The restaurant is family owned and operated, and is part of a multilocation restaurant group that came to the industry from a variety of specific skills and backgrounds, but all have one thing in common.
“We are foodies. We love to eat ... so we just kind of ... all got together, and everybody has their own special abilities,” said Sandi Lin, one of the owners of the restaurant. “My husband, years ago when I met him, he used to be a hibachi chef, but he also knows a lot about sushi. So we have a partner over at the sushi bar, and he's been doing sushi for about 20 years.”
Lin said the Japanese-themed restaurant is just one of their menu concepts, and they have two other locations, including Cajun seafood, Korean and other restaurants on the way in the Houston area.
But when it came to Sumo Sushi, the concept and location was chosen by Lin and her husband, Raymond Lin, along with her cousin Brandy Yang to fill a niche that was lacking in the area.
“In this area we don't have [another] all-you-can-eat sushi, [though] there is a lot of sushi, ... so we thought ... that will be easy for everyone, instead of looking at the menu, you know, getting specific items, you can ... order anything you want. Try a little bit of everything,” Lin said.
All-you-can-eat lunch is $19.95, and dinner is $31.95.
Lin chose the authentic Japanese decor, from the lanterns to the murals and the kegs of saki on the wall, which she said is what one would find in a sushi restaurant in Japan.
“So the whole idea of this style is like the old Japan; it gives you that traditional feeling. We ordered [the decor] from Japan,” Lin said.
In addition to traditional Japanese sushi dishes, the menu features numerous sushi rolls created by the group, including the Godzilla roll, Mexican roll, Houston roll and Cajun roll. The menu also includes chicken and beef appetizers grilled and served with yakitori sauce.
In addition to the casks of saki, the restaurant also features a full bar that has wine, beer, cocktails and bubble tea, including jasmine green tea, tiger milk tea, passion fruit black milk tea and peach black milk tea.
Those same flavors can be infused into their margarita machine to create different types of frozen concoctions to help patrons survive the summer heat.
The layout of the restaurant was designed to allow Japanese-style robot servers easy access to deliver orders from the kitchen. They speak to patrons upon delivering food and wait for guests to tap their screens to confirm they have everything they need.
One of the robots is named Be Be, and she and her co-worker robot, Fei Fei, can even sing happy birthday to patrons.
“We also have those [because], you know, sometimes the server might not get to you right ... when the food is ready. We just have the robot deliver it out. And it's more spacious here for the robot to walk around,” Lin said.
19710 Hwy. 290, Ste. 200, Houston. 832-478-5885
Hours: Sun.-Thu. 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 11 a.m.-11 p.m.
