KazuNori | Union Square

Imagine going to Sugarfish but all you eat are hand rolls...That's basically KazuNori in a nutshell. For the best deal make sure you get one of the sets. I typically do the four or five hand roll set to feel satisfied enough. One complaint about this place (and any other Sugarfish restaurant) is I wish they would have miso soup. Why can't they have miso soup? I love miso soup. Why are they doing this to me. Just serve the dang soup!Oh and weird random thing, they carry both Mexican Coke AND Sprite for beverage options. I had no idea there even was Mexican Sprite but I do wonder how that will pair with my toro hand roll.Also I don't know why this location is so dark all the time. It could be 1 PM on the summer equinox and the lights inside are so low I feel like I'm being forced to feel like I'm in a date situation. I just want a casual lunch please!

Recommend for sushi counter cool vibe and efficient service . Maybe I'm the only one nitpicking here , but rice didn't feel or taste right. Was gummy and and a bit hot. Definitely not short grain and I didn't taste any rice vinegar or sugar seasoning . I did ask lol Ordered the 5 hand roll option. Scallop was my favorite , mostly because it wasn't mashed like the other selections. Even lobster had the consistency of white fish salad at a bodega. Nothing was offensive but also nothing popped. 3* + for decor and service (no tipping required)

whether you are in LA or NY, I always recommend kazu nori as a must-go to restaurant for solo dining or as a party of two. I went to this NY location as a solo diner at around 7:30 pm on a thursday and it still took about 30 mins to get me seated. I didn't mind though because this is part of the kazu nori experience (don't come here if you're in a rush as they don't take resys). this location has about 20 seats. I love the counter style experience and they do such a good job with pacing your hand rolls out. I really get to savor it. I got the 6 hand roll course. the rice to fish ratio is perfect in my opinion, and the fish is always super fresh. the salmon and tuna handroll are definitely my favorite. such a great spot if you want to treat yourself, though I would recommend coming on a weekday (M-Th) to minimize wait times. kazu nori has now also included gratuity in their menu prices, which is incredible. the 6 course handroll ended up costing $38.11 after tax

The service was really good at this location. The servers were attentive and very polite. The sushi hand rolls fresh as always with crisp seaweed. Great food nice atmosphere busy spot

YUM! my first time trying a hand roll bar ever, and it's safe to say they've become one of my new addictions. service is very quick, and all seats in the restaurant are countertop bar-style, all facing the kitchen/assembly area. prime viewing area to watch the experts assemble the hand rolls fresh right in front of you!the menu is quite simple - you can order a la carte or choose from a set menu. we opted for the 6-hand roll set, which was about $36 with tax! (and they have a no-tipping policy, which is nice)each hand roll was deliciously scrumptious. the fish tasted as if they were just swimming not 5 seconds ago. the seaweed melted into the sushi rice, the rice perfectly steamed and integrated with the fish. the concept itself is very simple. however the execution on kazunori's part is flawless. i will be back next time.

Walk in as party of 1, seats available at 6:30pm on a weekday. The place is so DARK it took a while to have my eyes adjust to the dark. Got 6 hand rolls and two side dishes which was definitely enough for 1 hungry diner.NO TIPPIToro: Warm rice, crispy seaweed, toro yum yum so freshYellowtail: good, basic (Special dish) Shima aji sashimi: light, clean flavor, great texture with some bite(Special dish) Ankimo sashimi: ankimo is mashed up into a little ball, covered in thick sweet miso sauce. Pretty tasty, but heavier flavor profileSalmon: standard salmon, mashed upScallop: so sweet, sticky texture. Small bay scallops with a touch of creamy mayo (not too much). One of my favorites!Crab: very creamy Lobster: also very creamy, quite similar to crab texture and flavor

