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Tabelog 4.40 🥈⁣
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Yamazaki San has a unique culinary background, spending 8 years at a traditional kaiseki restaurant called Morikawa [もりかわ] and some time at another 2 extremely famous fusion restaurants, Chiune and Aca. His culinary journey was indeed fully reflected in his food - the spot-on fusion influence was also one of the key reasons that I really love this restaurant. ⁣
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In my recent visit, the menu featured some of my favorite Japanese ingredients such as crab, kinmedai and unagi. Surprisingly, it was my first time trying Yamazaki San’s grilled unagi and it did live up to expectation. The surface was crispy, and the meat was perfectly grilled into a flaky texture like pastry. I also love the salinity of the sauce, allowing the intense unagi flavor to shine. ⁣
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The gohan has never repeated since my first visit. I particularly enjoy the crunchy mouthfeel of herring roes and the refreshing sweetness of nanohana. The secret egg yolk was definitely the hero, integrating all elements into one sumptuous bite. I would have added two bowls if I didn’t have Sugalabo for dinner.⁣
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As a tradition here, the meal always finishes with a show-stopping homemade gelato. Yamazaki San heard our needs – he is going to open a Gelato shop so everyone got the chance to try his amazing recipe! ⁣
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💴Budget: 55,000 yen⁣⁣
🥘Food: 9⁣⁣
🍹Drinks: 9⁣⁣
🏢Vibes: 10⁣
⚖️C/P: 9 Less

Tabelog 4.43 🥈⁣
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Chef Shimazu is currently one of the most esteemed young sushi chefs in Tokyo. He began his career at Sushidokoro Abe [寿し処阿部]. After 5 years of training, he became the head chef of Ranmaru, a popular high-ended sushiya among younger customers at Meguro, spending another 2 years there before opening his own sushiya at Shirokane [自金]. ⁣
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When I first entered the restaurant, I was immediately impressed by the energetic vibes of the staff which was quite similar to Ryujiro – Chef Shimazu was welcoming, he would command loudly but in a respectable manner at the counter. Sake selection was outstanding and priced reasonably – the Kokuryu Nizaemon I tried was in perfect condition!⁣
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Chef Shimazu’s skills are evident, proven by the consistent and al dente shari. His maguro and hikarimono were remarkable as well. Chef Shimazu’s tsumamis were very well-executed! I was particularly impressed by the complex mouthfeel and flavors of the nagaimo & maguro tsumami. The showstopper was definitely the mirugai that I added after the omakase menu. It was so sweet and juicy, finishing with a pleasant oceanic salinity!⁣
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Overall, it was an enjoyable and interactive sushi omakase. Definitely worth a visit if you are looking for a more relaxing dining experience.⁣
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💴Budget: 35,000 yen⁣⁣⁣
🐟 Neta: 9
🍙 Shari: 9⠀⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
🦪 Tsumami: 9
🍹Drinks: 9.5⠀⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
🏢 Vibes: 9⁣⁣
⚖️ C/P: 9 Less

🇭🇰

Sushi Hare is hands down my favorite sushiya in Hong Kong. Nigiris here were consistently crafted in terms of temperature and size. Neta was of very good quality and the prep work was equally outstanding. You just have to try the black pepper anago which i have never seen such a combo elsewhere. The kitchen staff also deserved a lot of credit for the perfectly executed and well-conceived tsumamis. ⁣
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The competitive price tag of Sushi Haré is another reason that makes it notoriously difficult to book. It’s fully booked until Q4 2024 so do follow their Instagram to catch last minute cancellations.
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💴Budget: 980 hkd Less

Tabelog 3.82 🇯🇵

Sushi Take is one of the very few sushiyas in Tokyo that’s helmed by a female chef. Chef Takeuchi was trained at a legendary sushi-ya, Shimbashi Shimizu, before going independent in 2014. There are quite a lot of similarities between Sushi Take and Shimbashi Shimizu as both of them offer very old school sushi experience. Nigiris curated by Chef Takeuchi are quite large and will be placed directly on the sushi counter without a plate. Neta-wise, you are expected to see a lot of traditional ones like hamaguri [蛤], kuruma ebi [車海老], kohada [小鰭] and anago [穴子]. Similar to Chef Shimizu, Chef Takeuchi applies nitsume more often than other sushiyas do on neta like shako [蝦蛄], anago, hamaguri and ni-ika [煮烏賊], and without a doubt, her homemade nitsume was absolutely delicious. I was particularly impressed by the awabi [鮑] nigiris as I really enjoyed the tenderness and lasting sweetness & umami from the neta.

