Steph, from the blog Orangespoken  and I had an awesome opportunity to partake in discovering Yo! Sushi, a new SUSHI gem, tucked away in the heart of International Plaza and Bay Street. We both agreed that this place was a hit!   Together, we sat down and brainstormed some awesome reasons why!

Here’s the top reasons why this place has No Ordinary SUSHI.

– It’s in a great location. Grab a bite to eat as you’re walking around the mall or Baystreet. Sure there are lots of places to choose from at International Mall, but this place stands out far about the rest and worth the walk away from the food court and down to the first floor to scope it out. It’s hands down the only place at the mall where you’ll be able to enjoy dinner AND a show! (Keep reading to find out how!). 

– The food comes out on a conveyor belt. No matter where you choose to sit at YO! Sushi, you will have a conveyor belt of goodness passing by you. If you’re an adventurous foodie (like me), you can feel free to grab anything that rolls (heh) by that piques your interest. OR, you can play it safe and use the menu to help guide your choices. OR you can order directly off of the menu and bypass the conveyor belt altogether. YO! Sushi has you covered with options that fill whatever your taste buds desire. They also make it easy for you to know what you’re eating (and how much your meal will cost) with a color coded menu and price guide. Now that’s how your ROLL!!

 (photo courtesy of Orangespoken)

(photo courtesy of Orangespoken)

– The food is delicious; fo real. We tried sooooooo many amazing dishes off of the YO! Sushi menu including garlic ramen, shrimp tempura ramen, chicken katsu curry (amazing), spicy seafood udon noodle bowls (my favorite), chicken, tuna and tofu poke bowls (only $4.50 for a nice sized, filling bowl!), sushi rolls, steamed buns, octopus fritters (another favorite- trust me, you MUST), desserts like mochi ice cream and Japanese cakes, Japanese sodas, matcha tea (unlimited free refills!) and so much more. Everytime I chose a favorite, something else would come out to take its place. The food is SO fresh and everything is made right there in front of you by passionate, skilled chefs. If you sit at the bar, you’re able to get a front row seat to all of the culinary action. 

– The staff truly cares about their customers. Not only are the chefs passionate about what they do, but the staff, from the wait staff to the managers, are constantly performing quality checks, interacting with customers to ensure their satisfaction and making sure that each and every person is talking about the next time they are coming back as they walk out. The staff at YO! Sushi also make coming back EASY. Not only will you be back for the food, atmosphere and customer service, but there are fun specials that will lure you back for more without hesitation! On Mondays YO! Sushi hosts an event called Blue Mondays. On Blue Mondays at participating YO! Sushi locations, you can find up to 40 dishes on special for $3.50!  You can check out current Blue Mondays special here. It’s a fun and easy way to take friends and family to try YO! Sushi for a steal! They also featured a new Happy Hour. Happy Hour runs Tuesday-Friday from 3:30pm-6:30pm. You can enjoy $1 off all plates, $2 sake shots, $3 domestic beers, and $4 house wines during happy hour! 

(photo courtesy of Orangespoken)

I know the weekend is a few days away, BUT I would start making plans right now to get a group of your best pals together for a SUSHI-venture you’ll never forget!

To learn more about this FUN place or to stay up-to-date with the latest happy hour deals, be sure to follow Yo! Sushi on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram!

Disclaimer: This post is written on behalf of a blogger collaboration with Orangespoken and Yo! Sushi!  I was able to taste their menu in exchange for blog and social media posts.   All opinions are my own.

The post Review: No Ordinary Sushi first appeared on #NoOrdinaryLiz.

years  !  I didn’t know what to expect as this was my first big event in Ybor and at the Ritz Ybor.  I have to tell ya, the vibe was definitely pumping the moment you drove up!  I never in my life saw so many people lined out the door and past the building who wanted to be part of this battle, after all, it was a SOLD OUT event.  Luckily for me though, I didn’t have to wait in that long line, I had my VIP access which allowed me to zip right on through and a step closer to #ALLTHESUSHI!

So what was it like once you were inside?

 VIP’s were given these fancy chopsticks with a shot glass and drinking glass for the night!  Yep, I sipped the night away (just a little)…

 How cool is this?  #NOORDINARYLIZ in Japanese 🙂  Do you see it?

 Because you HAVE to do a sake bomb at a SAKE BATTLE!!! 

 Another shot of our fancy swag with some liquid to enhance the look!  I mean, what else are they used for?

 Godzilla…meet NO Ordinary Liz…

 THIS picture doesn’t even do it justice.  ALL these people made it so hard for me to #EATALLTHESUSHI, but I tried 🙂

 This sushi was pretty tasty!  Just some samples from the night that I could get to.

Yep, shrimp tails, rice and other things were flying as sushi chefs were trying to keep up with all the demand!  FEED ME MORE SUSHI!

 Isn’t this a BEAUT?!

  Tampa Taiko   (Traditional Japanese Drumming) was absolutely amazing!  Umm, why haven’t you checked out their website yet? 

 My co-worker and other “chopstick” for the night!  We had such a BLAST!

 I believe people conquered what they set out to dooooo….#EATALLTHESUSHI 

 I’m only sushiwasted 🙂

For more information, be sure to follow Big City Events on social media!
On Facebook.
On Twitter.

Can’t wait for next time!  I think I ate enough sushi to last me for a lifetime…wait…just kidding.  I’m off to eat sushi for din din 🙂  Talk with you later.

Congratulations to @Lifesysclesllc for winning these awesome tickets for Sushi Battle Tampa!  Hope you had an amazing time!

I was invited to review and partake in the battle as part of the TBBloggers.  All opinions in this post are my own.

The post The Sushi Battle has Concluded…Verdict? I’m SUSHI WASTED! first appeared on #NoOrdinaryLiz.

 here in TAMPA!  An event that you don’t want to MISS! This battle is bringing out the best of the best and it’s all going down at the RITZ YBOR on 9.24.15 with doors opening at 6:30pm.  I Repeat…9.24.15 at 6:30pm!!  Did you get that?!?!?

So I ask…

DO YOU LIKE SUSHI????    (photo courtesy of sushi battle)

DO YOU LIKE SAKE????  (photo courtesy of sushi battle)

DO YOU LIKE GREAT ENTERTAINMENT????   Tampa Taiko   (Traditional Japanese Drumming)

Then you’ve just reached SUSHI heaven and you’re ready to sit amongst the finest of sushi restaurants and watch them battle it out for the GOLDEN CHOPSTICK AWARD.  Scrambling to find the link to purchase tickets? No problem at all, I’ve got you covered.  Click here to get your tickets! You only have a few more days…

For more information, be sure to follow Big City Events on social media!
On Facebook.
On Twitter.

Would you like to WIN a FREE ticket to Sushi Battle Tampa????
Leave me a comment below telling me WHY you’d love SUSHI, and I’ll choose a random comment on September 23rd (using Random.org) and announce the winner here on the blog and on social media!

Want to increase your chances of winning?

Add additional comments below each time you do the following:

• Follow NoOrdinaryLiz on Twitter.
• Like NoOrdinaryLiz on Facebook.

Can’t wait to get SUSHI wasted…. See you there 🙂

I was invited to review and partake in the battle as part of the TBBloggers.  All opinions in this post are my own.

The post Sushi + Saki = LET’S BATTLE (GIVEAWAY) first appeared on #NoOrdinaryLiz.