Exquisite sushi rolls, elegant background music, stylish furniture, and spirited lights dominate the new Fin’s Japanese Sushi and Grill, situated conveniently down the block from Emerson College.

Fin’s Sushi, located at 62 Boylston Street, opened a few weeks ago in the place of Bento Express, the block’s former sushi restaurant.

Fin’s has an extensive menu that includes grilled meat, tempura seafood, sushi, and noodles. Although there is no seating at the sushi bar, it is situated inside the dining area so patrons have the option of watching the chef assemble their food.  

Morgan Capodilupo, a self-proclaimed sushi connoisseur, said she has already eaten at Fin’s Sushi twice and applauds the food.

“As far as sushi goes, it’s pretty fresh, the service was quick, and the restaurant was really clean,” said the freshman performing arts major. “Sometimes sushi places aren’t so sparkly.”

She said she especially recommends the Ocean Roll, a salmon role with sweet wasabi sauce, and the Hawaiian Maki, which has mango rolled inside.  

The food was presented beautifully. Each sushi roll looked like a piece of art. The fresh seafood was stacked high and the sauces drizzled over the rolls served not just as flavor enhancers, but also as colorful decorations.

Fin’s sushi rolls bring together every taste—sweet, spicy, and savory—and blends them together into one delectable mouth full.

Of the various vivacious dishes, the Snow Mountain Maki consists of crab meat, shrimp tempura, light mayo, avocado, and coconut flakes, and the Flamingo Maki, a combination of crab meat tempura, cream cheese, grilled eel, white tuna, and mango sauce for a  tropical flair.

The food at Fin’s is also relatively inexpensive. The menu offers affordable, tasty options in a college student’s price range, with dishes starting at $5.

The manager, Ted Komsit, said he worked at Fin’s corporate office for the past two years before transferring to this location.

He said that since the restaurant has only been open for two weeks, it is difficult to pinpoint the most popular dish.   

“The majority of customers are college students, and they usually order the lunch special boxes,” he said. “The noodles are also very popular.”

The lunch specials—known as bentos, or Japanese lunch boxes—feature a wide variety of choices, including sushi, dumplings, meat, salad, rice, and fruit, all for the reasonable range of $7.50 to $8.95.

Fin’s also has convenient take out and delivery options. The menu is online, and orders can be called in.

Amanda Doughty, a sophomore writing, literature, and publishing major, said she appreciates Fin’s decent prices, but feels there are cheaper options.

“Fin’s isn’t ridiculously expensive,” she said. “I also know of cheaper sushi places that are just as good, if not better.”

A former Bento customer, she said she thinks the two restaurants are extremely similar, down to the near-identical lunch specials.

Kelsey Johnson, a sophomore marketing communication major, said she doesn’t like Fin’s exclusion of a grab-and-go area present at Bento, a convenient and speedy option for students.

“At Bento you could walk in, go up to the counter, and order,” Johnson said. “This made the process of eating even faster, which was super nice if I was in a rush but wanted quality food.”

Despite some of the positive feedback about Fin’s, some students remain unimpressed with the sushi. Suzannah Donnelly, a freshman marketing communication major, said she wasn’t blown away by the restaurant’s performance.

“It’s just not really good sushi,” she said. “[The food] is not terrible, but there are much better options. Sometimes the avocado is hard and gross.”

Although Fin’s Japanese Sushi and Grill may not provide five-star sushi or meet the standards of some sushi devotees, the restaurant is definitely a great source of affordable, tasty food that is not usually found on Emerson’s campus.