Mt. Fuji
4.5 Stars
Mt. Fuji
Japanese Cuisine and Sushi Bar
166 Maplewood Ave.
Maplewood, NJ 07040
973-378-8336
Big Baby and I visited Mt. Fuji shortly after 1 PM on November 8, 2018. I had just had my hair done at Anthony Garubo salon, and the ladies at the front desk recommended Mt. Fuji as a good place to grab lunch. The Mt. Fuji website claims, “At Mt. Fuji Restaurant, it’s a place where you can enjoy authentic Japanese cuisine with courteous and friendly service.” We were not disappointed. Big Baby and I had a very nice lunch date in a quiet room. The food and service were very good, and I look forward to going there again.
Big Baby says:
Atmosphere: 9 Cleanliness: 9 Food: 9 Service: 9
Overall Score: 9
We walked in and were seated promptly. The person at the front desk was very polite and seated us at a table that was very clean. The table was simple and pretty. The room had a lot to look at. There were pretty chandeliers and pictures on the walls. Looking at the sushi bar and watching the sushi chefs make sushi was fascinating. Noise did not carry very much in the restaurant.
When they came, they gave us water almost instantly and they took our orders pretty quickly. I ordered one salmon roll, miso soup and an order of beef negimaki. Mama foodie and I shared the seaweed salad. The seaweed salad was perfectly salted and had just the right amount of crunchy in it. The miso soup tasted very good. The scallions were just the rightsize and well presented. Overall, the soup was excellent. It tasted really, really, really, really good. It was the perfect combination of crunchy, liquid-y and savory. The sushi was very good. The salmon was very tasty, the seaweed was perfect, and the rice was white rice. The beef negimaki was extremely flavorful and very juicy. It tasted so good.
The bathroom was really clean. It’s almost like they clean the bathroom every hour without us seeing it; and, it did NOT smell like cleaning products. The rest of the restaurant was also clean.
I suggest going there for lunch. You can’t go wrong if you order what I had. If you are looking for a fast food place, this would not work. For the foodies out there, I would just like to say come to Mt. Fuji really quickly. The quicker you can get there, the quicker you can think to go there again and again and again and again…
Mama Foodie says:
Atmosphere: 8 Cleanliness: 9 Food: 8 Service: 9
Overall Score: 8.5
I ordered miso soup, vegetable tempura and spicy tuna roll. The miso soup had a wonderfully delicate flavor. It was the perfect choice for a chilly day. The vegetable tempura was exactly as I hoped it would be. It had a light and crispy panko coating and steaming tender vegetables inside. The seaweed salad was fresh, crunchy and not too oily. Spicy tuna roll happens to be the meter by which I judge all of my sushi restaurants. I found the spicy tuna roll at Mt. Fuji to be a little goopy. I prefer less mayonnaise. While I was disappointed in the spicy tuna roll, I have to say that the beef negimaki is some of the best I have had in New Jersey. It was so flavorful! The beef was tender, the asparagus was perfectly cooked, and the sauce was just the right complement to the meat.
We happened to go to Mt. Fuji at a time when there were not a lot of customers. The atmosphere was very relaxing. There was soft traditional Japanese music playing. The sushi chefs were working nearby, and there was only one other table of customers. It was a very quiet meal. The walls were hung with artwork in line with the Japanese theme. The furniture had very clean lines. The window looking out onto Maplewood Avenue was a nice focal point, and the lights from the chandeliers added to the warm glow of the room.
The service was indeed friendly and courteous. We were greeted at the door by our server and shown to our table. We had everything we needed for our meal, and there were no issues with our order. The presentation was good, and we were in and out of the restaurant in about 45 minutes.
Mt Fuji was very clean. I have to agree with Big Baby. The bathroom was especially clean.
I highly recommend Mt. Fuji as a lunch spot if you find yourself in Maplewood. We have not been there for dinner, so I cannot speak about the atmosphere for dinner. I highly, highly recommend trying the beef negimaki. It was the winner of the meal, in our opinion.
Next up: Monteville Diner