The Best Sushi in Salzburg: My Two Addresses

Fish from the lake: SeeSushi on Wolfgangsee

Anyone who works with fish has to know it. SeeSushi does exactly that: instead of wholesale tuna, char, whitefish and lake trout from the Salzkammergut lakes are on the menu. Not a fashion but a decision – and you can taste it.

You sit right by the water, the menu stays manageable and the preparation is clean. The drive to Strobl is worth it above all as a lunch on a fine day. In the city itself I currently know no sushi address I would put in first place with a clear conscience.

What makes good sushi

With sushi the rice decides. It should be grainy, lightly sour and about hand temperature; pressed cold and sticky it tastes of nothing. The fish must be fresh and cut across the grain, so it gives way when you bite instead of pulling threads.

Less is more. A piece with three layers of fish, sauce and crisp onions covers whatever lies beneath. Sushi tastes best plain, with a trace of soy at the edge of the fish rather than a sea of it – otherwise the piece falls apart and the rice drowns everything.

You can check it like this: does the nigiri fall apart when you lift it? Is the rice grainy or gluey? Does the fish smell neutral? If it tastes noticeably sweet, there is usually too much sugar in the rice.

Japanese craft: Mizu no Yama on Mondsee

On Mondsee you see how far Japanese cooking can go in Austria. Kentaro Fujita works with few, very good ingredients – sashimi and sushi are part of a menu I rank at the very top in Austria, calm in its sequence and precise in detail.

If you are looking for one address for a special evening, this is it. Book early, seats are limited.