Wearing a ponytail and bandana, Michael Marcus looks more like an aging hippie at a Grateful Dead concert than a sushi chef. Marcus started his career as a potter, specializing in Bizen-yaki style ceramics, and he used to sell his handmade tea cups to all of the top Japanese restaurants in Manhattan. Then he had to give up pottery for health reasons. It didn't take him long to notice the Berkshires were lacking high-quality sushi chefs, so he did what any nice Jewish boy from Queens would do when faced with that type of dilemma: He traded in his kiln for a set of Suisin knives. Now he offers "the best fish west of the Boston for 1,000 miles." The exquisite setting shows off his artisanal hand, especially in the omakase and tatami rooms which Marcus decorated himself.