sushi – Page 2 – Check Please!

The best dishes from Hokkaido Sachi restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City

Saigonese love Japanese food. In 2010, when I first visited the city, two chains were dominating the market: The Sushi Bar and Tokyo Deli. They are still around, but since then, restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City have upped their game when it comes to Japanese food. One of the most successful is Hokkaido Sachi that over the past few years has multiplied the locations around town.

From what I gather, it is owned by Vietnamese investors and some locations are in franchising but they had the foresight to hire and keep on staff some chefs from Japan. Most restaurants would only hire them to kick off the business, but I keep seeing them time to time overseeing the quality of the kitchen operations. This means that there are some genuine Japanese chefs that, while not involved directly in the kitchen, keep securing the quality control. This makes a difference.

Hokkaido Sachi is easily my favorite Japanese restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City (in particular I usually go to their branch on Nguyen Trai street, pictured below). In this review I will show some of my favorite dishes from their extensive menu.

The visit(s)

The service starts with some complimentary grilled ginkgo seeds, a classic izakaya snack.

The sashimi selection includes a lot of imported fish not easily found outside Japan. In the selection pictured above you can see hammachi and kampachi sashimi (two types of Japanese amberjack/yellowtail).

More sashimi in the picture above with a double portion of their regular tuna (112,000 VND for five pieces) and a portion of another exotic sashimi type, ishidai.

Also, keep an eye on seasonal fish. In the summer of 2018 I had this spectacular sashimi dishes with isaki (360,000 VND) and, again, ishidai (390,000 VND), two varieties popular in the summer in Japan.

The menu seems to enjoy the use of delicacies based on fermented roe. The picture above shows ika-mentaiko, squid with its own roes, spiced and fermented. An absolute delicacy. The mentaiko dishes should not be missed.

Of course, they also have original mentaiko, that is cod roe fermented and spiced.

They use mentaiko also for some grilled dishes. For example, pictured above, a slice of salmon surmounted by a layer of mentaiko and a scallop prepared in a similar fashion. Needless to say, this additional layer makes the dish even more delicious.

Or they even have Japanese omelette roll filled with mentaiko, another dish sometimes found in Japanese izakayas.

They have an ample selection of sushi. Their standard sushi set (around 220,000 VND, less than 10 USD) has 11 pieces.

One special dish is the foie gras sushi. The foie gras employed is top quality and worth the 170,000 VND for two pieces.

They also have various aburi sushi: for these pieces of sushi, the top fish is flame seared. Pictured above the salmon aburi made more delicious by some roe on top.

They have a large selection of creative rolls, like the roll with cheese and shrimps shown above.

More delicious and unusual Japanese food: above a bowl of ikura chawanmushi (the classic savory egg custard with salmon eggs).

And kazunoko kombu, herring roes with dried kelp (traditionally a new year’s dish in Japan),

More: grilled kisu fish with cheese (a type of whiting available during the summer).

Finally, I should mention that they also have some excellent meat, like the US beef steak set shown above. More exotic beef from Hokkaido is available, but frankly I think seafood should be the rightful focus of this restaurant experience.

The check(s)

In the summer of 2018, a lunch for three people cost me (after a 15% discount for a loyalty card) 1,158,000 VND (50 USD).

Another more lavish lunch for 2 people with the seasonal sashimi went for a similar price.

Even if you account for the discount, this is great value for money.

Unfortunately prices move quickly in Vietnam and I cannot assure that you will find exactly these prices on your next visit.

However, you will hardly find in South East Asia a Japanese restaurant with so many authentic and exquisite dishes at this price point.

Where in Ho Chi Minh City:
Check their website for a list of locations.

Eating sushi at Yamataka Seafood Market in Hong Kong

Yamakata Seafood Market in Wan Chai is touted to bring the Tsukiji market experience to Hong Kong… well, I beg to disagree, it has really little to share with Tsukiji or any other Japanese market. Actually, it looks like a small-scale clone of Taipei’s Addiction Aquatic Development. I would describe it as a multifunction dining and shopping space.

The visit

I easily reached the venue by ferry (see the tips at the end of the review) from TST. It was around 2pm and there were relatively few customers. That was a relief because it is not a spacious place. With a lot of people it can really get overpowering.

