Fort Myers sushi restaurant named one of the best in country according to Yelp

It began with an ordinary trip to the grocery store.

On his way back, Kevin Mak walked by the former Beef ‘O’ Brady’s space in The Shoppes at Fiddlesticks in Fort Myers.

“It was empty,” said Kevin, one of the original chefs behind Blu Sushi along with his brother. “I called my brother (Billy) and asked if he wanted to open a restaurant again. He said, ‘OK.’ I made a call and now we are still here.”

Not only are they still there, but their 5-year-old restaurant is back in the national spotlight.

MAKS Asian Kitchen & Sushi landed at No. 51 on YELP’s list of the top 100 sushi spots in the U.S. for 2024 . No other Southwest Florida restaurant made it.

“We heard it from our customers,” said Kevin, who began his culinary career in Hong Kong along with Billy. “We had no idea, so we looked it up. It was a nice surprise.”

It’s the second time MAKS has been honored by Yelp . The first was in 2020 when the then 5-month-old restaurant snagged the 98 ^th spot on Yelp’s Top 100 Places to Eat list. Once again, it was the only local eatery to make the list.

The secret to MAKS’ success?

“Customer service is No. 1,” Kevin said. “We have a very good team. The front and back of house, the teamwork is perfect. All really care.”

Their sister Jessica is part of that team.

“She’s a server who helps me oversee all,” Kevin said. “All the customers love her.”

MAKS seats 78 including the small but comfortable — and impeccably clean — dining room and sleekly stylish L-shaped sushi bar.

“We average 20-23 (staff members) a night,” Billy said. “We can add more tables but don’t want to. We try our best to be on top of quality service.”

Delivery — even through online services — is not available at MAKS. That way, they can focus on customers dining in (which most do) and ordering takeout.

And customers appreciated the effort.

“Our customers are super nice,” Kevin said. “They make us so happy. We were closed for two weeks (at the beginning of July) and when we came back, we’ve been so busy. Everyone is asking how our vacation was. They’re very good people.”

Since they don’t do any advertising except for some social media posts, future customers learn about MAKS through word of mouth.

“We have a lot of regulars who bring their friends,” Kevin said. “Then they come back. Then they will bring their friends.”

They’re coming for traditional sushi and sashimi dishes, and modern takes on sushi.

“We keep building one day at a time,” Billy said. “There are no shortcuts to anything.”

Mongolian beef, pineapple seafood fried rice, yellowtail belly, bluefin, and the green devil — a specialty roll with yellowtail, avocado and cucumber topped with ahi tuna and jalapeno salsa — are popular items. The lobster roll is a visual and culinary feast.

“It’s all fresh,” Kevin said. “Fresh is fresh. You cannot lie about it.”

According to the top 100 article, Yelp “identified businesses in the Sushi category and then ranked those spots using a number of factors, including the total volume and ratings of reviews. All businesses were marked open on Yelp as of April 4, 2024. When available, all businesses on this list have a passing health score as of April 4, 2024.”

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The top spot went to Kauai Sushi Station in Lihue, Kauai, Hawaii. The fine dining food truck won for the second consecutive year with a 4.8 overall rating on 692 reviews.

At No. 51, MAKS has 372 reviews and a 4.7 rating.

“With these awards, expectations are higher,” Kevin said. “People need to come and experience MAKS. The experience, the taste. They will know we are different.”

MAKS Asian Kitchen & Sushi, 13650 Fiddlesticks Blvd., Suite 206, Fort Myers; 11:30 a.m. – 10 p.m. Monday to Saturday, reservations preferred on weekends; (239) 985-9632; maksfl.com , follow on Facebook and Instagram

Robyn George is a food and dining reporter for The News-Press. Connect at rhgeorge@fortmyers.gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Fort Myers sushi restaurant named one of the best in country according to Yelp