Revolving Kura Sushi bar now open in Tysons, its first in Virginia

A new sushi restaurant is rolling out in Tysons.

Kura Sushi welcomed dine-in customers to its 40th U.S. location and first in Virginia at noon today (Thursday). It initially opened its doors at 8461 Leesburg Pike, Suite C, last night (Wednesday) exclusively for takeout service.

“We are thrilled to bring Kura Revolving Sushi Bar to the Tysons Corner community!” Kura Sushi spokesperson Lauren Murakami said in a statement. “…Whether you’re a sushi connoisseur or interested in trying a new restaurant that’s fun for the entire family, we offer more than 140 dishes free of artificial seasonings, sweeteners, colorings and preservatives, so everything has the highest nutritional quality and makes the experience memorable for everyone.”

The Tysons restaurant will be open until 9 p.m. today. It will again operate from noon to 9 p.m. tomorrow (Friday) before introducing its standard hours on Saturday (Sept. 3):

• Sunday through Thursday: 11:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m.
• Friday and Saturday: 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m.

Sushi plates cost $3.30 each. The menu has over 140 items overall, including rolls, noodle soups, and a variety of both hot and cold side dishes.

Kura Sushi originated in Japan, where its inaugural restaurant opened in Osaka in 1977. The American subsidiary Kura Sushi USA launched in 2008 and opened its first location in Irvine, California, a year later.

The company is known for its use of a two-layered conveyor belt system that circulates through the restaurant. Diners can pick food off the main revolving bar, or get dishes delivered on an express belt by ordering with a tablet by their table.

The restaurant also features “Kur-B” drink delivery robots, a recent addition, according to the press release:

How this works is once our waitstaff receives a notification about a party’s drink order, they place the beverages on Kur-B and program it to deliver to the corresponding table. With the added features to the tablets, guests can place their drink orders directly on the tablet and check-out on their mobile phone, limiting their wait times for service and providing more options for how they want to experience Kura Revolving Sushi.

Finished plates are disposed through a slot at each table. Diners can see a short anime on their tablet after every five dispensed plates, and every 15 plates nets a prize, such as a sticker or key chain.

Starting today through Oct. 31, the prizes are branded with Pac-Man as part of a partnership between Kura Sushi and the video game.

Kura Sushi’s Tysons location occupies a former Roti Mediterranean Grill in the Best Buy-anchored shopping center. The business’ only other restaurant in the D.C. area right now is in Chinatown.

Kura doesn’t have any specific plans for additional Fairfax County locations right now, but an expansion in the future hasn’t been ruled out.

“We’d love to open more locations in Northern Virginia,” Murakami told FFXnow.