Sushi Stand at the Big A Seen as a Little Fishy

Famished fans stood in line six-deep Friday night in their quest for hot dogs and beer on the opening night of Angels baseball at Anaheim Stadium.

But next door at the sushi stand, it was strictly no waiting. The employees stood uncomfortably in their pressed white uniforms as passers-by pondered the latest Far East offering on the stadium’s already multicultural menu.

Some said they loved the idea of having the Japanese delicacy at the Big A. Others acted as if someone had parked a Nissan on the White House lawn.

In either case, sushi seemed to be on everyone’s tongue, if not in everyone’s mouth.

Even television announcer Joe Torre noted the presence of the seaweed-wrapped lumps of sticky rice and raw fish. “That’s class,” he said. “That’s class.”

Most said the sight of “Sushi, Sushi” on the Field Level near first base came as a surprise.

“I love sushi. We eat sushi twice a week. But in a ballpark? I don’t know,” sniffed Walter Mitchell of Newport Beach as he prepared to bite into chicken yakatori, a chicken-on-a-stick offering. “You don’t come to the ballpark to eat sushi.”

Meanwhile, Ernie Estrada and Nancy Briggs of El Toro were not simply pleased that the Big A has started offering sushi; they were ecstatic.

“We can’t believe it. Do you know how many times I wrote in saying ‘You ought to have sushi’?” Estrada said.

Well, actually he only wrote once, but, as Estrada pointed out, at least he was worked up enough about the subject to write, which is more than most people would do.

Estrada said that baseball sushi solves a dilemma for him and Briggs. He would always go for a sausage, and Briggs would always get the roast beef sandwich. Now, at last, they are in culinary agreement.

Angel fans already can munch on a range of fare, from cinnamon rolls to nachos, popcorn to ice cream. So why not sushi? reasoned the stadium’s food staff.

Sushi has already become a mainstay at Padres games in San Diego, and samples were received last year in Anaheim for test marketing, said officials of ARA, which handles the stadium’s concession stands.

“It packages well. It looks good. The raw materials in sushi . . . are so healthy. You’re not serving up cholesterol and a lot of fat,” said concessions manager John Trosper.

At $4.25 to $5.25 for the California rolls--the only type of sushi served--it is certainly pricier than the hot dogs ($1.75). But “Sushi, Sushi” manager Hiro Watanabe said he thinks it will be a hit.

“Everything is going well,” he said reassuringly while gauging public opinion.

The reaction that stood out most prominently in his mind, however, was that “some lady cried, ‘Oh, come on!’ ” as she passed by the stand.

Sushi saleswoman Lea Sawyer, though, quickly recalled that another fan exclaimed, “Oh, what a nice idea!”