Waraji Japanese Restaurant

Waraji is a Japanese restaurant and sushi bar on Duraleigh Road in northwest Raleigh, just off Glenwood Avenue near Pleasant Valley. Masatoshi Tsujimura, known to regulars as Chef Masa, opened it in 1997, and plenty of Triangle residents will tell you the sushi is the freshest around.

Masa grew up in Shimonoseki, a fishing town in western Japan known for fugu. The restaurant has long been described as one of the most authentic Japanese kitchens in the region, and there is a sake bar alongside the sushi counter.

What to know

• Chef Masa began his sushi career in America in 1982, working in central and southern Florida.
• He came to North Carolina in 1984 to open the sushi bar at Kanki in Raleigh.
• That counter was one of the first sushi bars in the state.
• Chef Masa is active with the North Carolina Japan Club, which promotes Japanese culture.
• Reuben Rodillas is now the owner-operator, with more than 35 years in the restaurant business.