Today, in Japan and Hawaii, musubi is a staple found in restaurants, markets, and convenience stores for a satisfying and affordable breakfast, lunch, or snack. In some regions of Japan, it is sometimes called onigiri (o-knee-GEE-ree). Fortunately, we don’t have to travel to Hawaii to experience this, as Sunny Blue is a restaurant that prominently features musubi.
Musubi is a Japanese rice ball mixed, filled, or topped with various ingredients and usually wrapped in nori. When you purchase musubi, it is generally premade and handed to you wrapped in plastic wrap. Many Americans think of musubi as just a vehicle for spam. You can find them filled with pickled plums, salmon, tuna, and many other items in Japan.
Owner Keiko Numano became inspired after reading Murasaki Shikibu, a famous female novelist who wrote about eating rice balls in the 11th century, and the film Kagome Diner, which tells the story of a woman who moves far away from home and opens her own omusubi business.
Sunny Blue, nestled on the same block as Asian-inspired restaurants Humble Potato and Fatty Mart, welcomes you with its modern ambiance. The inviting descriptions and catchy graphics on the window, cleverly disguised as a billboard, add to the charm. You’ll find street parking directly in front of the restaurant if you’re lucky. Otherwise, park in the nearby residential area.
The menu at Sunny Blue is a delightful journey through various musubi fillings, conveniently categorized as meat, seafood, and vegan. From the popular Miso Beef with caramelized onions and housemade miso sauce to the Tokyo Tori with chicken and a sweet and sour sauce, the choices are diverse and enticing—prices for their musubi range from $4.50 to $5.25.
Taking a bite into the musubi, I quickly realized the difference between homemade and premade musubi. Unlike premade musubi, the nori is crisp when you bite into it, and the rice is warm and moist. The Mentaiko Musubi is made with spicy cod roe. I also tried the Spicy Salmon, which is cured salmon mixed with chili seasoning. Both were quite tasty.
Beyond musubi, they feature kitsune and pork curry udon, ochazuke for the traditionalists, corn chowder, and miso soup; the latter is vegan and gluten-free. The sides include the usual edamame, tsukemono, and sunomono, but the kinpira gobo caught my eye because I only eat this dish on New Year’s Day during our Japanese feast.
Sunny Blue created the first “made to order” musubi restaurant, and I recommend you visit it if you haven’t tasted freshly made musubi.
They have a second location on Main Street in Santa Monica.
Sunny Blue, 12608 Washington Blvd A, Culver City, or 2728 Main St. Santa Monica; sunnyblueinc.com