Business: Sushi Naper
Address: 1320 N. Route 59, Naperville
Phone/website: 331-281-0620 and www.sushinaper.com
Owners: Ray Zhang, 47, and Michelle Lui, 47, a husband and wife who live in Aurora
Years in business: 7
What does your business do? “This restaurant, we have all-you-can eat. We do have a regular menu, but most of the customers come in for all-you-can-eat because it’s a very good deal,” Lui said.
How good a deal? “We have lunch and dinner options. Lunch is $23.99 per person. Dinner is $31.99 per person. … But we have a policy. No leftovers. You can take it home after you pay for the leftovers. Usually, we tell people to order little by little. We are the only one doing all-you-can-eat (sushi) in Naperville.”
What else do you offer? “We also have the Mongolian barbecue. … The sushi, people order from the menu. There’s a lot of choices for the all-you-can-eat. … Some items are not included. If they don’t want sushi, they can do the regular menu.”
Why did you start this restaurant? “Our first restaurant was Sushi City in Downers Grove. We felt we needed to open another one in Naperville because a lot of people drive very far to go (to Sushi City). Sushi City started in 2008.
“In the beginning, it was so-so (in Naperville) because Route 59 is a busy road. If you drive by, you may not see us. And then, we were hit by the pandemic.”
How did that impact your business? “The pandemic was not good. We had to shut down the restaurant. We tried to have some carry-out, but we are all-you-can-eat. We had to try something special for take-out. … We were shut down for two weeks in March, then we were open for carry-out, then we opened again in June (2020). All carry-out was not good.”
How crowded were you when you reopened? “The first day, a lot of people came in. They were lined up outside. We didn’t have enough people working.”
Why is sushi popular? “Sushi is a healthy food. No oil. A lot of teenagers, they love sushi. Sushi is like an art when the chef makes it.”
Where are you from? “China. He came here in 1998. I came here in 1997.”
How did you meet? “We met working at a restaurant.”
A married couple gets along at work? “Sometimes,” Lui said with a laugh as Zhang smiled.
How many employees do you have? “We have 16.”
Are you open daily? “Yes. Monday through Thursday, 11 to 9:30, Friday 11 to 10:30, Saturday 12 to 10:30, Sunday 12 to 9.”
Is there a busy time? “The most busy days are Friday and Saturday.”
Is there a slow time? “September to December is very slow. People are back in school. Holidays.”
What do you like about your job? “I communicate with customers. We have a lot of returning customers so they feel like friends. Sometimes they text me, ‘Can I have a table?’ … The best part is when I stay busy.”
What’s your secret to success? “I think because of the food. People come in, they are happy. Plus, the price. … I know (at) some regular sushi restaurants, you pay a lot.”
Is Naperville good for business? “Naperville is, but Naperville has so many sushi restaurants. But we’re the only one that is all-you-can-eat.”
Do you both cook? “(Zhang) is the chef.”
More Top Picks Pfd
Why sushi? “I worked at a Chinese restaurant and wanted to change my job to a sushi restaurant. I felt sushi is a healthy food, more of an art,” Zhang said as Lui interpreted.
Can you rent space for parties? “Yes. Sometimes we have 70 to 80 people here for a three-hour party,” Lui said.
All ages eat here? “Yes. Sometimes, young people when they come back home from college, they come here to eat. They say, ‘This is my last meal before I go back.'”
What challenges do you face? “Owning a business is challenging. You challenge yourself to be better and better,” Zhang said through Lui.
Is fresh fish delivered daily? “Two to three times a week, sometimes four,” Zhang said through Lui.
What’s your advice for someone starting a business? “Sometimes, a business, it’s hard to survive. A restaurant, make sure quality is a priority and (that) your customers are happy, satisfied,” Lui said.
If you know of a business you’d like to see to profiled in Down to Business, contact Steve Metsch at [email protected].
Steve Metsch is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.