New sushi restaurant wants Ballantyne to be Charlotte’s “epicenter of sushi”

The big picture: Anthony has worked in and opened multiple Ballantyne-area sushi restaurants including Red Sake and Yama. The chef tells me he wanted a place of his own. “I eat sushi everyday. I love sushi, I love fish,” he says.

On the menu: The sushi is made with the highest quality ingredients Anthony can find, he says. Prime Fish has classic rolls like California and spicy tuna, but it also has specialty rolls. Here are some of the most popular:

• Ai Sake: spicy salmon and avocado topped with salmon, scallion and spicy aioli.
• Mad Goblin: spicy tuna and cucumber topped with avocado, eel sauce, scallion and toasted sesame seeds.
• Squidward: crispy calamari, avocado, spicy kana and sweet chili aioli.

“We don’t do quantity, we do quality,” the chef tells me of the menu, which is relatively small. He also serves nigiri, sashimi, a dozen different tapas and a few other dishes including a poke bowl and salads.

Drinks: Sake will be a big part of the restaurants offerings once its alcohol license is approved. Anthony is a certified sake adviser, which means he’s an expert in pairing and serving the traditional Japanese drink. He says he’ll take time to offer expertly-curated sake pairings to go with each dish.

• But, you can’t get sake at Prime Fish yet. The restaurant is still waiting for its alcohol license. In the meantime its allowing guests to bring their own beer and wine, with no cork fee.

Pro tip: Prime Fish offers $12 specialty rolls and $5 traditional rolls as a part of its daily lunch special from 11:30-2.

Space: The restaurant is small, but makes good use of the space with booths and a full sushi bar, which allows customers to watch their rolls being made. There’s inside and outside dining available.

Location: 11212 Providence Rd. W., Ste. B.