I went past the supermarket area where seafood and Japanese products are for sale.

In the supermarket area you can find deluxe sets like the one pictured above including a small lobster.

They have quite a few fun Japanese soft drinks.

Past the supermarket area there are a number of individual dining spaces, each one specializing in a different type of Japanese food. They also have an area for lectures and demonstrations. Time to time they organize tuna cutting shows.

At this counter they were serving among other things lobster rolls. Other stations serve donburi, oysters, various cooked foods, and so on. All based on fresh seafood of course.

Finally, at the end of the pier you get to the sushi bar. They do not offer the most comfortable seating arrangements, but the view of the harbor is great. You are given a menu where you can tick off the items you want to order.

I had my unmissable serving of tuna sashimi.

Then I had a tuna mixed platter including fatty and medium fatty tuna.

Then I also ordered some additional pairs of nigiri: scallops, mackerel, amberjack and hammachi.

Overall the sushi was good and fresh, but there was really nothing that made wish to be back soon.

This was the menu available on June 2018:

The check

The check came to 430 HKD (55 USD) for 12 pieces of sushi and a portion of sashimi. Not cheap at all, but being Hong Kong not outrageous either.

Overall it was fun to eat there; I definitely would recommend to go during off peak hours to avoid crowds. Also, they may have other dishes worth trying apart from classic sushi and sashimi (those lobster rolls…). The variety of available seafood is another plus.

Where in Hong Kong:
2/F, Wan Chai Ferry Pier
Pro-tip: it may sound counter-intuitive, but the best way to get there is from Kowloon (the opposite side of the harbor). Take the Star Ferry from Tsim Sha Tsui Ferry Pier to Wan Chai Ferry Pier. Upon disembarkation the seafood market is just around the corner. Super easy. Going there from Wan Chai station is a painfully long walk dodging footbridges and construction areas.
Visit their website for more information. Have a look at their seasonal offerings.

Trying Kyoto traditional sushi at Izuju

Kyoto is an inland city. You can imagine that when modern refrigeration was unknown dealing with seafood safely in an area far from the sea was extremely difficult. As a result, chefs in Kyoto developed their own approach to sushi, using mostly fish with longer shelf-life and/or marinated to make it last longer. This style is called Kyozushi.

I tried this kind of traditional sushi at Izuju, one of the most popular sushi restaurants in located in Gion district. The restaurant faces the entrance to the Yasaka Shrine.

The visit

I arrived at the restaurant quite early and at that time there was no line. In fact, I was the first customer of the day.

The door is easy to miss…

Inside they have a small dining room with wooden furniture.

I had one of their hako sets (the deluxe one), a sort of checkered sushi composition. It included prawns (cooked), omelette, anago (sweet sea-water eel), and sea bream. The dish was both pleasant for the eye and the palate.

Then I had a combo dish with some of their other traditional dishes: mackerel (saba), hamo and a grilled sweetfish called ayu.

They have signs everywhere explaining how to properly eat these dishes. No soy sauce and wasabi are required since the fish on the sushi is already marinated. Also, the mackerel sushi comes with a piece of kelp to protect the fish flavor and the kelp must be removed! The flavor of the mackerel is quite strong; honestly there is not much of it to taste…

Hamo is a typical Kansai fish, a type of eel called pike conger and it is usually found from summer to autumn. It is a rich flavor.

Finally, the ayu grilled in salt is a simple dish very popular in the summer.

All the sushi was great, even if the flavors were more muted than traditional Edo style sushi.

Miso soup.

Green tea.

Most of the dishes are also available for purchase as take-out. Among tourists and locals this seems a pretty big part of their business.

The check

The total was 5,103 yen (around 45 USD) for a meal that could have satisfied two people. Some of the traditional dishes such as hamo and mackerel sushi are quite expensive, but I guess they require long preparation.

While I prefer the raw flavors of Edo style sushi, this was a very interesting and satisfying culinary experience. If you are in Kyoto, be aware of their special style of sushi.

Where in Kyoto:
292-1 Gionmachi, Kitagawa, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto
Address in Japanese: 京都府京都市東山区祇園町北側292-1
Pro-tip: in Gion there are a lot of dessert places. After sushi, have a Japanese style dessert.

