Maru Sushi & Grill

Reviews 4

HE

He Fed, She Fed

The omnipresent California roll is about as close to sushi as I’ve ever come. I’m still fostering my taste for seafood, after 40 years of avoidance—ask me about the “fishstick behind the refrigerator” incident sometime—and I’m not too proud to say I’ve got a long way to go. Mussels, oysters, and clams have been giving me a rough time lately, though I’ve matured when it comes to shrimp, crawfish, and tentacled beasties. I also adore ceviche. I’m excited to find something new to munch on tonight. Maru, a regional chain with other locations in Okemos and East Lansing, opened next to Brewery Vivant about a year ago. The small restaurant has made good use of their limited footprint, even adding a nice patio area. We arrive for an early dinner and it’s temperate enough to opt for an outside table. I dig into the menu, which is divided into sharing plates, soups, salads, noodles, hibachi grilled dishes, sashimi, nigiri, maki, te-maki, and various rolls. It’s quite the variety! Like a lovelorn puppy, my eyeballs lock onto the one item I cannot resist: octopus. My heart beats faster. My tongue dries up. I find it hard to speak. It’s hard to imagine what the waiter must think when he first sees me, panting hard, eyes moist. Somehow, I utter the words, “What’s the difference between octopus sashimi and octopus ngiri?” He looks at me with utter pity. “I’m sorry, sir...we are out of the octopus.” Several patrons whip their heads toward me as the sound of my heart breaking disrupts their meals. I want to cry. Instead, we place a drink order and dismiss him while I regain my composure. Somehow, Juliet soothes my rage and hurt, and I’m able to look at the menu again without wanting to punch it. There is still plenty to like. We decide to start with the Soft Shell Crab. Never having tried them, I expect a platter full of small, bite-sized crustaceans, not the gigantic spider-like crab cut in half and deep-fried. Trepidatiously, I snap off a leg like a french fry, dip it in the Maru sauce, and crunch away. Not bad! It’s a little dry and chitinous with a vaguely off-putting aftertaste, but it’s a new taste for me. The more I eat, the more I like it. I’ve heard from friends that we have to try the Sexy Bacon signature roll, containing hickory smoked bacon, cucumber, asparagus, crab, tempura crunch, soy paper, fantasy sauce, creamy garlic sauce, eel sauce, and shredded nori. It’s a huge roll probably better suited for four people, but we do our best, savoring the spicy, smoky combination of pork and seafood. This is more like the sushi I’ve tried in past and it helps reset my palate for the last course. Although it’s on the sharing plates section, I get the Ruby Cocktail Ceviche. It’s a chef salad, of sorts, topped with beautifully pink chunks of tuna, brunoise tomato, red onion, avocado, cilantro, serrano pepper, creme fraiche, masago (sustainable Icelandic roe), and scallions with rice and wonton chips. The tuna is clean and wonderful, with no trace of “fishiness”. Even the roe provides a nice salty pop without overwhelming the freshness of the entire dish. I chose wisely. Despite the near-disastrous lack of octopus, Maru turns out to be a pleasant excursion. When my heartbreak has mended, I’ll call ahead next time and when my one true love is back in stock, I’ll pony up to the counter next time to watch as the tentacles are carved, quivering, onto my dinner plate.

J

j lowing

Disappointed to say the least. We were a party of four on a Thursday night at 7 pm and we waited 55 mins to be seated. The restaurant was packed when we arrived and we were told 20 min wait. We watched as a four top table sat unattended to for over 5 mins and finally had to ask the hostess if it could be cleaned so we could finally be seated. We were additionally irritated to see that everyone arriving after us, all parties of two, were set with no wait. Why wouldnt it be the case that two tables be pushed together for a party of four? I guess a 55 min wait is acceptable? Waitress came right away but then was hit or miss to our needs throughout the meal. Our waters were never refilled and our hot food came nearly 10 mins after our sushi rolls. The only thing I can give major cedit to is the sushi. The rolls tasted fabulous, although Im not sure they warranted the $16 a plate price tag. Lasty, its rediculous this establishment has an included 10% gratuity. If the owners think the staff is worth this amount why dont they pay the staff more instead of putting it off on the costumer? The result is you have staff that dont attend to the consumers needs. Our bill was nearly $200 including the 10% mandatory gratuity, for 4 sushi rolls, a salad, two soups 5 bottled beers and two desserts.... And a 55 min wait. Also, a side note, the staff had the gumption to ask us to wait to use the restroom so they could do the "preclose" cleaning... Really? Will not be returning.

TO

Tommy Tsunami

I agree with many that it is hard to find good sushi in Michigan. Once I found Maru Sushi and Grill in Okemos I was hooked. I was encouraged by a server to step outside of my normal choice which was their delicious Miss Saigon and Sexy Bacon combo and to try something knew. The server was very informative and made sure I was aware of what I was ordering. He had me try Escolar nigiri and after that I knew I could enjoy much more than just rolls and began to appreciate a much more authentic style of sushi being nigiri and sushimi. They chefs did a great job preparing my platter from the presentation to the flavor. They even made up a roll on the spot which was unlike one I have ever seen. Who knew strawberries could compliment a roll? Either way, this place has it all. From their hibachi grill to their traditional sushi and everything in between. I come in and eat when I study (which is how I began going in the first place). I now bring friends with and we share a carafe of premium sake and order assortments of sushi which we all share (which may be my favorite way to dine). Its perfect for dates as my girlfriend and I frequent Maru together. Its rare I review any restaurant online, but this is certainly one worthy of the effort. Check it out!

PA

Patti Imberger

Food was good. Prices were ok for what we got. Waitress was too loaded with tables in a very busy restaurant so had to wait way longer for service and food than we should have. She,however, was very good and very apologetic. Restaurant is too small and tables are too close together. Dont think of ever taking a large party (more than 4) here. No way to and not overly willing to accommodate. Worst experience of the entire evening was the hostess. She was rude, condescending, and flat out lacked any customer service skills. She threatened to not seat us because we had one more person than we had originally said. She literally was going to turn away our larger party (5 - two of which were preteens. I will also add we did not ask for anything larger than a 4 person table) and increased $$$ just because we were not a party of 4. A different hostess intervened and is the only reason we stayed.