Rolling on the Boardwalk

In 2014, ANNA BENNETT arrived in Wilmington as a refugee from Myanmar. Upon her arrival, she worked with various master sushi chefs and learned the intricacies of sushi making, building upon the cooking skills she developed in Southeast Asia years prior as a small business owner in her home country.

By 2018, Bennett had become a U.S. citizen.

“I instantly fell in love with the area,” says Bennett, co-owner of Cherry Blossom Sushi. “Everyone was so kind and helpful. I felt at home here.”

In 2022, after working with master sushi chefs from Charlotte and Columbia, South Carolina, Bennett opened her very own sushi shop with the support of her husband, THOMAS, in Carolina Beach. This year, Cherry Blossom Sushi, 8 Pavilion Avenue South #7, will celebrate four years in business.

“My husband is so sweet,” Anna Bennett says. “He said, ‘This is your dream.’ All I wanted was a restaurant. When I was in my country, I had my own small business. I wanted my own restaurant in America, too. My husband always wanted to cheer me on.”

The couple is the restaurant’s only employees. Due to its size and access to a restroom, the restaurant is not open for dine-in; it’s exclusively open for carry-out.

Cherry Blossom Sushi’s menu features a variety of sushi combos, daily chef specials, regular sushi rolls, and various nigiri and sashimi choices. Bennett also crafted a selection of poke bowls, a traditional Hawaiian dish of diced raw fish served over rice, veggies, and specialty sauces. Her menu offers eight different poke bowl options: krab and shrimp, veggie, salmon, white fish, tuna, mixed seafood, Hawaiian, and a Japanese chirashi.

Popular menu items are classic California sushi rolls and the various military-themed rolls that pay homage to the different military branches. She also wove in a few gluten-free sauces and menu items.

Some of the more specialty items are sushi burritos, which are available in seven different options. A sushi burrito is a Japanese-Mexican fusion dish in which traditional sushi rolls are made in the size and format of a traditional burrito.

Anna Bennett’s passion for creating high-quality sushi inspired her desire to create sauces and recipes that are exclusive to her restaurant. None of the sauces she uses are store bought. Many of her sauces and recipes are ones that were passed down from her family through generations, and a few are even recipes her sushi masters passed down to her from their families, too.

When she started the process of opening her own sushi restaurant, Anna Bennett knew she could only use the best ingredients possible. Even though she only sources high-quality ingredients, she ensures her sushi can be accessed by everyone and purposefully prices it low.

“We make it reasonably priced and use quality fish,” she says. “The fish is imported every Wednesday and comes from Japan and Korea. If you look at the menu, my sushi is not like others. I use very good quality fish, but I get the prices very reasonably.”

She is motivated by sharing her love of quality sushi with the community.

“This is not just making money,” she says. “It’s making the thing you love to eat. You want to share with your loved ones. I didn’t just do this for making money. I wanted everybody to eat delicious food. One day they eat my food and smile, and the way they love the food, that is a payoff for me. It cannot come from the money.”

As for a second location, Bennett is open to and willing to expand. She’s scouting out possible locations, but the biggest priority for her is ensuring the sushi chef at her second location is well-trained and shares the same drive and passion she does. So much so, she wants whoever fills the role as sushi chef at her second location to be a business partner, too.

“I would love to have a second location if I can find the sushi chef that loves to make food,” she says. “They need to be willing to learn and sacrifice. I would be happy to teach. The main ingredient in this sushi is love. Your customer isn’t just your customer. The restaurant is your whole. The customer is your visitor who’s visiting your home, like a family member visiting your home.”

To view more of photographer Megan Deitz’s work, go to megandeitz.com.

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