An izakaya in Higashi-Nihombashi, Tokyo, where to try tuna dishes

I love tuna. When I saw an izakaya specializing in tuna and seafood near my hotel I decided to try it for a late night snack.

The visit

The place was still open at 10pm, I believe it is open till midnight.

It was a very spartan place with stools. I think they wanted to reproduce the feeling of a place inside a fish market.

First I was handed some boiled tuna as a compulsory appetizer.

For less than 8 USD I got three nigiri with lean, medium-fatty and fatty tuna. No complaints about the freshness of the tuna.

But the highlight of my visit was this tuna cutlet… It reminded me a gyukatsu because the tuna was, as expected, raw inside. It was much better than the deep fried version I had at Sushi Zan Mai a few evenings earlier. I loved this dish.

The menu was only in Japanese and they had some other dishes I would not mind to try in the future, such as deep fried fish, fire grilled scallops, tuna donburi and such.

The check

Appetizer, two dishes and a soft drink came to 2,754 yen (around 25 USD). Mid-range prices, but the tuna cutlet alone was worth the visit.

I wound NOT recommend anyone to travel to Higashi-Nihombashi just to visit this izakaya, it was nothing special. But if you are in the area, this can be a great place for a late night snack or meal (not so many places are open till late in this area). It is next to a yakiniku restaurants I have also reviewed. Both the yakiniku restaurant and this izakaya belong to a group called Vitality that operates multiple restaurants and brands across Japan and overseas.

Where in Tokyo:
Japanese name: 魚党東日本橋店
3 Chome-11-5 Higashinihonbashi, Chūō-ku, Tōkyō-to 103-0004, Japan
Address in Japanese: 〒103-0004 東京都中央区東日本橋３丁目１１−5
Tip: Tip: take the Asakusa line and if your coming from South (i.e. Ginza, Haneda) take the B4 exit of Higashi-Nihombashi station. If you are travelling from north (i.e. from Asakusa or Narita) take the B3 exit and cross the street.

A classic at Tsukiji outer market: Sushi Zanmai

Eating sushi at Tsukiji market, a classic Tokyo adventure. Tsukiji has been the main Tokyo fish market for decades and now is finally slated to move to a new location. I was in Tokyo in September 2018, just days before they would host the last tuna auction open to tourists. I never made it to one of these auctions or in the inner market, just I cannot imagine myself awake at 4am in the morning.

But I did visit several restaurants in the so called outer market, a web of alleys full of sushi restaurants. One of the most famous is Sushi Zanmai. Here’s how a dinner in September 2018 went.

The visit

Sushi Zanmai is a popular sushi chain in Tokyo. The locations in Tsukiji are open 24 hour a day at the time of this post (who knows… things may change now that the market is closing). Statues and posters of the flamboyant owner makes the place easy to spot.

The second distinctive feature of Sushi Zanmai is the incredibly over the top noise made by the cooks to greet every new customer stepping in.

The best is to seat at the counter and order sushi directly from the cook, but they also have table seats.

The restaurant has a focus on tuna, but serves all kind of sushi.

I had one of their tuna sushi sets:

The set consisted of eight nigiri sushi (two with regular sushi, two with fatty tuna, two with medium fatty tuna, and two seared), plus three small rolls (maki) and two battleship rolls (gunkan maki) with minced tuna. I calculated that by ordering the set basically you get the three small rolls for free plus the miso soup.

The miso soup comes in an oversize bowl. It is one of their signature dishes so to speak.

The set was very good, all super fresh. The sushi cook added maybe too much wasabi to the rice for my taste, but it was easy to remove.

I also ordered some deep fried tuna (picture above) and two amberjack nigiri and two tomago nigiri (omelette) to close the dinner (picture below).

The check

Overall I spent 5,045 yen (45 USD). Not cheap, but reasonable for the amount and quality of seafood. Honestly, I find the tuna set offered by Itamae Sushi better value for money (it costs 1000 yen less and the only difference is one fewer piece of fatty tuna replaced by regular tuna and one fewer gunkan roll). Having said so, I looked around and 3000 yen (before 8% tax) seemed to be the standard price for this tuna set in the area.

In general, I am not particularly enthused by the eating options at Tsukiji, but Sushi Zan Mai does the job.

