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Wholesalers to Sushi Restaurants in the DC Area


Josh

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I think the sushi was $45 per set and sashimi $50. A very good deal considering what was included.

It's better quality fish than what we had at Sushi Capitol, but not as much food for the same $50 price  for their omakase.

I'd be curious to know who supplies the fish for the high end sushi places in DC.  The fish I had at the bar at Sushi Capitol for lunch today was as good as any I can remember (including the private room omakase at Sushi Taro).  I wonder how involved the respective sushi chefs are in choosing the product on a daily basis...

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I'd be curious to know who supplies the fish for the high end sushi places in DC.  The fish I had at the bar at Sushi Capitol for lunch today was as good as any I can remember (including the private room omakase at Sushi Taro).  I wonder how involved the respective sushi chefs are in choosing the product on a daily basis...

This would be very interesting to know. And, possibly tough to really determine since it's in the restaurants' interest to treat suppliers as a source of competitive advantage. I once asked at Capitol and was told region (I.e.., Spain for some yellowfin that night) and I didn't follow up or ask a more specific question. But knowing each spot's distributor(s) and grades purchased would be very intetesting I'm sure.

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I'd be curious to know who supplies the fish for the high end sushi places in DC.  The fish I had at the bar at Sushi Capitol for lunch today was as good as any I can remember (including the private room omakase at Sushi Taro).  I wonder how involved the respective sushi chefs are in choosing the product on a daily basis...

There's a True World Foods in Jessup.

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And you think (or know) that's a or the distributor for the city's better sushi spots?? I'd be a little surprised but have no idea. Or, maybe you're kidding but are anti-emoticon? :-)

I mean, I'm not up-to-the-minute current, but there's True World Foods, Yama, Samuels & Sons, I know Sushi Sono gets some from Jessup Market, and there are smaller suppliers as well.

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I mean, I'm not up-to-the-minute current, but there's True World Foods, Yama, Samuels & Son, I know Sushi Sono gets some from Jessup Market, and there are smaller suppliers as well.

Ah, you're not kidding. This is probably separate-thread (aka OT) stuff but I find this kind of information very interesting. With higher end Japanese sushi places, I'd think choosing and concealing suppliers a bigger deal than with many other cuisines. Both for competitive reasons and due to concerns about fish stocks 'round the world. Had also thought that some places in major coastal cites (including ours) have some fish shipped by express air from Japan. But, even if true, then not sure how and with whom it would get from IAD to downtown if not with a distributor.

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In general, if you really want to support restaurants (and by extension, their suppliers), buy anything on a menu that you see listed in multiple places, in multiple formats - that often means the wholesaler said, "I have 50 pounds of "X," the restaurant thinks to themselves, "What in the hell am I going to do with 50 pounds of "X?" And then they buy it, because they know they need to support their suppliers, if they want their suppliers to support them.

I learned this from Eric Ziebold, which does not mean that everyone follows the same practice.

This type of thing holds true in many, many industries, including buying wine at retail. You want that bottle of Roumier Musigny? Get ready to buy ten cases of Bourgogne. Customers that try and cherry pick do not remain customers for long; either that, or they pay *through the nose* for high-demand products - it's one or the other, without exception.

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In general, if you really want to support restaurants (and by extension, their suppliers), buy anything on a menu that you see listed in multiple places, in multiple formats - that often means the wholesaler said, "I have 50 pounds of "X," the restaurant thinks to themselves, "What in the hell am I going to do with 50 pounds of "X?" And then they buy it, because they know they need to support their suppliers, if they want their suppliers to support them.

I learned this from Eric Ziebold, which does not mean that everyone follows the same practice.

This type of thing holds true in many, many industries, including buying wine at retail. You want that bottle of Roumier Musigny? Get ready to buy ten cases of Bourgogne. Customers that try and cherry pick do not remain customers for long; either that, or they pay *through the nose* for high-demand products - it's one or the other, without exception.

Absolutely true in terms of supply chain dynamics in most industries. That said, there are real quality and environmental issues at play here that make me especially curious how this typically (and honestly) works for the better restaurants. Also, a bit unusual market dynamics here in that most US coastal cities have but a handful of truly outstanding sushi places and a zillion mediocre or worse places.

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Absolutely true in terms of supply chain dynamics in most industries. That said, there are real quality and environmental issues at play here that make me especially curious how this typically (and honestly) works for the better restaurants. Also, a bit unusual market dynamics here in that most US coastal cities have but a handful of truly outstanding sushi places and a zillion mediocre or worse places.

