Looks Tasty - I bet the atmosphere was better than a crowded restaurant as well.

Sushi, ... an acquired taste for many that my tastebuds simply will not allow it to happen! :)

Still, great shot in getting right in there with the subject, and giving some overall details where needed the most.
Color, lighting, ... looks great to me!

Everything you described doing to the image makes it better than it's original form and is so very subtle in appearance. I had no idea this image had been the result of as much processing as it had. Well done.

Were I the art director for this shot, I'd ask for a bit more of soy dish showing (I think the brown acts as a nice contrast to the deep green of the roll). I also prefer the white balance on the hands (hands only) of the original image. I didn't run it through Photoshop, but it feels like there's a bit more magenta there. Quite frankly, all of this is nit picking (you did ask, right?). It's a very good image made better by your post processing.

Thanks for the suggestions Sean! As you can see from the original shot, the kitchen table was actually a huge mess. I also didn't mention that there were eight people in the room, so setting the shot up perfectly would have been difficult. As it was, I had to apologize for holding up the words so I could get in a photo here and there, and eventually I just gave up. :)

But I definitely think you're right about the composition. Maybe I'll have to get him to make sushi again - for the sake of photography, of course, and not at all because I am obsessed with sushi...