicago restaurant that is gaining a lot of attention by offering a completely unique and unprecedented sushi experience.  Instead of a traditional sushi roll which comes sliced up into 5-7 pieces, sushi burrito offers up exactly what the name implies.  They provide a longer and much fatter roll of sushi that is not sliced into sections, but rather cut in half with the flour tortilla of the traditional burrito being replaced by rolled seaweed.  This idea seems good on paper, but in practice it had some drawbacks that I will elaborate more on later in the article.

When I arrived I was surprised by the overall setup of the restaurant.  From the talk surrounding Chicago’s exclusive sushi burrito restaurant I was expecting a bit more ambiance.   However, I was greeted with a plain white rectangular room with 4 tables.  Each table was set up with nothing more than a bottle of Kikkoman soy sauce, and the room contained only a refrigerator stocked with sodas and an empty fish tank without any water or fish in it, which I found odd.  Whatever though, I was here for the one of a kind food items.  I guess I can look past the relatively dull scenery.  Ordering your food is handled in a take-out manner by approaching the back counter manned by 1 cashier and 3 sushi chefs, there is no waiting staff here to serve.

          I ordered the Ganzo “Spicy” burrito (with a Side of Edamame of course), I did not order anything to drink because drink prices and options were not listed on the menu.  This lead me to wonder if the cooler full of cans was any more functional than the empty fishtank across the room.  I eventually grabbed a plastic cup to fill from the pitcher of warm water next to the cooler.  It’s worth noting here that there is no alcohol served at this location either, fitting for the “get your food and get out” vibe that I got from the place.  Me and my party then selected one of the few tables at the restaurant to sit at, and began waiting for our food to the tune of outdated pop music blaring over the speakers.

          When our long wait was finally over and our number was called, I approached the back counter and was handed a plastic cafeteria tray stacked with the burritos and Edamame.  The Edamame was served in a disposable plastic container that you would expect to get from ordering delivery, the burritos came in cardboard rectangular bowls and wrapped in tin foil.  No utensils were served with the meal, you are left to get those yourself from the same stand you get your lukewarm tap water from.

          The Edamame, served in the aforementioned delivery-style plastic container, came poorly and unevenly salted.  Upon taking my first bite I discovered that the shell was grossly overcooked and limp to the bite.  I thought maybe I had just picked a bad pod at first, but it turned out the entire serving of Edamame was poorly prepared. The skimpy, uneven salt distribution coupled with the overcooked, soggy texture made a mockery of Edamame. It tasted as though it were prepared in a microwave.

          I understand full well that Edamame is not a top priority to this establishment, and therefore I tried to remain open minded and hopeful that perhaps the namesake of this restaurant would redeem it: onto the Sushi Burrito.

I do not consider myself to be a sushi connoisseur by any means.  Nor a burrito expert. That being said, I felt the sushi burrito didn’t hold up well as either a burrito or as sushi. The outer seaweed wrapping of the burrito may seem like a suitable alternative to a tortilla, but in practice it failed to contain all the ingredients and started coming apart and spilling everywhere after only a few bites.  Seeing as the burrito is much wider than a normal piece of sushi, you do not get an even amount of all the ingredients in every bite.  Some bites were all rice while others were just a chunk of fish.  The ends of the burrito are also not closed, so you need to leave the tin foil on while eating.  This can be a pain, as you have to constantly peel back the foil between bites.  Overall I feel like the sushi burrito can be summed up nicely by the popular quote “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it”.  Sushi was fine to begin with.  Making it into a burrito might be a fun idea but it comes out horribly in practice.

         Overall I was very displeased with almost everything about Sushi Burrito.  The environment of the restraint was boring and drab, their namesake food turned out to be a cheap gimmick that was difficult to eat, and the Edamame was a soggy disgrace to the food.  I’m leaving Sushi Burrito with a single pod rating.  Sure, you can get Edamame here, but I wouldn’t recommend it.