If you don't know where it is -- or sneeze at an inopportune moment -- you're liable to miss Kotobuki. The only indication of the restaurant's presence is a small sign off the street and another by the window advertising "dollar sushi." Climb the stairs to the restaurant and you'll find yourself in a small -- and, at 8 PM on a Saturday night, noticeably empty -- dining room. As Sietsema noted in his review, an empty sushi restaurant isn't a good sign. The rock bottom prices aren't either; we'd had some rather ugly experiences with super-cheap sushi before. But our worries were unfounded -- two days later, we're happy to report no intestinal distress.

We kicked things off with the cool seaweed salad, dressed with soy sauce and sesame seeds. The rich green seaweed had a nice crunch and was a smart pick in the place of miso (a tad too warm for a hot summer night). While crunching on the salad we perused the sushi list, settling on two orders of maki rolls -- spicy salmon and tuna with avocado -- and four pieces of nigiri sushi -- scallop, uni (sea urchin), mackerel, and toro (fatty tuna). The sushi came out quickly, served on a non-descript white plate. One look and were excited -- everything looked like it had jumped straight from the water to the plate. The uni in particular looked perfectly fresh with no melting, difficult to find even at some better sushi restaurants. As we tucked in, we noted that the looks weren't deceptive. Highlights for us were the sea urchin, bracing and rich with the flavor of the sea, and the toro and scallop, both melt-in-your-mouth perfection. But every piece of sushi we tried was delicious, the tastes accentuated by the homemade soy sauce.

We'd be lying, however, if we said the meal was our favorite part of our trip to Kotobuki. That moment actually came at the end, when the waitress presented us with the bill. After a 25% tip, we walked out of Kotobuki a mere $20 poorer than when we came in. It was then that we realized why the Palisades location of the restaurant was so perfect. Take sushi of this quality and move it downtown or to Dupont and the prices would triple, with lines circling the block. But out near the reservoir, owner Hisao Abe can keep his prices down and quality up. So we had to break our rule of not driving in the District on the weekend; Kotobuki was worth it, and presented us with a compelling argument for preserving the Whitehurst Freeway. While some sushi spots try to sell you overpriced sushi to a house music backbeat, this quaint restaurant served up some of the best sushi we've had in D.C. -- and without breaking the bank.