Ebisu Japanese Restaurant

If there’s a question I am asked most often as a restaurant critic, it’s probably this: “Where do you like to eat — on your own dime?” And an interesting question it is: As a critic, I get to dine at my employer’s expense at any number of places, from takeout joints in Tequesta to delis in Delray Beach. And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy many of those meals — it’s a job that anyone with a passion for food would be thrilled to have.

When Ebisu opened its doors more than a decade ago, it had a certain cachet. Sushi was not quite fully established as one of the essential dining-out food groups -- at least in Palm Beach County.