Where in Tokyo:
The location visited is in: 4 Chome-11-9 Tsukiji, Chūō, Tokyo 104-0045, Japan.
They have several locations in Tokyo: check their website or even better this review.
They have another location equipped with a conveyor belt just next door in an alley.

Conveyor-belt sushi experience at Hamazushi in Tokyo

Conveyor-belt sushi (or kaiten sushi in Japanese) is a popular type of sushi restaurant in Japan. If you are not familiar, just picture a literal conveyor belt running through the restaurant transporting the sushi plates: customers can pick from the conveyor the dishes they like.

Let’s be honest, conveyor-belt sushi is to sushi what fast food is to beef. Not your first choice for quality sushi in Japan. However, it can be a fun experience and a good way to have a quick meal.

This review is about a lunch at Hamazushi, the largest coveyor-belt sushi restaurant chain in Japan (with over 400 outlets).

The visit

I visited a Hamazushi restaurant located in a non-descript shopping mall near the Oi Racecourse. Not your usual tourist spot, but I had a reason to be there (hint: the massive citizen flea market) and there was not much around.

First of all, I was greeted by the house robot… and guided through a number of choices (counter? table? how many people?). Once Mr (?) robot was satisfied I got a ticket with my assigned seat number. The staff then escorted to my spot:

All well, the only drawback of the system is that the algorithm is not spacing people… the place was almost empty and the few customers were sitting neck to neck in one corner of the restaurant. Not a tragedy… but they could rethink the algorithm to make a better use of the space when it is not too crowded. This is also why I cringe when I hear speaking about artificial intelligence… still a long way to go.

The first thing I did was preparing some hot tea. In this case, as customary, I was provided the green tea powder (matcha) and I poured the hot water by keeping a button pressed with my cup.

As you can see, they have five different sauces available for each customer, including different types of soy sauce. The sushi comes without any soy sauce or wasabi added by the cooks.

It was early, but there were already a good number of dishes on the conveyor belt. Hamazushi is very technological and they also gave me the chance to order additional items and drinks using a touch screen. Every spot is equipped with one of these touch screens and English language is available.

When your order is ready, the screen will display a message. The order will come through the conveyor belt and it will be placed on a special pedestal (like the tempura sushi in the photo above) so other customers will not take it (not sure if it always works…).

I did not picture all the dishes I had. These are a few:

Mackerel with vinegar sushi.

Lean tuna sushi.

Seared salmon sushi.

You can have a look at their website (in English) for the full standard menu. They also have a bunch of seasonal items.

This is kind of run-of-the-mill everyday sushi, but it was good. The dishes were simple, the rice was ok. I have been in other conveyor-belt sushi restaurants that made a mess and were using rice probably one day old. Or that were trying to game the customers by putting on the conveyor belt only expensive qualities of sushi to push your final ticket. Nothing of this happened at Hamazushi that struck me a very professional establishment.

The check

When you are finished, you have to indicate that you are finished through the touch screen and the waiter will come to give you the check to pay at the reception.

I spent 864 yen (7.74 USD) for six dishes and a coke. All the dishes individually cost me 108 yen (except one that I ordered via the touch screen that cost 162 yen). The dishes usually have a pair of nigiri sushi. The one that cost me 162 yen had three pieces of tuna (one fatty, one medium fatty and one lean). It is also great that they do not have a system of colored plates with different prices according to the color (it can get confusing sometimes).

That’s as cheap as it gets for fresh sushi. Again, this is sushi fast food but everything was made by the book and I had a positive experience. If you are looking for cheap sushi and you like the coveyor belt concept, I strongly recommend Hamazushi. After all, you cannot have an omakase every day!

Where in Tokyo:
They are everywhere in Japan. Check their website for locations (even if for some reason the English version of the website only list a fraction of their locations).
The location I visited was located on the second floor of Wira Oi shopping mall.

Massive omakase for 6,480 yen at Sushi Manten in Tokyo

After trying a luxury omakase in Sapporo and an unforgettable one in Osaka, I finally went for an omakase in Tokyo. There are many starred sushi restaurants offering omakase in Tokyo; I wish one day to try one, but they are very difficult to book. As a general rule, you need someone speaking Japanese calling the restaurant. Five star hotel concierges usually do that. Honestly, too complicated. Luckily I found a reference online to a mid-range sushi restaurant that could be booked online (see info at the end of the post): Sushi Manten.