The better restaurants pay through the nose for high-end product, and subsequently pass that cost onto the diner. Assuming Masa doesn't bother with lower-end items, they're forced to pay top-dollar for the higher-end items, which forces them to pass that cost on to their customers. I know they have a bar, but even their bar is of higher quality than the vast majority of sushi restaurants.

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The better restaurants pay through the nose for high-end product, and subsequently pass that cost onto the diner. Assuming Masa doesn't bother with lower-end items, they're forced to pay top-dollar for the higher-end items, which forces them to pass that cost on to their customers.

No doubt on pricing. I could be totally wrong here but what I'm pushing on is the supply chain itself. My hypothesis, which may be very wrong, is that higher end places use different supply chains (e.g., work with different distributors and source from different producers) than the mid-range and lower-end places. Part of my thinking here is that higher end places tend to be more likely owned by Japanese with relationships very different from those of lesser places.

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I don't know about the wholesale sushi situation in the DC area specifically, but my understanding is that True World is (1) by far the largest supplier of sushi in the US, and (2) it is a Moonie-owned operation.  Apparently anytime you eat sushi, including the high end stuff, there is a high probability you are but one step away from doing business with the Unification Church.

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I don't know about the wholesale sushi situation in the DC area specifically, but my understanding is that True World is (1) by far the largest supplier of sushi in the US, and (2) it is a Moonie-owned operation.

I guess we now know what they serve at their wedding receptions.

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I don't know about the wholesale sushi situation in the DC area specifically, but my understanding is that True World is (1) by far the largest supplier of sushi in the US, and (2) it is a Moonie-owned operation. Apparently anytime you eat sushi, including the high end stuff, you are but one step away from doing business with the Unification Church.

And maybe why the WaPo's circulation dwarfs that of the Washington Times.

And, amazingly, this is the second time we've gone off topic in the same afternoon convo, Sorry, Don. Hope we're not giving you fits.

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I'm unsure about where high-end sushi restaurants get their product, but I suspect they utilize several small vendors, as well as a large specialty vendor such as True Whole Foods. And much of it may be shipped directly to them via FedEx from all over the world.

I used to purchase a lot of seafood from Foley fish out of Boston, and the quality was always very high. Here is how it would work. Let's say on Tuesday afternoon, we would get a list of items "likely" to be in the various market docks in the northeast. If I recall correctly, they sourced from four or five different markets in the US and Canada. So on Tuesday night, by midnight, you would place your order. Wednesday morning, 4am-5am, Foley buyers would have a consolidated list of orders for all of their US customers, and purchase fish from the market to fill the orders. They would only purchase product that was the highest quality.. "top of the catch""¦Grade A"¦etc.

Later on Wednesday morning, we would receive an email confirmation as to how much of our order was filled. It could be none, or it could be 100%, but it was generally between 60-80%. The fish, scallops, clams, oysters,  whatever were than packed in ice and priority overnighted to us, so we would receive it on Thursday morning before 9am. The product was always impeccable, and not too much more expensive than local wholesalers, shipping included. I imagine this was because everything they bought was already sold, with the exception of whatever they purchased for their own retail sale. They even had a Fish School, where you go to Boston for a few days, learn about the various fisheries and ecosystems, tour their facilities, and head out to the markets with their buyers.

I imagine high-end sushi restaurants work in a similar manner.

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At the place I worked in Columbus, OH the owner got most of the fish from a supplier in NJ. He would call in the order late morning and it would arrive via plane that afternoon, or in the evening if we were unlucky. One time it came in around 10:00 at night and my reward for waiting for him to get back from the airport was my first chance to break down the side of tuna.

He said pretty much all the restaurants in Columbus ordered from the same supplier, but the distinguishing factors were knowing what to order and how well you took care of the fish once you got it.

This was over 15 years ago, so things may have even changed since then with more suppliers available now.

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At the place I worked in Columbus, OH the owner got most of the fish from a supplier in NJ. He would call in the order late morning and it would arrive via plane that afternoon, or in the evening if we were unlucky. One time it came in around 10:00 at night and my reward for waiting for him to get back from the airport was my first chance to break down the side of tuna.

He said pretty much all the restaurants in Columbus ordered from the same supplier, but the distinguishing factors were knowing what to order and how well you took care of the fish once you got it.

This was over 15 years ago, so things may have even changed since then with more suppliers available now.

The last 15 years has also seen huge advancements in aircraft and efficiencies in express air distribution. Similarly, more demanding customers, more interest and emphasis on food and authentic cuisine. I'm not sure but think the instances of higher end restaurants sourcing directly from Japan aren't so uncommon now in the major coastal and Midwestern cities.

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