Taste for sushi helps Mansfield couple to expand shop

J&A Sushi was started by Jolanta Priede and Andzejus Karmanas in premises at the Intake Business Centre, on Kirkland Avenue, Mansfield.

The couple met in the then Illusions nightclub in Mansfield in 2010 and they fell in love.

They also found they shared a love for food, and dreamed that one day they would own a bistro or a family restaurant.

Jolanta, aged 41, had more than 10 years of experience of working in the restaurant industry in Latvia, and sushi was her passion, while 39-year-old Andzejus, known as Andre, had always been surrounded by family cooking at home in Lithuania, which is where his love of food developed.

So, they opened their first premises in June 2020, attracting customers from near and far, with people coming from places such as Leeds and Manchester to taste their wares.

It has proved to be so successful that they have now moved into larger premises at the Intake Business Centre, with a new sushi bar offering customers ready-made platters, Poke bowls, fruit smoothies and more.

Andre said: “It was always our dream to open a food business, so decided to focus on sushi.

“People see that it is good food and that it is well presented too, and that’s really important to us.

“We always do fresh food and offer something different to other places, such as supermarkets, with many different flavour combinations.”

Sushi is a Japanese dish that consists of prepared rice, coupled with various other ingredients, such as vegetables, chicken, crayfish, prawns and many others.

While many people associate sushi with raw seafood, J&A Sushi also prepares vegetarian sushi too in order to cater for as many people as possible.

Andre said: “We have our regular customers and we now have a large following on social media so we are attracting people here from all over the place, which is really good for us and Mansfield.”

People can preorder their dishes or call into the shop, which also prepares party platters and dishes for business meetings.