Sashimi scares me, and nigiri gives me nightmares. Seaweed and crawfish have always brought the taste of Santa Monica Pier to my tongue. Seafood just isn’t for me, but when I saw the prices at Sushi Stop, I couldn’t say no. After half an hour waiting in the frigid California cold, chilling more for its shock factor than its relation to the Fahrenheit scale, I stepped inside Sushi Stop Pasadena.

Sushi Stop is famous for one reason: a BuzzFeed video that highlights its cheap, quality sushi. Cheap translates to roughly $3 each for standard rolls, a variety of sushi, and even bowls of udon or teriyaki chicken. Sushi Stop’s value alone qualifies it for a strong recommendation, but of course, no food is worth buying if it’s inedible. Fortunately, Sushi Stop delivers a remarkable balance between price and taste, solidifying its position as the most quintessential three-out-of-five-star restaurant I have ever experienced.

A trip to Sushi Stop is a journey in menu-hopping. From specialty rolls to tempura udon, the place encourages you to jump around and build variety, spurred on by affordable pricing. Despite this variegated dining style, I really only need one word to encompass all of Sushi Stop’s food: OK. The standard rolls, such as the spicy scallop or eel avocado, lack the uniqueness and flavor to warrant multiple orders. Pricier rolls like the dragon are great, but they defeat Sushi Stop’s existential purpose. While the udon is good, the broth is not. It may not have an ocean-like flavor, but it does have an ocean-like salt level. I’ve left their sashimi and handrolls as unexplored territory for you to discover. The food isn’t spectacular, but it’s passable and palatable enough to qualify a stop here, if only for the experience. A solid recommendation.

I’m the last person that should be doing a sushi review, but here I am. Life moves like a blur, and it’s easy to hurtle past the things you’ve built up a prejudice against. But pause for a moment. Stop. Take a vigorous step into the world of three-out-of-five sushi and reflect on what led you there. Your bill will rack up and you’ll wonder whether the third tempura udon was a good idea, but at least you’ll feel alive. And that’s always worth it.