The visit

With a reservation at 7.30pm on a Sunday evening, I arrived at 7pm. They had some free seats and allowed me to start my meal before the reservation time.

Sushi Manten is located in the basement level of a nice plaza called Marunouchi Brick Square. In the restaurant, two cooks serve up to 14 customers at the counter and some more customers seated at a table. The place really maximizes space… that means that you can feel a bit like in a sardine can. Take this into account. Service is very fast and the two cooks really work hard.

The cooks would hand you each piece of sushi (or sahsimi) on a plate in front of you. As usual, no need for adding soy sauce, they would take care of everything. Unfortunately, the counter is designed in a way that you cannot see exactly how they are preparing the dishes, even if they are in front of you. Most of the guests were foreigners.

To get things started, I was quickly handed a mini bowl of clam soup. Good.

First piece of sushi was a sardine. The first part of the meal seemed to be dedicated to sour and more dense flavors.

Then I was offered some seaweed in a nice vinaigrette sauce.

Then there were two pieces of Japanese halibut (hirame) sashimi. It was referred as seabass by the cooks.

Again sashimi, in the form of two bites of Spanish mackerel.

Again a piece of hirame, this time as sushi.

Then I was offered some wasabi leaves (or beans). This was something new. It looked like seaweed and it was quite hot… took me some time to finish it.

Then I was offered a piece of tofu (with some nutty backtaste). Very fresh. Almost a palate cleanser.

Then I got some shirasu (that means in general whitebait), in particular these were baby sardines. The flavor now started to revolve around salty dishes.

Then again something salty with a piece of mentaiko, that is spiced cod roe.

Back to sushi, with a piece of kin medai.

The next sushi was topped by a typical Japanese mushroom called enoki and came with a bulb of ginger.

Next, some edamame (immature soybeans in pods).

Then I was given a bowl of chawanmushi with a prevalence of crab.

Salmon roe (ikura) cannot be missed in an omakase… in this case on rice.

Next, some abalone sashimi, including some roe I believe.

Back to sushi with a raw sweet shrimp.

Then I really appreciated the salty flavor of some tarako (fresh and salted pollock roe. It is like mentaiko, but without the spicy flavor.

The next course was two pieces of tuna sushi, one piece was regular tuna and one the priced melt-in-your-mouth fatty tuna.

Then I was handed directly in my hand some uni (sea urchin) on rice in a piece of nori (a type of dried seaweed normally used with sushi rolls). Delicious.

Again, I was handed in my hand a “deconstructed” roll (temaki) with minced tuna.

The next piece signalled that we were heading toward the end: a piece of Japanese omelette (tamago)

Another classic end dish for an omakase: the miso soup, in this case a shijimi miso soup. Shijimi is a type of mini clam (sometimes called basket or blue clam) and very appreciated for miso soup. Only downside that it would take forever to eat the content of the clams! I believe this is kind of a signature dish that I saw also in another review of Manten Sushi.

In this finale, flavor went toward the sweet and this was confirmed by the next piece: anago sushi (saltwater eel that is indeed quite sweet as opposed to its freshwater cousin unagi).

Again with a sweet flavor from the sea in the form of a piece of sea cucumber.

With two seedless grapes handed again directly in my hand the meal ended.

This was an epic meal. The all experience lasted exactly 90 minutes. All the dishes were delicious and I was happy to experience a number of classics (hirame, tuna, uni, etc) along with some creative choices (tarako, abalone, wasabi leaves).

The check

The omakase cost 6,480 yen, including green tea, that’s around 58 USD. For over 20 dishes, that’s great value for money. I appreciated that they also included some expensive type of sushi like o-toro (fatty tuna) and abalone. They did not shortchange me in anyway. I enjoyed every bite and I was totally satisfied by the meal.

The only downside was that you are really squeezed seating at the counter. I was lucky enough that the seat at my left was empty for most of my meal. While I totally recommend Manten Sushi, comfort is important for me and this might be a dealbreaker.

If you know other great places for omakase in Tokyo not rated in the Michelin Guide, write in the comments.

