"This is a fun place to work. The people who come in are fun and appreciate the good food we serve here," Noui said.

Sushi Kazoo is owned by Kazuyo Matsumoto. Matsumoto opened her first of three sushi restaurants 14 years ago.

"Sushi Kazoo is one of three restaurants in the San Jose area. There is Kazoo in Japan Town and Sushi Boat Kazoo in Campbell, plus this one in Willow Glen," Noui said.

Sushi originated in Japan. With the sea and the rice fields feeding the needs of the Japanese people, it became a logical meal to combine the rice and fish into a roll that could be carried to work.

"We serve several kinds of sushi at Sushi Kazoo. We also serve other kinds of food here because some people just don't have the taste for sushi," Noui said.

Sushi Kazoo also serves teriyaki chicken and tempura.

"Tempura is very good. We take fresh vegetables and shrimp, dip them into the tempura batter and deep-fry them. Then our chef makes our own tempura sauce for dipping. Our customers love it," Noui said.

One of the most popular sushi items at Sushi Kazoo is the California roll.

A California roll is cooked crabmeat, cucumber and avocado rolled in freshly cooked rice and seaweed paper.

"The seaweed paper has a delicate flavor that doesn't hinder the flavor of the fish or fresh vegetables in the sushi roll. It holds it all together and makes the presentation prettier," Noui said.

"I think one of the things that makes Sushi Kazoo different from other sushi restaurants is our low prices. We have found a way to keep our prices very reasonable without compromising quality and that's what keeps our customers happy," Noui said.

Sushi Kazoo has one of San Jose's best sushi chefs working for it.

"Luis Alvarado has been the chef at all three restaurants. He's been working for Kazuyo since she opened her first restaurant. He really knows how to make wonderful sushi and all of the other dishes we serve here," Noui said.

One of the main aspects of sushi is the presentation. People in Japan often go to school to learn how to present food to make it more appealing.

"We take a lot of pride in the way our dishes are presented to the customers. A dish must look beautiful for us to serve it. It adds something to the meal to know that people are seeing not only food, but a form of art when they eat here," Noui said.

"People are trying to eat healthier nowadays, and sushi and sashimi are both very healthy foods. Very little fat and everything is always fresh here. So many people on diets come here for lunch and dinner," Noui said.

Sushi Kazoo also offers sashimi plates. Sashimi is raw fish served without rice.

"Sashimi is what our customers eat when they want just the flavor of the fresh fish. We have a Moriawasi plate, which has raw tuna, yellow tail, white tuna, fresh salmon and squid. They are all very good," said Noui.

Sushi Kazoo is located at 1165 Lincoln Ave. Open Monday through Friday for lunch from 11:30 a.m. until 2 p.m. and dinner Monday through Saturday from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. For more information or to place a take-out order, call 408.971.7755