When we stumbled upon John Dory’s, we were trying to find a quick place to eat for dinner around the Montecasino piazza that wouldn’t break the bank. Many of the restaurants nearby looked a bit too pricey for what you got, and we didn’t feel like having Mugg & Bean as we’ve eaten there so many times in the past, so John Dory’s it was.

Dory’s is a chain — like most of the restaurants in Montecasino — but it’s one of the few that specializes in seafood. Most people were sitting outside when we walked up, but we saw a lonely sushi conveyer belt inside and couldn’t resist going for it. It was going to be all sushi that night and we would have to skip on any of the restaurant’s regular seafood dishes. In fact, it doesn’t really matter what any restaurant is serving, if it has a sushi conveyor belt, I’ll be sitting by it.

The conveyor belt at Dory’s is rather interesting and has different prices for each item, which are color coated in covered dishes. Two sushi chefs behind the counter continuously make rolls as the belt goes around, but many of the orders go out to tables around the restaurant. You can also order off the menu for any items you don’t happen to see circling around. We decided on getting a mix and got the crab salad off the menu, which turned out to be the best and largest thing we had. It came with a pile of shredded zucchini, lettuce, mock crab, and an interesting twist on a spicy chili sauce. The sushi on the conveyor belt was just OK, but at the time we didn’t care. It did seem fresh though, but something about the rice was a little off — not soft enough, and not enough rice vinegar to my liking. If you’re craving for some high-end sushi, this is not the place for you, but it’s a fun enough concept to enjoy with a few friends.

A rotating strawberry sushi roll had been tempting us for awhile, but we decided against it. Truth be told, we ended up going to Mugg and Bean afterwards for a gigantic chocolate chip cookie, but I’m sure the strawberry sushi would have been good, too.

The staff at John Dory’s was ultra friendly the entire time and the sushi chefs behind the bar chatted us up throughout our meal. They also checked with us frequently to make sure we had everything we needed. It was odd we were the only ones at the conveyor belt, even though the restaurant was quite packed. But if I came here again, I’d still go to the sushi bar.