Where in Tokyo:
2-6-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda, Tokyo: in the basement of Marunouchi Brick Square building (丸の内ブリックスクエア).
In Japanese: 丸の内２丁目６ー1 丸の内ブリックスクエアB1F.
There is an underground passage to Marunouchi South Exit of Tokyo Station.
Use this website for a reservation.
Check the restaurant’s website for up to date information. They also have another location in Nihombashi.

My favorite sushi restaurant chain in Tokyo: Itamae Sushi

On a very famous review website that I shall not name there are over 97,000 restaurants listed in Tokyo. 97,000! Not a typo. Eating options are certainly not lacking in Tokyo, but finding a good place may be sometimes a challenge. Tokyo is the only city in Japan where, times to times, when I had not done enough research, I ended up with a less than satisfactory meal. For this reason let me share one everyday sushi eatery that has never let me down: Itamae Sushi. It is a chain, but they do not compromise on quality. It is well-known in Tokyo as, among other things, in the early 2000s they would systematically win the first tuna auction of the year at Tsukiji fish market (that is kind of a big deal as it is thought to bring good luck to the restaurant and it is widely reported by the media); in 2011 they were in the news again as they offered a sushi meal to over 1300 volunteers that were working in the aftermath of the devastating Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.

For me they have two big pluses. First, they buy tuna and seafood directly from the auctions in Tokyo Fish Market and that’s great (sure, you can have comparably fresh seafood from a distributor, but I like when the supply chain is shortened). The other big plus for me is that they have a special focus on tuna (maguro), my favorite fish!

The visit

I usually go to Itamae Sushi in their Ginza Corridor branch. This post in based on a visit at the end of June 2018. Ginza Corridor is a foodie destination, in the South-West area of Ginza, hosting countless izakayas and Japanese and Westerner restaurants, pubs and cafes. Once I had a fugu dinner there! The restaurant is small, with counter seats and some additional table seats. It is ideal for a quick lunch.

The photo above showing their tuna mix sushi is the main reason why I go. For less than 20 USD I can get this amazing tuna platter, including regular tuna, two pieces of medium-fatty tuna (chu-toro) and one piece of the prized o-toro (fatty tuna). By the way, I am not that big on o-toro: yes, it melts in your mouth, but it is quite heavy to the point to be difficult to digest… the best for me is chu-toro.

The set also includes three rolls and an additional piece of negitori sushi, that is minced tuna in this case with scallions.

Coming with a complimentary miso soup (for lunch only), this is a very satisfactory lunch set and a great way to sample tuna. By the way, for dinner they keep the same menu, just not the free miso soup and a few other lunch set options.

The check

This great lunch cost me only 1,980 yen, that is around 18 USD. Tax included and no additional service charge. Great value for money and one of my go-to places for a quick but fresh and satisfactory lunch when in Tokyo.

PS: Of course they have much more on the menu. You can find all the typical sushi types and order single pieces or sushi combinations.

Where in Tokyo:
8-2-13 Ginza, J bldg 1F, Ginza, Chuo 104-0061
See their website for further addresses in Tokyo.
Pro-tip: time to time in some branches they have tuna cutting events where you can observe a chef skillfully cutting an entire tuna.

Luxury omakase chez Sushi Tanabe – in Sapporo

Omakase means more or less “I leave it to you” and it is a code word for luxury multi-course meals in Japan where the chef decide what you get. Typically an omakase involves sushi and this was the case with Sushi Tanabe, a premium dining venue in Sapporo, Hokkaido. Sushi Tanabe has been around for around 13 years (my visit dates back to July 2018) and 3 years ago moved in the current location a stone throw away from Sapporo station in a fancy commercial tower, The Rokkattei Building, on the 9th floor (where, by pure coincidence, you can find another interesting venue, Molière Café, the coffee shop spin-off of one of the most renown restaurants in town). In 2012 it was one of the 4 restaurants to get three stars (the highest award) in the inaugural Michelin guide for Hokkaido. The stars were abruptly dropped in the 2017 guide (more on this later).

The visit

I was able to make a reservation for dinner (it is not open for lunch) by email (a, rarity in Japan), but it does not look like a sold-out location any longer so walk-ins are probably possible. By the way, they have a pretty large location, with a big counter seating 13 guests and two cooking stations for two chefs to work simultaneously (they also have two private rooms, but the beauty of an omakase is to seat close to the chef).

