The Japanese word izakaya (居酒屋) is made up of three kanji with the meaning, in order, “stay-drink-place.” A spot to grab a drink, settle in, and get comfortable.
Izakaya: Japan’s unique take on the pub – gotokyo.org
This is my review on Izakaya Three Fish, a sushi place we visited on January 13, 2023. They are a small plate establishment and serve sushi, desserts, mocktails, and alcohol.
Location: Bozeman, Montana
Cost: $150.00 per person, not including beverages.
Website: https://www.eatdrinkplace.com/
Google: https://g.co/kgs/V4KrnS
Instagram: @izakayathreefish
The Experience
We have been wanting to try this sushi restaurant for a while now, and so my partner suggested we go for our 8th anniversary! We were going to when Meghan and Eryn were visiting last October, but decided to go to a cheaper (and my fave) sushi restaurant.
You have to make reservations for either 5:30 PM or 8 PM, and this is done by texting the phone number they provide on their website.
Their website is pretty vague. It doesn’t tell you what to expect and doesn’t have any photos, which made me a little weary of trying this place. I had to turn to Google and Instagram to get a feel of what to expect, but even that wasn’t enough.
We are quite familiar with Downtown Bozeman, so we knew what building to go to. But once we were inside, we were not sure where to go. We ended up in a bar downstairs, and I asked the bartender for directions.
The bartender said they love their privacy, and that is why there are no signs and the windows are frosted.
We were about 15 minutes early, so we had to wait for them to let us in. We stood outside and took some photos. Once in, I realized how small the restaurant is. There is a bar that holds about 10-12 people and surrounding booth seating. We were instructed to sit at the bar, and we learned that the booth seating is for customers who were not there to eat sushi but to drink and socialize.
This is a Chef’s Choice menu. They offer you a drink list (not included in price), but the menu is up to Chef Paul.
Chef makes the sushi right in front of you, and while you wait, you socialize with those around you, including Chef Paul.
Chef makes sure to socialize with everyone at the bar, and that is great customer service in my book! We were at one end of the bar, so we socialized with a guy who was to my right. He walked in, greeting Chef Paul like he’s known him forever. I said, “Sounds like you’ve been here before?” And turns out it was his and his wife’s first time there. He had met Chef not too long ago and decided to come that night. This guy is also a chef and owns a few restaurants in another country. He will be opening up another one here in town sometime in March 2023. It’ll be asian cusine and located in the Cannery District. We look forward to trying his restaurant.
I wanted to make a note about the noise level, which is very important to me. I do not like sitting in a restaurant where I need to strain to hear the person sitting next to or in front of me. The noise level here was pretty low. They share a wall with a bar next door, so that was pretty loud since my partner and I were next to it, but not loud of enough to where we were having trouble hearing people around us. There were 8 of us at the bar, and maybe 3-5 people in the surrounding booths behind us.
I would say we were basically sampling different food. You are provided one serving of each sushi, and the sides you are given is a decent portion. You are given about 15-20 different foods to try! I loved just about everything, but I have learned that I am not really a fan of oysters and monkfish – it has to do more with their texture.
We enjoyed this experience, and would probably go again, but only for really special occasions. We were there from 5:30 PM to 8 PM and spent $400.00 for two people, including beverages and tip. The food was excellent, but because this is a small plate restaurant, you leave satisfied rather than full.
Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed my review!
Busy Being Tara 