It’s never too early to introduce your children to Japanese cuisine and culture. From the dishes to the utensils, to the language, there are many aspects of diverse cultures that can be introduced through food and dining at an early age. One fun activity you can do with your kids involves taking them out to eat at a restaurant that serves sushi in Boston or your city—but not just any restaurant!

Planning Ahead: Key to a Good Experience

You will want to have toys on-hand to keep your toddler engaged—a small board book, reusable Paint with Water Pads, Play Dough, small toy dinosaurs, and my favorite Wikki Stix. Wikki Stix are sculptable waxed-yarn sticks. For older toddlers, crayons and paper may also work. I highly recommend the ultra-washable variety of crayons, as they are easily wiped off surfaces with water. With my highly active toddlers, I avoid action-oriented toys, like toy cars, or any noisy toy. 

Overall, try to plan ahead to create a quiet distraction-free environment; think about how you will occupy your toddler while waiting for the server, while waiting for your meal to arrive at the table, and during long waits between courses. The key to avoiding the dreaded tantrum is distraction and prevention.

The Location: Arriving at Douzo Sushi

Our sushi outing started well with finding parking right outside of the restaurant, anyone living in the Boston area will relate to the luck involved. We planned to eat at 4:00pm to avoid disrupting more formal evening dinners. While we did call ahead and request high chairs, we realized we should have requested a back table or booth. There were large decorative dividers between the center tables where we were seated, and they would wobble if our toddler accidentally bumped into them.

Douzo Sushi was very accommodating and had the high chairs immediately ready for our two daughters. Within minutes they brought out a bowl of rice, children's chopsticks, and small bowls of soy sauce for dipping. This was an immediate hit, and I was impressed with how quickly my two and three-year-old figured out their chopsticks. 

What We Ordered

We ordered Shrimp & Vegetable Tempura as an appetizer, and with the crispy batter, they were well-liked by the kids. The wait staff got us our food very quickly and arriving during a less busy time also helped. 

For sushi, we ordered the Douzo Special, Sumo, Back Bay, and California Rolls. 

The Experience

We brought out several toys for our kids to play with while they waited for their food. It took about fifteen minutes for them to bring out our order. The staff did warn us about some rolls being spicier, but they were all relatively mild. 

We've been working on saying, " I don't care for that," over "yucky!" The California rolls weren't popular. But my kids did love the Tobiko fish roe, which is a win for pickier toddlers. My husband and I were able to finish our rolls, taking turns helping entertain the children. Douzo's sushi was fresh and high-quality; a long missed treat. 

Overall, I'm glad we were able to expose them to new foods and avoid any meltdowns or tantrums!

Elizabeth H