Hawai‘i Island Business: Sushi Rock

By Lily Hoskinson-Weinstein

Ten years ago, Peter Pomeranze decided to take a leap of faith and start a restaurant purely inspired by all the available products here on the island; the bounty of fresh produce, island grass-fed beef, Hāmākua goat cheese, and wild ocean fish caught the day before. With these amazing resources around him, Peter wanted to take full advantage of the opportunity and create something different. From there, Sushi Rock was born—a funky restaurant in downtown Hawi with an astounding selection of island fresh sushi, sandwiches, beef, salads, and more.

Sushi Rock has a wide variety of sushi, all with a twist of originality and sometimes unexpected ingredients, making the menu something to be explored over and over again. Take Bombayʻs Sunset—a combination of ahi poke, fuji apple, and curry slaw, rolled inside out and topped with either sashimi or seared tenderloin. These ingredients came to Peter in a dream, and he put the roll together and it quickly became Sushi Rock’s most popular item on the menu.

But out of every great ingredient Sushi Rock has to offer, the most important one that goes into every dish is love. With the slogan, “Come Taste the Love,” Sushi Rock takes pride in every single plate they serve. Peter says, “My joy is feeding people food that tastes good and watching them love it. I love seeing a smile come over their face.”

Sushi Rock tries hard to reach out to those who are vegetarian, vegan, and gluten free, with the belief no one should be limited because of their dietary restrictions. At Sushi Rock, they say there is no such thing as customers, only guests being welcomed as new friends. In this comfortable and casual environment, it is easy to enjoy the delectable food and feel like you’re at a friend’s house for dinner. Sushi Rock takes pride in serving food that is both local and organic whenever possible, preparing every dish with care and pride in hopes that their guests can feel the love they put into it. It hardly comes as a surprise that they were rated the #1 restaurant on the island by Trip Advisor.

Noon–3 pm, 5:30–8 pm (Friday and Saturday until 9 pm)
55-3435 Akoni Pule Hwy, Hawi
(The historic Hawi Hale building)
808.889.5900
sushirockrestaurant.net