One of the benefits of American sushi restaurants like our Japanese restaurant in Lynnwood is that they have given good opportunities to many sushi chefs who might have struggled in their own country. Women in particular have historically had trouble getting jobs as itamae in Japan, due to beliefs that sushi made by a woman is not as good.
The reasons behind this are varied, and without merit; one popular idea is that women are subject to more fiery passions, and this causes them to have warmer hands which serve to cook the raw fish and spoil its taste. Not only is it absurd to think that such a slight variation in temperature might make a noticeable difference in raw fish, but it has been demonstrated that the thicker hands of men tend to be the warmer ones. With this in mind, don’t let anybody tell you that the gender of your sushi chef should make any difference in the quality of your food.