I know what it sounds like, but this is not a post meant to blindly slander American sushi. I’ll admit some American sushi is good.

I don’t have anything against American sushi. I just don’t understand why somebody would use cream cheese as an ingredient, but other than that I don’t have any reservations. The main reason why I can’t bring myself to eat sushi here in the states is because it makes me miss my home, Japan. Every week my friends and I would go to Sushi-ro or Hamazushi, which are sushi-go-round style restaurants in my city. We’d always fight over which restaurant was better (Hamazushi was the superior one), even though ultimately their sushi tasted the same.

There were go-to plates I’d order no matter what. Upon getting seated, I would automatically order 3 plates of grilled salmon with mayonnaise and broiled eel. Grilled salmon is a plate I’d been ordering since I could remember; when I’d go with my family as a kid, I’d beg them to order at least 5 plates. My friends and I also had competitions of who could eat the most plates. There weren’t any prizes other than bragging rights, but we felt the need to turn everything into a competition. On good days, we’d eat around 40 plates between all of us. It wasn’t really winning or eating the most that mattered to me, I enjoyed the chaos that would ensue as we’d try to keep track of everyone’s plate count. It’s the memories that make it hard for me to eat sushi here in the states, but I’m just a big sentimentalist.

Learn more about the differences between American and Japanese sushi here.