Bondi Sushi (156 North 4th St.) opened this past weekend in Williamsburg. The small chain focused on fresh fish also operates five restaurants in Manhattan, but this is the company’s first foray into Brooklyn.
Bondi Sushi’s tagline is “life is better at the beach,” while the restaurant’s whole goal is to offer an approachable menu of delicious fresh sushi. “We take the gifts from the sea and transform them into craveable dishes that uncomplicate life,” the website reads.
The beach vibes will come in later this spring when Bondi opens its outdoor area that will be home to a 750 square foot sushi bar, a lounge, and a coffee and pastry concept. For now, the Williamsburg location includes a 2,000 square foot indoor sushi bar with 24 seats.
“We’re proud to have partnered with Christian Benavides on a 22 x 22 foot illustration looking over the patio, putting our life-is-better-at-the-beach stamp on our newest neighborhood,” a representative from Bondi Sushi told Greenpointers.
Bondi’s lunch and dinner menus feature handrolls and nigiri, plus appetizers, crispy rice, dessert, and an array of dipping sauces. Nigiri options include a variety of fish, with everything from seared albacore to seared o toro, plus seared A5 Wagyu. The handroll list is similar, and also includes two vegetarian options: one with truffle avocado, sun-dried tomato and cucumber, and one with mushroom and tomato.
Appetizers on both menus include miso soup, edamame, salmon sashimi, and yellowtail jalapeño. Crispy rice choices feature spicy tuna, salmon, yellowtail, lobster yuzu, and truffle avocado.
The dipping sauces are a fun highlight with options of spicy mayo, eel sauce, ponzu sauce, carrot ginger dressing, sesame dressing, and tamari. The menus end with three decadent dessert options that include yuzu creme brûlée, black sesame lava cake, and mochi.
Plus, both the lunch and dinner menus offer the option to let the Bondi chefs choose your meal by ordering the $70 omakase, a 12 piece tasting menu.
If you’re looking for something more affordable, the lunch menu, available from 11 AM to 5:30 PM, includes three lunch specials.
The Williamsburg location will also feature a “reimagined cocktail program,” according to the team at Bondi. “The new cocktail menu is curated by our sister concept, Michelin award-winning omakase restaurant noda and cocktail bar Shinji’s,” the team told Greenpointers.
Highlights from Bondi’s cocktail menu include the Seafoam with citrus sake, Cocchi Americano, blue spirulina, yuzu, and seafoam; the Herb Garden with Sake, Ume Shisho, lemon juice, basil syrup, and seltzer; and the Lavender Haze with sake, lemon, butterfly pea, and lavender.
The beverage menu also consists of several sake options, house wine, beer, and non-alcoholic options like Sanzo with yuzu, lychee, and calamansi; and Ito En with green tea and milk.
Bondi is hosting happy hour Monday through Friday from 3 – 6 PM. This includes handrolls for $5 and drink specials.
Bondi Sushi is open from 11 AM to 10 PM daily. Reservations are available on Resy. Delivery and pickup are available on Toast Tab via Bondi’s website.