Nooshi

Nooshi grabs hold of all Asian cuisine and dubs it “oodles noodles and sushi.” Luckily, the generalization is not ill-conceived: Its spin on fried squid—firefly calamari—is a welcome change with a red-pepper-flecked lemony dipping sauce instead of tired marinara. For a light lunch, try the ginger salad with generous slivers of pickled ginger, cabbage, and fried onions mixed with a tangy dressing. Sushi is offered in all the familiar combinations and does not disappoint, and, for those who can’t handle it raw, the fried rice and salmon teriyaki yield nice alternatives. Happy hour tends to get dangerous, though, with all drinks half-off Monday through Saturday (yes, happy hour on the weekend).
For: A downtown D.C. lunch spot that transports you to 10 Pacific island countries in an hour or less.

Entrées: $7-$16. 202-293-3138. 1120 19th St., NW

Originally in the Onion / DC local edition

Photo: Nooshi