Nothing’s fishy at these all-you-can eat sushi buffets

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All hope is not lost for Columbia students looking to binge on something other than John Jay’s endless buffet. Welcome to the all-you-can-eat sushi menu—it’s bountiful, delectable, and, oddly enough, competitive.

Here are the rules: the party must eat everything in one hour (sometimes two, depending on the spot), the sushi rice must be consumed, and leftovers will be charged. But how fresh and well prepared can sushi really be when it comes in such massive quantities? Few Japanese restaurants offer an all-you-can-eat menu, and even fewer provide quality worth students’ endangered cash. A trip to any of the following three sushi bars, however, can prove to be a worthwhile venture.

In the heart of the East Village lies Shiki Kitchen, a restaurant whose interior resembles a tacky tiki hut (First Avenue between Eighth and Ninth streets). Paper cutouts of dinosaurs, palm trees, and a few bizarre creatures holding swords fall from the ceiling, drawings of Brazilian beaches and the Sugarloaf Mountain in Rio de Janeiro hang on the walls, and samurai swords sit on the shelves by the entrance. The melancholy Japanese background music gets lost in this extremely tight space filled with vibrant chatter. Yet somehow a sense of comfort and easygoing vibes overcomes all imperfections.

This all-you-can-eat sushi menu has a smaller variety than usual, but for $19.95 there is not much to complain about—and in one hour, all of the sushi, ranging from eel to salmon to mackerel, and inside-out rolls must be ingested. A tinge of adventure is revealed in the inside-out rolls, such as the barbecue yellowtail roll with just the right balance of sweet barbecue sauce, yellowtail, and avocado. The large windows are ideal for people-watching, which is always amusing in this quirky neighborhood.

If a sushi craving hits on a Monday or Thursday, head down to Funayama in the West Village (Greenwich Avenue and West 10th Street). For $23.10, its larger menu includes regular rolls, inside-out rolls, and hand-rolls, as well as a lengthy list of sashimi. From the outside, Funayama may look charming, but the Spartan room’s most aesthetic features are oriental ball lanterns lining the corridor’s ceiling, which droves of couples and families don’t seem to mind. Surely, the generous, plump slices of sushi make up for it. And despite skepticism over the confounding taste of spicy rolls, the spicy salmon and tuna are served with just the right amount of creamy pink sauce.

The best all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant happens to be closer to home. Kumo Japanese Restaurant (72nd Street between Columbus and Amsterdam avenues) may offer the most expensive menu on the list, but it provides the best bang for your buck. Pay $26.95, and the friendly waitress will offer sushi, regular rolls, hand-rolls, and a complete set of special rolls. Stuffed with “spicy crunch white tuna,” asparagus, and topped with bright orange tobiko, the diamond roll is a hit, along with the sashimi—by far the chunkiest, freshest slabs of meat. Kumo also happens to look more modern than its downtown counterparts, with walls contrasting between a dark- and light-colored wood, and a sleek sushi bar lined with small, colorful lighting.

Taking on the all-you-can-eat sushi menu may seem like a challenge, but a combination of teamwork and strategy will get the job done. Besides, who doesn’t enjoy some overindulgence every once in a while?