Oakland County Seafood Restaurant Named One Of 50 Best In Country

CLAWSON, MI — A Clawson sushi restaurant was recognized as one of the 50 "Best New Restaurants in America."

Food magazine and website Bon Appétit said Sozai is one of the best spots to grab seafood in the country. The sushi restaurant is tucked into a strip mall off of 14 Mile, just west of Main Street, right next to a Hungry Howie's pizzeria.

"You might savor invasive snails fragrant with sake, incredibly tender abalone (that was too small to sell elsewhere), and lightly fried shrimp heads we can only describe as fluffy—each dish was another reason we can’t wait to go back and see what owner Hajime Soto has sourced next," Bon Appétit said.

Sozai opened in 2019, and its owner Hajime Sato is one of the first sushi chefs committed to using only sustainable seafood, according to Sozai's website.

Before moving to Michigan, Sato left Japan in 1994 and relocated to Seattle where he opened a restaurant Mashiko, which is now run by his former employees, the website said.