A new sushi restaurant has opened in Clovis, introducing a quick-casual, café-style concept aimed at customers seeking convenience and quality. Sushi Box, owned by Jason Lin, uses custom display cases designed to better preserve sushi compared to standard refrigerated cases often found in bakeries or other food outlets.
“We have these custom-made sushi cases that keep the sushi from drying out compared to regular refrigerators,” Lin said. “I saw this concept overseas…it’s very convenient for people on the go, for professionals that don’t have a lot of time to really grab something that’s quality.”
Lin noted that he has not encountered another restaurant with a similar approach in the United States. “With this concept, it’s more like a sushi cafe, but still with the quality of the sushi that you would get at our other higher-end sit-down, full-dining restaurants,” he said.
The new establishment reflects trends observed at Lin’s two Ramen Hayashi locations, where there is significant demand for fast and affordable meals among busy diners. Sushi Box allows customers to purchase individual pieces from full rolls instead of requiring them to buy entire rolls. This lets patrons mix and match their selections.
In addition to sushi, the menu includes hot dishes such as beef, chicken katsu, tempura shrimp, as well as gluten-free and brown rice options.
“We spent about $100,000 just on our custom sushi cases,” Lin said. “The sushi cases that we have are custom built and they are like a bigger version of the sushi stations that you see when you go into a regular sushi restaurant.”
Prepared sushi is kept in refrigerated displays for up to three hours before being discarded.
