Sushi so Chic You’d Wear it (Common Occurrence While Indulging)

Restaurant Review by Aaron Stella

For meaty maki and towers of tempura, hit up Raw, Washington Square West’s premier sake and sushi bar. Raw is a welcomed addition to the foodie wonderland that’s sprung up at the intersection of 13th and Sansom Streets over the past few years. The old Stetson building, now Raw’s cozy nest, wears its sushi-chic threads with class: low hanging paper lamps fill the earthy dining room with a dark, ambient sheen, and sleeks  across the 15-foot granite bar, from which one may choose from 50 or more sakes to sip (or quaff, if that’s how you like to roll) or assemble a colorful feast served up swiftly by Raw’s deft artisans. Courtyard seating—Raw’s newest addition—is also a tempting treat. After the old reliables (California, yellow tail, eel, spicy tuna, etc…) creative innovations of familiar favorites are constructed into a picturesque landscape for your devouring. These ought to whet your appetite: the Salmon Hako: eel, avocado and plum sauce, topped with salmon and pressed in a bamboo frame; the Binny Roll: shrimp tempura and avocado roll topped with spicy tuna, garnished with eel and spicy sauce; and the Torimy Roll: spicy tuna and eel roll topped with torched squid, garnished with eel and spicy sauce. Raw further accommodates sushi-lovers with a full complement of hot and cold plates. Notable comestibles include Almond Shrimp, coated with shaved almonds and drizzled with an unagi glaze, Soba or Udon Noodle Soup, with your choice of vegetable tempura, shrimp and vegetable tempura, or plain, and Katsu, which comes with your choice of pork loin or chicken breast, lightly fried in panko crumbs with mixed greens. Every neighborhood has their hot sushi spot. For Washington Square West, Raw certainly takes the cake (or should I say seaweed salad?).