Katana Japanese Restaurant: novelty or gastronomical experience?

I recently visited a little restaurant named Katana, that serves up raw fish by way of small wooden vessels called "streaming boats" that wiz by on a makeshift river in the center of the room. This restaurant that serves up little plates of carefully adorned assortments of sushi and sashimi, has got it down to a science.

Each plate has different colors or markings that symbolize different price ranges from the green plate which is 1.50 to the black plate which is 3.50. But don't be fooled, if you enjoy eating as much as I do, you'll find yourself making a trip to the ATM midway through your meal, so be wary but dig in! As quickly as the plates pile up, they are swiftly removed from your counter to make room for more.

One thing you also should keep in mind is that the place is tiny. I sat at the counter and had some trouble getting in and out to use the restroom. Once you wiggle your way into your seat you may not want to get back up again.

This definitely isn't the place to go have a relaxed dinner for two or for a business gathering but it is a place to go with a buddy for lite fair,on-the-go, although the wait can sometimes be up to 30 minutes depending on the night.

They do have a couple of booths available but those fill up fast as you'd expect and the rest of the tiny restaurant consists primarily of a U shaped counter with small wooden chairs that wrap around. A server takes your order usually from behind the counter and most of the dishes are made in the back kitchen. I guess I'm a big fan of open kitchens so I kept trying to peep behind the curtain to see what was going on back there. It would have been cool to see my food being made.
There are also other items you can order ranging from classic appetizers to tempura bowls, noodles and of course edamame. The desserts are primarily tempura and they carry Japanese and domestic beer and saki.

They've apparently been at this since 1993 and the place is always busy, so they seem to be doing something right.

All in all, I had a fun experience for the novelty of it but I have to be honest, I wasn't blown away by anything on the menu but I did have a good time.

They have late hours, it's simple sushi that's cheap and served in a fun environment. Great place to add to the cities repertoire of distinctive eateries.

Kanpai!!