Global Fusion - Raw fish is good fish!!

Global Fusion
Burrp page: http://mumbai.burrp.com/listing/global-fusion_linking-road_mumbai_restaurants/1351208574

Place: Opposite KFC, Bandra Linking Road

Food:  - 9/10

Buffet variety:  - 10/10

Service:  - 8/10

Ambiance:  - 9/10

VFM:  - 7/10

Food
I've had sashimi in a lot of 5 stars in Bombay and the bad deal is this - a lot of times, the fish has been kept out for so long that the ends start darkening. It's not a health risk, but it sure isn't nice for the eyes. This is where Global Fusion takes the cake. Fresh sushis and sashimis being prepared in an open kitchen for everyone to see. If you love sushi, come to Global Fusion! However, the place is packed on weekends and so you'd have a better time if you came here on a weekday. Not only is the service better, but I think they also end up making better wasabi when there are less people around.

For the first 3 times that I came to Global Fusion (and I only come here with dear Mr. Vivek Narasimhan, my partner in sushi crime), we didn't even know there was a main course section. We would hog on sushi and have some cooked starters and jump right into the desserts. The day we realized though, it didn't change anything for us! We always skip the main course, coz well, that you can get anywhere - Global Fusion is for sushi!

And I kid you not...the sushi is mindblowing...and the wasabi is one of the best I've had! Brings tears of joy to my eyes! The sashimi is always in the freshest of colors and the tempura sauce is just perfect. The squids are so fresh they almost look alive. The only thing I cannot seem to like is the unagi, but that's just a taste bias.

Buffet Variety
To start with, there are about 5-6 types of vegetarian sushis and some 15 types of non-veg (including seafood and chicken) sushis. California maki is my favourite and is sprinkled with different colors of fish eggs. I can get full just thinking of the colors! There are also 4-5 types of sashimi. On the side, there are small bowls of cold vegetarian / seafood / meat / poultry dipped in vinegar in various preparations.

On another counter are the starters - some 20 of them! Each dining table comes with some numbered clips. The starter counter has representative dishes, with a bowl in front of each dish. If you like the look of a dish, you put your clip in the bowl and go back to your seat. The dish gets prepared and reaches you within 5 to 10 mins. This is usually a range of Japanese, Chinese and Conti-Chinese dishes.

I have never tried the main course, but it consists of Chinese dishes - fried rice, noodles, some manchurian and the type. This is basically for the people who have come to Global Fusion with their sushi loving friends but want to eat regular Chinese.

Finally, for desserts, they have about 12-15 types of pastries and 8-10 types of ice-creams to choose from. Yumm!

Service
Service is good, what with the clip putting in bowl and food reaching your table in 5 minutes. However, I have sometimes found it difficult to catch the waiters' attention and I really hate having to wave my hand out. Also, these guys don't serve regular water at all. It's always mineral water. No, they don't charge you for it, but how much waste does multiple 500 ml Bisleri bottles per table create in a day? Did you know that It is estimated that world-wide, over 150 billion bottles of water are manufactured and sold each year. Of these, only 1 out of 5 makes it to a recycling bin, with the rest littering streets and filling up landfills. (Read more at Suite101: Bottled Water's Big Waste: The Healthy Drink That Hurts the Environment)

Update (5 May 2010): Also see http://www.youtube.com/storyofstuffproject#p/a/u/0/Se12y9hSOM0, which is part of a series on The Story of Stuff. One of my favorite websites.)

Ambiance
Apart from the nice pool of flowing water that runs in the middle of the restaurant, what I love is the crowd. You always get a whole mix of ethnicities around the world coming here for a meal. Last I went, there were Arabs, Koreans, Caucasians and of course, Indians - all under one roof, all enjoying their sushi :)

Value for money
There is no ala-carte here and it costs Rs. 750 + taxes per head, which is quite expensive, but totally worth it. At least considering that sushi has not made it into mainstream yet. So in that price, you get unlimited sushi, starters, main course and dinner. Plus a choice of drink between Iced Tea, Fresh Lime Soda or any colas. Alcohol is served, but charged separately.

Location
Bang in the shopping district of Mumbai - Linking Road, Bandra - it's the easiest choice of place to go for a good meal after some healthy shopping!

And in conclusion...
If you can't stand the thought of raw fish, please skip this place. Or else, you'll  be cursing me for the rest of your life! Sushi is awesome once you've been able to open your mind to it. And wasabi is something you just have to try at least once before you die! The best thing about sushi, though, is that no matter how much you hog on it, you never go to sleep feeling apologetically full and always wake up the next day feeling as light as a feather!