[Six_of_One]

I'm a sushi snob, so keep that in mind when reading this...

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All you can eat/buffet-style vs. a la carte


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I don't think there exists on earth an AYCE sushi place that's worth going to. I've tried a few, but end up just eating California Rolls because it's pretty hard to screw up fake crab meat and avacado. Definitely stay away from the spicy tuna rolls at a place like this, as it tends to be low grade/not fresh fish, made spicy so you can't tell the difference.

A la carte is the only way to go.

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Nigiri vs. cut rolls


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I'm not a big fan of cut rolls...if you're at a place that serves a lot of fancy cut rolls, it's almost a guarantee that the nigiri won't be any good. They're trying to appeal to the people who mostly eat sushi because it's popular, not because they actually like the taste of raw fish. If I'm at one of those places, then I will eat cut rolls, because usually they'll taste decent with all the fancy sauces and stuff...not really sushi, though, IMO.

Nigiri is the way to go, though hand rolls can also be very good...I love a good blue crab hand roll, for example.

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Wasabi & soy sauce


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I agree that the low sodium soy sauce is better. As for Wasabi, you're really not supposed to add it to the soy sauce...I think it really takes away from the flavor of whatever you're eating. Of course, at many sushi places, that isn't necessarily a bad thing.

A couple other things I should mention:

At a good place, Omakase (chef's choice) is the way to go...you'll be sure to get all the best stuff that way. Also, if you want to get the best treatment you generally have to become a regular somewhere...most sushi chefs tend to give preferential treatment to their regulars.

To the OP, there are a lot of great places in LA you should try, though it would require a change from your normal routine (they typically don't serve California Rolls, Spicy Tuna rolls, etc.). Sushi Zo, Sasabune, Echigo, Nozawa, Sushi Gen...the pinnacle is Urasawa, though not everyone is willing to drop that kind of cash on dinner.