"I am tempted to gatekeep such an impressive, well-priced, and high-quality sushi spot, but it undoubtedly belongs on this list. Sendo may look like your classic hand roll bar or omakase counter, but they are anything but. The offering here is simple: a Tokyo-style sushi bar on the second floor of an NYC walkup, masterfully led by Head Chef Kevin Ngo, an alumnus of Sushi Nakazawa and Masa. At the core of Sendo’s mission is speed and affordability—you can walk into this no-reservations spot (go for lunch or their first dinner seating to avoid a long wait) and be in and out in under 30 minutes. Menu items include sets of nigiri and hand rolls for $45 or less, or you can order as many pieces of buttery Otoro as your heart desires à la carte. Everything on Sendo’s small but mighty menu has been meticulously designed to a T, and the craftsmanship here is palatable (literally and figuratively!)—their team went through a 6-month testing period to choose their favorite strain of rice, a smooth and polished short grain from Hokkaido, and then thoughtfully crafted a vinegar to pair best alongside it. While you can likely find this attention to detail in other expensive corners of the NYC sushi scene, no other players have perfected the top-tier reasonably-priced option quite as well as Sendo has. Sendo’s menu is also entirely gluten-free aside from their unagi eel—an incredibly difficult, and appreciated, accommodation to find in the world of sushi. —Emily Adler, associate social media manager"
