It has been 15 years since Chef Shiro Kashiba opened his unpretentious sushi restaurant that bears his name in Belltown to a steady stream of loyal customers visiting from New York and Los Angeles.

Kashiba opened Shiro's after selling to the Westin Hotel chain the Nikko Restaurant, an establishment he had run for 20 years on King Street.

Shiro's success today is firmly rooted in the early years he spent as an apprentice in Tokyo's Ginza district, where he developed his technique as a sushi craftsman and a keen eye for selecting the best ingredients.

Smelt with salmon and plum sauce: $7.75

Sashimi platter

Fried rexsole with chili ponzu sauce: $7.05

"If you are planning on coming, please come around 5 o'clock right when the restaurant opens so that you can secure a spot at the counter," says Fujiwara, the restaurant manager. The best way to enjoy sushi is to sit right in front of the sushi chef, ask about what's local and fresh, then eat the sushi he makes right as it is delivered from the chef. Most regular customers ask for the chef's choice, known in Japanese as omakase. For a budget of $50-100, the chef will select fresh ingredients with which to make sushi or sashimi.  If possible, save up for the $100 course to indulge in the ultimate at Shiro's. This is a good time to set aside your favorite rolls and go for the nigiri sushi. Perhaps you would like to mix in a few temaki to enjoy the aroma of seaweed. Do not be embarrassed to ask a sushi chef about ingredients or how to eat at a sushi restaurant. Having a conversation with a sushi chef about food is another enjoyable aspect of dining at a sushi bar.  "The restaurant opens at 5 pm every evening, but the chef’s work day begins in the morning," says Fujiwara. "Everyday, the chefs including Kashiba himself, visit their local suppliers to select the best ingredients available that day. We are proud to say that Shiro’s may be the only restaurant in the Seattle area that pays this much attention to material quality."

Thanks to the Puget Sound, Shiro's can bring fresh local fish to its customers. "I feel lucky that I can run a restaurant like this in Seattle, and the customers are lucky, too," says Kashiba. Shiro's is worth at least one visit if you haven't tried it already. Once you've had a taste of Shiro's, you will be sure to be back for more.

Beautiful to behold, delectable to taste. You can down several bottles of sake just looking at the sushi. The amaebi (sweet shrimp) is delivered alive and is sometimes still flinching when delivered to your table. The head is fried or included in the miso soup.

Ingredients for the fried menu are all fresh and local fish. The fried food at Shiro’s is not greasy. Though it's fried, it doesn't drown out the subtle tastes of the white fish. The fish bones are cooked through to perfect savoriness, so make sure to clean your plate.