The Freshest Fish Becomes Delicious Art At

J Fuji Of Bethel

By John Voket

When the culinary artisans at J Fuji Asian Bistro and Sushi Bar get through with their part of the job, it is sometimes a difficult choice between eating and just sitting back for a few moments admiring the colors, smells, and textures. But the temptation to eventually dig in always wins out.

The newly opened, airy and sparkling clean digs tucked into the far corner of Bethel’s Mountain Laurel Plaza just over the Newtown line in the Stony Hill area of Bethel is the area’s freshest addition for anyone hungry for an alternative to the “fast-food” Chinese, burger chains, and pizza.

J Fuji was the brainchild of husband and wife Danbury-area restaurateurs Jeffrey and Jennifer Juh, who have graduated through several previous takeout locations to end up in this relatively quiet corner of Stony Hill. The moment you enter J Fuji, you are enveloped by the peaceful atmosphere with its sparse but cozy seating, high ceilings, warm lighting scheme and its bright and welcoming staff of servers and sushi masters.

For about the same price as a couple of pepperoni pies, some apps and a few sodas, even the kids will find enough familiar fare, with an adventurous twist, to forget about the “it’s good for you” freshness and healthy benefits of many of J Fuji’s offerings.

According to Mr Juh, he wanted to establish a fusion-style Asian eatery that was affordable to the lunch crowd of business people and commuters, as well as families seeking additional nutritional benefits in their eating out experience. To that end, patrons can taste the freshness of Chinese restaurant staples like General Tso’s chicken, lo mein and fried rice selections.

But that’s about where the noodle hits the road with J Fuji. Wandering just a bit further into the menu will land you into steaming hot giant bowls of Udon fettuccine noodles chock full of veggies and your choice of meats, tempura, or seafood. If you prefer your noodles dished on dry land, go for the tasty chow-fun flat noodles or the delicate mai-fun Singaporean vermicelli.

Specialties include a generous surf and turf with giant prawn and filet mignon in a General Tso’s treatment stir fried with assorted veggies for under $20 — including a miso soup or salad. For the heat-seeking palate, dive into the ma-la seafood drenched in the spicy Szechwan ma-la dressing, baked prawn with chili and spicy salt, or the amazingly simple and sizzling Chicken Amazing.

Appetizers to start may include J Fuji’s fresh daily spring rolls that lightly flake apart to unveil the tasty shrimp and scallion mash inside, or the delicately sliced and lightly seared Pepper Tuna Tataki that virtually melts in your mouth with just the right hint of pepper and sesame to bring out the flavor.

Warm up with the special seafood hot & sour, or vegetarian tofu vegetable seaweed soup, dished up for two, or ask to sample the Treasure Island — fresh seafood and cucumber on a seaweed salad with spicy sauce.

The Japanese dinner can be dished up with teriyaki, sukiyaki (Japanese casserole) or the light and flaky tempura, or get dinner and a snack for later when you order the J Fuji dinner box with salad and miso soup, California roll, four steaming shumai and your selection of chicken, sirloin, shrimp, salmon, or mixed seafood.

The lunch menu, served Monday through Saturday from 11:30 am to 3 pm, is sure to transport diners away from the ordinary with Thai coconut curry, spicy mango sauce or J Fuji’s eggplant garlic sauce over a choice of tofu, meats, or fish.

J Fuji may provide a little parcel of heaven for sushi lovers, whether you are coming for lunch or dinner. Most of the sushi, sashimi, and maki lunches are accompanied by a roll along with soup or salad, and the top-priced sushi, sashimi combo is just $16.50.

Bring the gang from work, or a group of friends and have a full-blown sushi feast with only the freshest caught tuna, salmon, yellowtail, sea urchin, Spanish mackerel, or red clam, to name but a few of the wide J Fuji daily offerings. The two-piece sushi orders range from $3 to $5.50, and regular or hand rolls can be as plain or fancy as your imagination.

Just leave the special rolls to the imagination of your chef, however, and find yourself face to face with the satisfying Samuri, the Sumo, Godzilla, Rainbow, Dragon, Karate or Caterpillar rolls. And if you can’t take it with you, J Fuji also has a few fall and winter dates left to bring its incredible catered fare straight from the sea to your affair.

On our visit, the thinly veiled and steamy shumai literally popped with spicy, shrimpy goodness as it fell from between our chopsticks. And the sweetly spicy mango pork could as well have been dessert instead of an appetizer.

The crispy walnut shrimp was a nice twist with the cold crunchy walnuts a perfect accompaniment to the huge juicy prawns and garnished with fresh green steamy broccoli. Our Sumo roll came drizzled with teriyaki sauce, papayaki, and cilantro enhancing an explosive combination of white and spicy tuna, tempura prawn, roe, scallion and rice. With more than a decade in the food service business, J Fuji’s owners know the importance of freshness and quality, especially in its selection of meats, vegetables, and seafood.

“We are very picky when it comes to selecting everything we put on the table at J Fuji,” Mr Juh said, before running off to the kitchen with another order to fill.

J Fuji Asian Bistro and Sushi Bar is open Monday–Saturday at 68 Stony Hill Road and Route 6 in Bethel. Call 730-9993 to order or request a menu.