I ordered the basic omakase set including an appetizer, 10 pieces of sushi and desserts for 10,500 yen plus plus (more on this in the “the check” section). Two more menus were available with additional grilled dishes and sashimi (the most expensive being priced 16,800 yen or around 150 USD).

As it happens in this kind of restaurants, the chef personally grated the horseradish to use in the sushi rice (no horseradish/wasabi available for the diner, all is taken care by the chef including the soy sauce) and cut the ginger (that was not replenished during the meal).

On the contrary of what happened in my previous omakase in Osaka, the chef served multiple customers arriving at different times and ordering different menus.

Here’s what I got:

Appetizer: a succulent oyster from Hokkaido with vinegar (but it was a small bite, I did not have the time to dip it).
Hirame: white fish usually translated with halibut.
Maguro: classic slice of tuna.
Kohada: gizzard shad is a small fish (around 5 inches) and the preparation involved to cut the fish slice on the surface, I guess to make it softer and get the flavor to emerge). According to the Sushi Geek, this fish undergoes extensive preparation and is marinated in vinegar.
Hotate: a meaty Hokkaido scallop, cleaned on the spot by the chef from the shell.
Aji: Japanese horse mackerel, with spring onion.
Kin medai: a reddish slice of golden eye snapper.
Uni: served on rice sprinkled with salt.
Sake: salmon, a piece with a bit of skin attached for extra flavor.
Ikura: a generous amount of salmon roe.
Miso soup.
Anago: a melt-in-your mouth saltwater eel.
Tamago: two bites of Japanese omlette.
Two desserts: Japanese tea and a cup of crème brûlée and ice cream with a bite of Hokkaido melon.

From the drink menu I ordered a Japanese peach juice. You can browse the gallery below to see pictures of each dish.

All dishes were delicious and executed by the book by the chef in front of me.

The check

The total damage for the dinner was 12,398 yen (around 112 USD). For an omakase dinner like this I find the price acceptable. I was put off by the flat service charge of 1,500 yen (that’s 13.5 USD) that I had not seen mentioned on the website. I know that it is normal for Japanese restaurants to levy cover charges (usually in exchange for a small appetizer called otashi), but I would have preferred them to embed this charge in the menu price or declare it on the website. While overall I was satisfied and I got my omakase, the large space and the fact that the chef was serving multiple customers with different orders at the same time made the meal less intimate than my omakase in Osaka. I would call this omakase “by the book”. Everything was executed well, no complaints, but I found the chef a bit too mechanic and hasty. Maybe was this the reason the restaurant lost its Michelin award? This is just speculation, but I felt there was no soul in the overall experience and I was in a cookie-cutter type of operation. This is not meant to be a disparaging comment. I would certainly recommend the place to others, especially considering that they are accustomed to deal with foreign customers and that’s certainly a plus. Personally, now I know what I want: in the future I will scout for smaller and more intimate places where I can see the chef/owner truly involved and enthusiast about the food he or she is preparing.

Where in Sapporo:
The Rokkattei Building 9 floor, 3-3, North 4 West 6, Chu-ou-ku, Sapporo city
Address in Japanese: 札幌市中央区北４条西６丁目六花亭ビル９階
See website in English for more information.

This meal changed the way I see sushi, for ever

Everybody knows about sushi: that quintessential Japanese food, raw fish on rice. I ate tons of sushi around the world in my life and I thought to be an expert, but I came to the conclusion that I had only scratched the surface after this unforgettable lunch in a classic “omakase” sushi restaurant in Osaka called Sushi Chiharu. Omakase means “”I’ll leave it up to you” and indicates a course meal whose components are decided by the chef. Sushi Chiharu embodies this concept in a classic small restaurant where all customers seat together at the counter and are served directly by the chef. In the case of Sushi Chiharu they have 7 seats on the first floor for lunch and 6 more seats upstairs that are available for dinner. All the diners are served simultaneously and this means that you need to show up punctually (lunch starts either at 11am or at 12.30; I joined the second group).

PS: I was back in June 2019 and I tried also their premium dinner omakase.