The food and ambience is just OK for me. I feel like you can just get a $3.50 onigiri (rice ball) from a Japanese Supermarket & have a similar experience. This is a nice fast, fancy-but-quick and casual restaurant concept but I didn't find anything special about it or that I would wait in line for. I got the $19 hand roll set (flat rate, no tipping establishment). The set comes with tuna, scallop, and crab. (I overheard that they were out of seabream for the night, but can substitute anything with salmon.) I was in the area around 7:30 PM on a Saturday and noticed that there wasn't any line & went in to take a look. They have a small ramp - good design to accommodate a queue. About five couples, and one group of three were in line ahead of me. The hosts went around, asking how many people everyone had and I was actually seated within a few minutes - between 2 groups of 3 at the front of the restaurant. It's a VERY tight seating arrangement - and I'm petite & very thin, similar sized females on both sides of me. Not sure if this is to encourage fast dining. I don't see many regular-sized adults being comfortable there and you don't have much personal space. The stools are a little bit high, with a foot rest. It would be great if they had a hook underneath the bar for purses or bags. I sat eating with my bag on my lap because I didn't want to put it on the floor. My neighbors had theirs on the floor under their feet. There was literally no space to put a bag between you and the next stool, without that person getting up and stepping on it.My "waiter" greeted me from across the counter, and explained a few specials. It's all a bit awkward & tight and you hear all the conversations (very NYU college crowd). The female chef is right in front of you making all the rolls, quickly filling orders with 2 to 3 waitstaff/hosts crammed behind her.The rolls came out at a nice pace, but the activity behind the counter that you're facing makes everything seem rushed. She she goes down the bar line one-by-one placing them. The rolls themselves were fresh, the seaweed crispy. But I didn't find much seasoning on the rice, the mashed tuna was a bit too mushy for me. The scallop was the best one but lightly dressed in mayo. And the crab was just a (fresh) crab salad with too much mayo. The fresh pickled ginger was a nice contrast between bites. It's funny seeing the people next to me with huge dishes of soy sauce, drowning their rolls in it, and later ginger...The hot rice made half the seaweed soggy and leathery pretty quickly. You have to eat everything fast for that textural contrast. Overall, I found each of the separate ingredients in the hand rolls, fresh but not very flavorful or anything special besides the scallop. The seaweed kind of hides all the flavors because with each bite, it wraps around it like a burrito. I think I'd rather have this as sushi. I was full with the 3 rolls, like a light summer dinner.The restaurant is extremely dark and half of the space is covered with a giant black curtain. It feels a bit like a stage set. There's a door for the restrooms that leads to a back hallway with maybe one or two single restrooms. I saw a short line of people and didn't wait. I don't know if this is just something the hospitality field does, or recent years have brought on stress for workers; but it's really odd when hospitality folks speak in accented English. Later on you hear them speaking to other people in perfect English. Are they playing the role of a foreigner serving guests? Or do they think I'm a foreign tourist, so I don't know any difference in language?Overall, both the food and the space feel like they're trying hard, but only halfway getting there. It's not anything super memorable.

This place is amazing every time. I always order the 6 hand roll set and they never fail to please. The fish is fresh, the rice slightly warm, and the seaweed still crunchy. No frills needed. There's usually a line but it moves fairly quickly since they are able to turn over seats pretty quickly. Often, even faster if you're going solo. They'll also give you more ginger if you ask! Delicious! A must visit when in New York!

I came as a party of two and there was a space in the front but they first offered the seats in the very dark back part of the restaurant. I asked if we could sit towards the light of the front. The food is good as always but the person helping us was constantly waiting and answering the people near us first even if we asked prior to them, even with the bill we asked first and they got their bill and paid out first. They seated a solo male diner next to me on a super awkward corner and he was constantly brushing my leg and arm. It's a tight space but after the first time it's invasive. They brought him a carafe of sparkling water and placed it more in front of me instead of on his other side which had plenty of space.

I usually go to the one in Nomad but stumbled upon this much bigger location once on my way back home. When we needed a last minute lunch idea with my brother who is obsessed with Kazunori, I recommended for us to come here.I'm not sure if it's bc of the location or people don't eat hand rolls at 11:30 AM or both but we were able to come in as a party of 7 without any wait at all. I really liked the rice. It was nice and warm. The scallop, crab, lobster, yellowtail, toro were fresh without too many other ingredients. Come here for just the simplicity. If you're looking for more unique ingredients and flavor, this is not the place for you.