Glasgow has seen an explosion in choice and popularity when it comes to Asian cuisines, with the city now playing host to exciting restaurants and takeaways from countries like Thailand, South Korea and Vietnam.
One couple, however, have been creating their own fun spin on one of the most popular Japanese foods, with their colourful and dynamic sushi shop in the west end's Hyndland area.
Leong and Anna Chew were both working in the hospitality industry – Leong as a chef and Anna front of house – when the pair decided to take the leap to start up their own dream venture.
However, there was just one small problem, at the time, the country was still in the midst of lockdown due to the pandemic.
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Leong explained: "Our families were concerned and back then, nobody wanted to take the risk during the pandemic – there was always a reason not to do it. We decided to just go for it, and take the chance that it would work."
Anna added that they always believed in themselves and that they could do it: "We always wanted our own place and to do something for ourselves, we knew we could both do it, we have the experience, so we didn't see the point in waiting any longer."
With Leong helming the sushi-making and Anna taking care of the front of house, the pair are massively welcoming and say the local neighbourhood have made them feel right at home since launching in 2021.
Offering colourful sushi dishes like nigiri, hosomaki, maki and onigiri, made daily in-house using a vibrant array of ingredients such as Sake (salmon), Kappa (cucumber), Ebi (cooked prawn), and inari (beancurd skin), the couple are also keen to provide some of the staples people love in Glasgow's Japanese restaurant scene such as chicken kara-age, sea salt edamame and Chicken katsu curry, meaning there are plenty of options no matter what you are in the mood for.
Leong revealed that he uses the more traditional red vinegar for his sushi rice, instead of the rice vinegar commonly used in the UK, as this gives it a "smoother, richer flavour" with less of the "sharpness" you get from other vinegars.
Anna added that it also gives the rice a more off-white colour and offers a real punch of that umami flavour we know and love from Japanese cuisine. It's also the style of rice you will find in the higher-end sushi restaurants in places like Tokyo and Kyoto.
As Leong shows Glasgow Live their popular vegetarian sushi being prepped using their special rice wrapped in bean curd, it's just another facet of the attention to detail the pair display in their entire shop, with its colourful displays and Tokyo Street Food eatery feel.
Anna was also keen to chat about Leong's specials, which he makes on the weekend, adding: "We have people who phone up to find out what he has made this week, with people sometimes only coming in at the weekend to try out our latest creation."
Leong joked that it has become harder and harder to come up with ideas but that he loves how innovative it forces him to be and keeps him on his toes.
But that doesn't mean that it's also an instant success, the pair explained that some ingredients take time for people to get used to, such as Unagi (which Friends fans will recognise as eel) thanks to the fact that people sometimes already have ideas in their head about what it will taste like.
But as Leong adds: "People usually end up loving it once they try it."
Other examples of specials they have created have included the likes of Red Snapper, Yaki Saba (torched mackerel), yellowtail sashimi and Mekajiki (swordfish) maki.
Their sushi is made fresh every day, with Anna stating that people looking for particular items can order ahead of time or if they don't see them on display can ask for them to be made up too as they want to keep the food as fresh as it can be can keep it rotating.
So far, they have been keen to stick to the takeaway model but Leong admits he feels a pang of guilt when people phone and ask for a table for two. However, he said that restaurants are a huge commitment - something they aren't quite ready for yet.
But the couple admit they are keen to expand the successful business, they just haven't decided in what direction yet.
Anna said: "Opening a restaurant is a major responsibility, we never say never. We want to grow it, we need to grow it but we'll see how that develops."
We can't wait to see what they do next.
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