Aonami Sustainable Sushi

Going out to Aonami is always a great experience! Love the mellow vibe (a mix of chill lo-fi and old jazz standards played in the background while we were there last), and the service is always very friendly. As many have mentioned, there are a lot of vegan options, and they're all clearly listed on the menu. If you're a fan of pickled ginger with your sushi, you may want to ask for extra (I know I always do). Last night, my partner and I got the following: Hot sake - I always get the cheapest/default when I get it hot, and it doesn't disappoint. Hot tea - Genmaicha teabags in a teapot, to be steeped as long as you like. Shishito - These had more of a kick than I'm accustomed to from shishito! Still very tasty, but they gave us a mountain of them so we ended up taking a lot home. Shiitake tempura - Salty and crunchy with a sweet teriyaki drizzle. The mushrooms are meaty and satisfying. Miso soup - They serve very mild tasting white miso with tiny chopped tofu and mushroom slices. Masu Kama - The steelhead had a rich, smokey flavor, a perfect flaky texture without being dry, and a sweet teriyaki glaze. The glaze seemed like it should overwhelm the steelhead, but the fish had such a strong flavor of its own, that everything balanced out perfectly. This appetizer honestly really stole the show tonight. 2nd roll, 6th roll, 20th roll, and vegan omakase. We had ordered all these in the past, but the favorites last night were the 2nd and 6th. The smokey tofu of the 6th, along with its creamy texture, always hits right. The crunchy and citrus burst on the 2nd goes beautifully with its chili glaze. I'll admit that by the time the rolls came out, I completely forgot to keep taking pictures of the food, because I was more into the conversations I was having with my partner and scarfing down all the delicious food, but hopefully the pictures of the appetizers are helpful! Needless to say, I highly recommend Aonami for a relaxing tasty meal, casual date night, sustainable fish, and plenty of vegan options. Prices are average for a sushi joint, and more on the cheap side if you're getting vegan rolls.

They have a ton of clearly marked vegan appetizers, mains, and sushi rolls. They also give you complimentary miso soup before your meal.We loved the vegan sushi rolls we ordered. I can't remember the names, but one was citrus and super refreshing, and the other was just fantastic all around. The atmosphere was also very cute. This is a great place to go if you are a vegan. We also got the veggie tempura, it was okay, but we've had way better. If we went back we'd skip it and get another roll instead!

Visited a second time and enjoyed vegan options.

They have a whole vegan section of the menu and they are open later than a lot of other places that are similar. Love it <3

Nice little place. Atmosphere is nice and semi-lively. Food was good. I could have used a little more flavor on the sauce, however, that is just my personal preference.

Authentic Japanese sushi in the heart of downtown Chico. Friendly staff, tasty dishes, lunch specials, Japanese beers and great variety of sakis. A favorite!

Overall, this is a good place to go for sushi! However, the devil is in the details... I love that Aonami is following covid safety, first off. It made the overall visit that much better. Second, the service was fantastic! Our waiter was kind, attentive, and well-intentioned at worst, as she kindly explained what yakisoba is to my Japanese mother 😅 The food, overall, was very good! With the exception of one roll, I didn't really need shoyu for anything because the fish was either that good or the complimentary sauces were delicious enough. Unfortunately, one roll was off, taste tested by both me and my mother. We have different palates, so something's definitely up if we're both making a face. However, the roll was taken back without question, and we were offered to have it replaced or refunded; thank you so much again for that! The only things I wasn't thrilled about were the shoyu and the overall vibe. They have the low sodium shoyu and regular shoyu as options, which is great! My mother and I prefer the green capped low sodium taste to regular Kikkoman. That said, I can guarantee someone either made a mistake or is intentionally cutting corners because the shoyu tasted exactly the same from both bottles. Additionally, the shoyu was not clean. Before we even had our food, there were particles (like dried, old shoyu... I hope) sticking to the sides of the dish. And, I know it sounds ridiculous, but while the staff are wonderful, it just feels like a place pretentious people go to have decent sushi. Yes, this sushi is good, but it's nothing to write home about. While the creative rolls can be fun and I appreciate that you can order a roll without an ingredient, everything feels very catered to a certain demographic. A lot of the rolls have cream cheese, jalepeño, mango, and/or masago in them with a ton of sauce and anything we got that was supposed to be spicy simply... Was not. Sometimes you just want a regular ol' spicy tuna roll, y'know? Again, overall, this is a good place and I'll still rec it to others. If you're even a bit of a sushi snob like me, try somewhere else. I, personally, will not be returning.