2008 Woodie Awards
Fuji: A Trip to Appleton's Sushi Buffet
Nicole Capozziello
Issue date: 1/18/08 Section: Features
After spending the last few months in Italy, achieving satisfaction at most American restaurants has become more of a challenge than ever before. I decided instead that my first restaurant review upon returning to Appleton should revolve around the experience of the restaurant, rather than the quality.
This experience surfaced in the form of Fuji Sushi, the only all-you-can-eat sushi buffet in Appleton -- possibly in all of Wisconsin.
Located at 1003 W. Northland Ave., Fuji Sushi is yet another one of Appleton's well-kept secrets, not unlike the giant tether ball near the Fox River and the premier dog bakery, Two Paws Up.
I knew that my view of the restaurant would be jaded, if only by my pure enthusiasm that such a thing exists in Appleton. However, it became significantly more skewed after trying to push my friend's car out of the snowy East John Street parking lot for nearly an hour. Accompanied by a group of eight friends, I arrived at Fuji Sushi a mere 78 minutes later than intended, with numb limbs and fierce hunger.
We slammed the doors of the damned vehicle and trudged through the parking lot past the Pizza King, which shares a building with Fuji. Huddled inside the door, we didn't have to look far to see the buffet line -- it was presented front and center, before the dining room itself. The sight of the sushi buffet, which I could not fully comprehend until seeing it, was a justification of our labors; the bright, fluorescent light at the end of the tunnel.
In a daze, we were led to our table in the back of the restaurant, past the other diners, or shall I say, feasters. There was a middle-aged couple, a couple of fellow Lawrence students, and a family with three sushi-loving children.
We had a couple of minutes to take in Fuji's strange ambience before being unleashed on the buffet. We noted the interesting framed puzzles adorning the tepid peach wall, depicting magical creatures, marine life, as well as Japan's greatest landmark, the Eiffel Tower.
This experience surfaced in the form of Fuji Sushi, the only all-you-can-eat sushi buffet in Appleton -- possibly in all of Wisconsin.
Located at 1003 W. Northland Ave., Fuji Sushi is yet another one of Appleton's well-kept secrets, not unlike the giant tether ball near the Fox River and the premier dog bakery, Two Paws Up.
I knew that my view of the restaurant would be jaded, if only by my pure enthusiasm that such a thing exists in Appleton. However, it became significantly more skewed after trying to push my friend's car out of the snowy East John Street parking lot for nearly an hour. Accompanied by a group of eight friends, I arrived at Fuji Sushi a mere 78 minutes later than intended, with numb limbs and fierce hunger.
We slammed the doors of the damned vehicle and trudged through the parking lot past the Pizza King, which shares a building with Fuji. Huddled inside the door, we didn't have to look far to see the buffet line -- it was presented front and center, before the dining room itself. The sight of the sushi buffet, which I could not fully comprehend until seeing it, was a justification of our labors; the bright, fluorescent light at the end of the tunnel.
In a daze, we were led to our table in the back of the restaurant, past the other diners, or shall I say, feasters. There was a middle-aged couple, a couple of fellow Lawrence students, and a family with three sushi-loving children.
We had a couple of minutes to take in Fuji's strange ambience before being unleashed on the buffet. We noted the interesting framed puzzles adorning the tepid peach wall, depicting magical creatures, marine life, as well as Japan's greatest landmark, the Eiffel Tower.
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