Funshi has recently established itself here in Cleveland. This locally owned restaurant puts the “fun” in sushi. Funshi opened Funshi Sushi, Ramen and Boba in Rocky River in early 2025. It was so successful that it opened Revolving (conveyor belt) sushi locations in Avon and now Beachwood.
There were two things that we were impressed by (besides the service). The tables have built-in drawers for utensils and chopsticks, which saves servers from having to run back and forth and allows you to not have to wait at their mercy. The other fun addition is the robot that delivers your beverages and appetizers to the table.
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I initially got a few friends to gather at the Rocky River Funshi. The tea menu is overwhelming in a good way.
I like that you can customize the tea to your exact specifications – light or no ice, sugar level (50% is just fine) and add-ins like boba, lychee, coffee or crystal jelly or popping strawberry boba. I prefer jelly over boba, but to each their own. I initially ordered the Grape Peach tea, which was very refreshing. My friend ordered the Strawberry Peach tea, and it had chunks of fresh strawberry in it. She liked it as well. When I finished my tea I then ordered a Mango Coconut Foam tea with light sugar (75%). It was really tasty as well.
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We then ordered appetizers. I was blown away by the Crabby Pringle and Takoyaki. The Crabby Pringle is exactly as it sounds – crab salad nestled on a Pringle. The creaminess of the crab salad paired with the crisp Pringle is delightful. Takoyaki are Japanese octopus balls that are crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside. The filling held small chunks of octopus. They are then drizzled in eel sauce and mayonaisse (most likely Japanese mayo). There are several other appetizers that sound intriguing, but don’t skip the Crabby Pringle.
I wanted a nigiri and a sushi roll on my first visit because I wanted to judge the freshness of the fish, but was also intrigued by the curry chicken. The nigiri had a generous portion of salmon draped over a sushi rice cake that held up well. You can barely see the rice because it was so large. As for my roll, the Triple immediately caught my eye, which features three generous chunks of fish (tuna, salmon and yellowtail) wrapped with a generous chunk of avocado in seawood and drizzled with spicy mayo. I loved it. I was impressed by the size of the fish compared to the rice. As you can see, there is mostly filling and less sushi rice than at most places. The curry chicken was also a nice choice. The chicken cutlet was nicely fried and it was served on a bed of rice and steamed broccoli. The soy egg was also a nice touch.
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My friend ordered the Chashu Pork ramen. I think she went with Tonkatsu broth. She was leery of the black fungus, but I encouraged her to try it and she liked it. However, she was less impressed with the pickled bamboo shoots. They were not at all to her liking.
I tried to be a bit more adventurous on my second visit and didn’t have quite as good of an experience, but that was only because the rolls I ordered didn’t wow me as much as on my first visit. I ordered the Sweet Heart because I liked the optics. The spicy tuna, asparagus and “crunch” (probably tempura?) wrapped in a thin layer of rice and then fresh tuna in the shape of a heart. But it was just okay. My other choice was the Volcano. Maybe I was expecting the Volcano to be like a normal volcano roll, which seems to be the Dynamite here, but it was just kind of bland despite the spicy mayo and wasabi mayo drizzles. It just didn’t wow me. My other friend who ordered it had the same opinion.
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Once I heard they were opening a revolving/conveyor belt sushi location near me in Beachwood I knew I had to give it a try. It opened on December 15th. If you’ve never experienced it, a conveyor belt travels from the kitchen loaded with small plates, then winds its way past the tables through the restaurant and back to the kitchen again. The sushi is on white or black plates, indicating raw and cooked items. The dishes leave the kitchen covered and remain that way until removed from the belt by the diner. Everything is $3.50 based on portion size. Some plates hold just one item or two or three items, depending on the ingredients. The plates arrive in groups, preceded by a sign with the name of the dish and the ingredients, which is especially helpful if you have dietary issues or want to know what is in a certain roll. There is also a tablet at each table to order items from the tea bar or kitchen and a call button if you need a server (to the left of the bow in the video below).
I introduced my niece and her boyfriend to conveyor belt sushi when they were home from college in early January, and they really enjoyed it. Unfortunately there was a mix-up, and they went to the Rocky River location while I was in Beachwood. My niece texted me and then stressed out about the mistake, but I assured her it wasn’t a problem. It was a Monday afternoon, and the staff couldn’t have been lovelier about the fact that I took up the table while I waited for them to drive the 40 minutes between locations. I ordered a honeydew milk tea with lychee jelly and pulled up my Kindle app on my phone. I pulled two orders of Crabby Pringles to ensure we had a good start about 30 seconds before they walked in (good timing on my part). They were a hit and my niece grabbed another plate off the conveyor belt later, but if I were to do it again I would order them fresh from the kitchen to ensure they are crisp and not lightly soggy. They were still tasty, but a little soggy nonetheless.
I didn’t take photos once they arrived because I wanted to concentrate on getting to know him, but they enjoyed everything. We had gyoza, various nigiri (I especially liked the scallop nigiri), some rolls, and my niece grabbed a Tamago egg omelette nigiri and the Inari. The boyfriend enjoyed the steak nigiri. There was also a brisket roll and chicken nigiri for those who don’t like fish (my youngest niece probably would have enjoyed them if she had been able to join us). They were nicely surprised by the sweet potato roll I suggested they try. My niece burned her mouth on a somewhat molten fried red bean paste pastry but liked the taste a lot. We sat there for two hours talking, and they did not rush us out. The servers came by occasionally to make sure we were okay and assured us there was no rush.
I went back by myself about a week later. Once again, I recommend the Crabby Pringles be ordered from the kitchen. They were cold and soggy and are phenomenal when the crabmeat is warm and the Pringles are crisp. I am adding a table with several choices off the conveyor belt so you can get an idea of what to expect. It is a good way to try a lot of different sushi. I really enjoyed the Yum-Yum roll, which features shrimp tempura, cream cheese, asparagus, spicy crab and ‘crunch’ topped with a mango sauce and coconut sauce. The rice fell apart under the red clam (bottom right), which leads me to believe it had been on the belt longer and had lost some moisture, and the avocado on the dragon roll had turned brown. So definitely take a close look before you grab anything off the belt. Because once you’ve taken a plate off the belt you can’t put it back. The sushi is good but not great, but conveyor belt sushi is not about gourmet sushi – it’s about the experience. The only phenomenal sushi I’ve had off a conveyor belt is at Kura, which is worth driving to Columbus for. For phenomenal sushi in Cleveland go to Issho Ni, Pacific East or Omizu. For a fun time check out Funshi.
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When you are ready to settle the bill you ring the call bell, and the server will count your plates and bring you your bill. Quick and easy.
Contact info:
Funshi Sushi Ramen Boba (Rocky River)
21605 Center Ridge Road
Rocky River, OH 44116
(216) 712-4240
Funshi Revolving Sushi (Avon Commons)
35918 Detroit Rd Unit Y-3
Avon, OH 44011<br(440) 695-0330
Funshi Revolving Sushi (Beachwood – La Place)
2101 Richmond Road, Suite 871
Beachwood, OH 44122
(216) 342-4012
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