The Sushi Room offers a culinary urban experience

The Sushi Room offers a wide selection of sushi. (Photo by Deanna Eddy, Marketing Director, Northcoast Restaurant Group)

BY SHERI TUSTY

When Sushi Room chef Paul Matthews was 15, he worked at his grandfather’s bait shop, but he soon grew tired of the job. His grandfather gave him more tasks and less pay than the other employees, so Matthews quit.

“I got angry because I was working harder and making less money than everyone else. I was annoyed,” Matthews said. “I didn’t realize he was teaching me life lessons.”

Ironically, Matthews’ youthful impulse laid the foundation for the rest of his life. When he left the bait shop, he took a job as a dishwasher at a local restaurant and was immediately taken with the atmosphere.

“I thought it was the coolest thing in the world, being surrounded by all the people, the food, the action and the screaming,” he said. “I realized these are my people.”

When you walk into the Sushi Room in Port Clinton, you feel like you’re in a big city restaurant. (Photo by Deanna Eddy, Marketing Director, Northcoast Restaurant Group)

Matthews not only learned to cook, but also trained under some of the most skilled chefs in the industry. Today, he is the executive chef for the Northcoast Restaurant Group, which includes The Sushi Room. Early in his career, he moved around to different restaurants, using the kitchens as work spaces and the chefs as his teachers. He learned from chefs in a variety of locations, including Ann Arbor, Detroit and Chicago.

“I have worked for good companies and good chefs,” he said.

Matthews has traveled to Italy several times to learn the secrets of authentic Italian cuisine from local chefs.

“You’d be surprised what a polite phone call can do,” he said.

Chef Paul Matthews draws on decades of experience as an internationally trained chef and heads the kitchens of the Northcoast Restaurant Group. (Photo by Sheri Trusty)

When Matthews moved to Ohio, he met Barb Muller, owner of the Northcoast Restaurant Group. He joined the management team and helped her build some of Port Clinton’s most exceptional and popular restaurants.

“I met Barb and it was fate,” he said.

Matthews’ many years of culinary training come into its own in the “Sushi Room” and ensure a unique, captivating experience.

“It’s really cool. When you walk in and close the door behind you, you’re like, ‘Are we in Port Clinton?'” Matthews said. “It’s very intimate, very chic.”

The Sushi Room offers more than just an excellent meal, it offers a fun dining experience.

Chef Paul Matthews said The Sushi Room’s chefs will “guide you through the entire evening if you wish.” (Photo by Deanna Eddy, Marketing Director, Northcoast Restaurant Group)

“Our sushi chefs have been with us for a long time. They are very personable. If you want, they will accompany you throughout the evening,” Matthews said. “You will think you have been in a big city like Cleveland or Chicago, but you can just walk outside and get in your boat.”

The chefs at the Sushi Room cook with the highest quality ingredients.

“We offer the best fish and produce from our suppliers in Cleveland and our fishmongers in Detroit,” Matthews said.

The Sushi Room’s menu offers a wide variety of sushi. Customers can also order food from the neighboring Nagoya Hibachi Express, which is also part of the Northcoast Restaurant Group and shares a kitchen with the Sushi Room.

The Sushi Room is located at 3984 E Harbor Light Landing Dr. in Port Clinton. For more information, call 419-734-6400.