The visit

I chose this restaurant because it was recommended by the Michelin Guide (as a Bib Gourmand) and it allowed online reservation in English. This is really not common, most of these restaurants are very difficult to access without phone reservation. The reservation process was easy and did not involve any deposit. You can find the details on the restaurant’s website. (Update: since June 2019 they have been using a new system that requires credit card guarantee.)

The restaurant is located in an alley full of eateries in what seems an interesting neighborhood for food, Fukushima, and is operated by young chefs (the restaurant is affiliated with a cooking school). A female chef attended my group and prepared the sushi in front of us, while the male colleague worked in the tiny kitchen behind the scenes. All the other diners were Japanese and I certainly appreciated that the chef spoke in English to explain me the dishes.

What impressed me was how meticulously every piece of sushi was prepared. Forget about raw fish on rice! The fish component was attentively cut and dipped in soy sauce when appropriate while the rice was enriched with horseradish (wasabi) that was freshly grated at the very beginning of the meal (and it is not strong). Additional condiments were added for each piece of sushi in order to extol the right flavor. The best part was seeing the chef handling the rice in one hand, the fish in the other and finally putting the two together. There was something artistic in the movement and the result was that rice and seafood were seamlessly amalgamated together. This is how sushi is supposed to be made. Let’s see each piece of sushi part of this omakase.

The appetizer consisted in a small bite of broiled tuna surmounted by two specs of bell pepper.

The first piece of sushi was squid (ika) that was shredded by the chef with her knife and recomposed on each piece of rice. A sprinkle of lime and salt was added to enrich the flavor. Ika is not usually my kind of sushi but with this kind of preparation it was delicious.

The second piece was another white fish (hirame, most likely halibut). The fish was soaked in soy sauce but no wasabi was added to the rice to keep the flavor simple.

The third piece was a classic mackerel made sweet by the soy sauce.

The fourth piece was tuna (maguro) slightly seared. The chef added a tiny bit of mustard on top that beautifully added to the flavor.

The fifth dish was a tablespoon of sea urchin presented in a bowl with a pinch of wasabi. We were invited to mix it in the bowl with a wooden spoon.

The sixth dish was again a piece of sushi, this time a scallop (hotate), very meaty and generously soaked in soy sauce (but the sauce did not interfere with the natural taste of the scallop).

The seventh piece of sushi was made with tai (a pinkish fish that in English is usually translated as red snapper or seabream). A good dose of wasabi and lime were added. Tai is not usually that tasty, but it was in this case.

As an eighth dish we got a double piece of sushi made with a big cooked prawn whose shell was removed by the chef in front of us. The prawn was also soaked in egg yolk sauce and different types of salt and condiments were added to each piece.

The ninth piece of sushi sported a cut of saltwater eel called anago in Japanese. This is very different from the more common unagi (freshwater eel) that has a strong bitter flavor. Anago is a bit sweet and very tender. It melted in the mouth and did not leave any bad taste. The anago was grilled before being placed on the sushi.

The tenth dish consisted in two pieced of Japanese omlette called tamago and in a cup of miso soup. Tamago is also served on rice, but in this case was offered alone as the final dish. Since it has a sweet flavor, it is customarily left as the final piece of sushi to have in a meal. At this point of the meal the chef also asked if anyone wanted any additional piece of sushi (that was possible at a cost of course).

The check

I loved every second of this meal. Every dish was fresh and tasty like no similar sushi I had tasted before. I enjoyed watching the chef that not only showed impeccable skills but also looked genuinely happy in doing her work. I will venture to say that her calm passion was transmitted in the outcome of her work and in the atmosphere of the meal in general. The final check was 3000 yen (27 USD) that is more than reasonable and included green tea. Actually, I felt it was a steal. This kind of omakase meals easily cost 100 USD and up and, as I would have experienced shortly after in Sapporo, the added cost does not always translate in additional benefits. Sometimes, you end paying this money for a matsu (mix) of sushi in a regular sushi restaurant that will not show this level of attention and competence in the preparation of each piece of sushi. All in all, Sushi Chiharu was a great find and I would recommend it to everyone who wants to try this kind of experience.

Where in Osaka
5-12-14, Fukushima, Fukushima-ku Osaka-shi, Osaka
Address in Japanese: 所在地〒553-0003 大阪府大阪市福島区福島5-12-14コーポ福島1
See their website for more information and link to the reservation system.