Robin Kawada is very serious about fish. At the crack of dawn, five days a week, he sells top-quality seafood at the Fulton Fish Market in the Bronx. By 7am, he closes up his stall, takes his four kids to school, and used to start his second job running Takesushi, a Japanese restaurant in Midtown East.

For over 35 years, Mr. Kawada wore been wearing two hats. One as an international seafood importer/exporter and the second as co-owner of the former Takesushi, which he says was the very first sushi restaurant in New York City. Back in 1982, Mimi Sheraton wrote a glowing review of Takesushi for the New York Times and gave it two stars. The location of the restaurant may have changed a few times since then, but three of the sushi chefs haven’t; they’ve been with him since 1977, 1978, and 1979.

Perhaps it’s that ability to create long lasting relationships that have contributed to Mr. Kawada’s success. He worked the dining room like a impeccable host welcoming guests, greeting everyone with a smile as he takes their coats. But most importantly, it’s the food that spoke the loudest. Incredibly fresh fish and very well-priced. Mr. Kawada says it was important to him to serve the best seafood available, yet keep the prices accessible.

Takasushi was Kappo style, which means fine cuisine served less formally, with the chef and customers facing each other across a counter. While the menu included the usual sushi bar fare, they had an array of far more interesting selections like salt-cured sea urchin, monkfish liver with spicy ponzu, and fluke fin.

He always recommended ending the meal with a Castella cake, a Japanese sponge cake. It’s from the famous cake shop in Nagasaki, Fukusaya. The shop dates back to 1624, when the Portuguese first introduced the cake to Japan.

Robin Kawada’s Sushi Eating Tips

- It’s perfectly acceptable to pick up sushi pieces with your hands.

- Keep the moist towel nearby to clean your fingers.

- Use the soy sauce sparingly, you don’t want to overwhelm the fish.

- Sushi pieces and rolls already have wasabi on them, so you may not need to add anymore.

- Well-made rice is a key element in delicious sushi.

- The ginger is there to cleanse your palate in-between fish, not as a condiment for the sushi.