One World Market Has the Best Sushi in Michigan. Novi Is the Reason That Makes Sense.
The Japanese market on Grand River has been quietly serving the best to-go sushi in the state. A new mixed-use Asian district opening next door is not a coincidence.
The drive to Novi takes about 40 minutes from Ann Arbor on I-96, and the sushi at One World Market is the reason to make it. I have made this drive more times than I can easily count, usually with the same destination: the sushi counter near the front of the market, the shrimp tempura roll, a container of the spicy sauce, and whatever else looks good that day.
One World Market is at 42705 Grand River Avenue, in a stretch of Novi that has quietly accumulated more serious Japanese food than anywhere in Michigan. The market is the anchor of it. What started as a Japanese grocery and specialty market has one of the strongest sushi programs in the state running alongside it — not as an afterthought, but as a daily operation. The sushi is made fresh every day. The options change. The volume turns over because the market draws a regular Japanese-American customer base that knows what they're looking at when they shop the sushi case.
The Sushi Counter
The format is to-go. Rolls and trays are ready to take, priced by the piece or by the tray, and the case is restocked through the day as inventory moves. This is how grocery store sushi in Japan works when it is done correctly: high volume, fresh stock, tight rotation, not food that has been sitting under fluorescent lights since morning.
The shrimp tempura roll is the one to start with. The shrimp is hot when it needs to be hot, and the construction holds together rather than dissolving in transit — a failure mode of grocery store sushi that One World Market avoids. The cali futamaki is the other standard order: a California roll in the futamaki style, larger than a standard roll, built carefully enough that the proportion of rice to filling is right.
The spicy sauce deserves its own mention. It is not a standard sriracha squeeze or the bland orange paste that passes for spicy mayo at most sushi counters. There are little bits suspended through it — textural, with some heat, the kind of sauce that makes you reach for more every time rather than forget it's there. It elevates everything you put it on, not just the sushi. It goes on their chicken. It goes on whatever small items you pull from the ready-made section. It is the sauce that makes the case for bringing a container home and using it all week.
Beyond the signature rolls, the selection on any given day includes standard maki, specialty rolls, and individual pieces. The chicken is worth ordering if it is out — not a sushi item, but One World Market's hot prepared foods section offers the kind of grab-and-go items that reward a regular. The small items and snacks near the counter are worth a look before you leave.
The Market
The grocery half of One World Market is the reason to take your time rather than grabbing the sushi and going. The shelves run Japanese pantry staples, specialty ingredients, snacks, and drinks that do not appear at a standard grocery store in southeast Michigan. Pocari Sweat, the Japanese sports drink, is the easy reach for the drive home. Beyond that: Japanese confections, pantry items worth building a meal around, and specialty goods that require knowing where to look. The market rewards browsing. It is the kind of store where the sushi is the primary destination but the grocery section becomes part of the routine once you have been a few times.
Why Novi
One World Market is not an anomaly. It is the product of a community. Novi and the surrounding corridor along Grand River Avenue has a significant Japanese American population, alongside Korean, Chinese, and broader Southeast Asian residents who support the kind of specialty market that cannot sustain itself on curiosity shopping alone. The market exists because its customers are from there, buy there weekly, and have kept the operation running at the level it operates.
This context is about to get more visible. Sakura Novi, a mixed-use development on Grand River that describes itself as Michigan's first Asian-themed commercial district, has begun opening along the same corridor. The development includes Dancing Pine (a Korean steakhouse anchor), Sumo Japanese Grill, Paris Baguette, Cloud Boba, and a retail market component, alongside 118 residential townhomes designed to house the community the corridor already serves. Cherry trees line the central boulevard. Signage is bilingual. The architecture reflects the design traditions of the community rather than approximating them.
One World Market predates Sakura Novi by years. The sushi counter did not arrive because a developer decided the area needed it. It arrived because the people who live on this stretch of Grand River wanted it. Sakura Novi formalizes what was already there.
The Drive from Ann Arbor
Forty minutes on I-96 East, exit at Novi Road or Grand River Avenue. The drive is a straight shot on a highway that does not require navigating the city. Park in the lot. Go to the sushi counter first. Grab a Pocari Sweat. Take your time with the market shelves on the way out.
The shrimp tempura roll and the spicy sauce are the things to remember. Everything else follows from there.
One World Market is at 42705 Grand River Ave, Novi, MI. Sakura Novi is on Grand River Avenue at Town Center Drive, Novi. Hours vary by component; confirm before visiting.