Shimbashi Shimizu is definitely the pinnacle of old school sushi, but reservation is limited to Japanese speakers only. As a tourist, Sushi Take can be an alternative as it is relatively easy to reserve. I also recommend the nigiri-only course as tsumamis are usually quite simple as the kitchen of the restaurant is quite compact.
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💴Budget: 18,000 yen⁣⁣⁣⁣ Less

🇭🇰

Sushi Mori Tomoaki closed its door in Dec 2023 as Mori San decided to go on an adventure in Philippines. Prior to its closure, it was essentially the most coveted sushi restaurant in Hong Kong, thanks to the creative tsumami, high quality neta and fun
interaction at the counter.
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In my final visit in December last year, I was really happy to revisit a lot of classic dishes such as crab paella, sansho ankimo and iwashi isobemaki. Let me know if any of you knows the details of the next venture of Mori San!

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💴Budget: 3,500 hkd Less

🇭🇰

Sushi Hare is hands down my favorite sushiya in Hong Kong. Nigiris here were consistently crafted in terms of temperature and size. Neta was of very good quality and the prep work was equally outstanding. You just have to try the black pepper anago which i have never seen such a combo elsewhere. The kitchen staff also deserved a lot of credit for the perfectly executed and well-conceived tsumamis. ⁣
⁣
The competitive price tag of Sushi Haré is another reason that makes it notoriously difficult to book. It’s fully booked until Q4 2024 so do follow their Instagram to catch last minute cancellations.
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💴Budget: 980 hkd Less

Tabelog 3.82 🇯🇵

Sushi Take is one of the very few sushiyas in Tokyo that’s helmed by a female chef. Chef Takeuchi was trained at a legendary sushi-ya, Shimbashi Shimizu, before going independent in 2014. There are quite a lot of similarities between Sushi Take and Shimbashi Shimizu as both of them offer very old school sushi experience. Nigiris curated by Chef Takeuchi are quite large and will be placed directly on the sushi counter without a plate. Neta-wise, you are expected to see a lot of traditional ones like hamaguri [蛤], kuruma ebi [車海老], kohada [小鰭] and anago [穴子]. Similar to Chef Shimizu, Chef Takeuchi applies nitsume more often than other sushiyas do on neta like shako [蝦蛄], anago, hamaguri and ni-ika [煮烏賊], and without a doubt, her homemade nitsume was absolutely delicious. I was particularly impressed by the awabi [鮑] nigiris as I really enjoyed the tenderness and lasting sweetness & umami from the neta.

Shimbashi Shimizu is definitely the pinnacle of old school sushi, but reservation is limited to Japanese speakers only. As a tourist, Sushi Take can be an alternative as it is relatively easy to reserve. I also recommend the nigiri-only course as tsumamis are usually quite simple as the kitchen of the restaurant is quite compact.
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💴Budget: 18,000 yen⁣⁣⁣⁣ Less

Tabelog 4.00⁣⁣ 🇯🇵
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Tomidokoro is one of the sushiyas that I would love to visit whenever I am in Tokyo. Customers are able to truly appreciate Taisho’s skills in terms of how to craft nigiris in a highly consistent manner and bring out the best from each type of neta. ⁣⁣
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Sato Taisho sources most of his neta from Nozomi, a subsidiary of Yamayuki Group. With all due respect, his neta might not be the most expensive ones but they truly stood out, especially the hikarimono and traditional netas. In particular, the acidity of Saba was spot on, went really well with the fatty finish. Sato San’s buri was the showstopper which was aged beautifully, bringing out layers of flavors and a silky mouthfeel. He also stepped up its sake game, the Jikon he offered was so fresh and appetising.⁣
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I honestly recommend this sushiya to every sushi-lover. Trust me, if you go for the nigiri only lunch, you’ll be impressed by the cost performance ratio when you receive the bill. ⁣⁣
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💴Budget: 20,000 yen⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
🐟 Neta: 9⁣⁣
🍙 Shari: 9⠀⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
🦪 Tsumami: N/A⁣⁣
🍹Drinks: 8.5⠀⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
🏢 Vibes: 8.5⁣⁣
⚖️ C/P: 10 Less

🇭🇰

Sushi Mori Tomoaki closed its door in Dec 2023 as Mori San decided to go on an adventure in Philippines. Prior to its closure, it was essentially the most coveted sushi restaurant in Hong Kong, thanks to the creative tsumami, high quality neta and fun
interaction at the counter.
⁡
In my final visit in December last year, I was really happy to revisit a lot of classic dishes such as crab paella, sansho ankimo and iwashi isobemaki. Let me know if any of you knows the details of the next venture of Mori San!

-—————
💴Budget: 3,500 hkd Less

Tabelog 3.98 🇯🇵

Kurosaki has long been on my to-go list since it was located at Shibuya. The new location at Aoyama was classy and aesthetic as if a modern gallery. The meal started off impressively with savory and impactful tsumamis like warayaki sawara, komochi yari-ika and fugu karaage, instantly igniting our desire for sake. The sake and wine selection was worth-mentioning, featuring various premium labels like Jikon and Kokuryu at very reasonable prices.

The nigiri session was one of the best I have ever had. Sometimes I do not need progression and the nigiris here were all flavor bombs from start to finish. Without a shadow of a doubt, the maguro trio was top-notch – akami zuke was saline, chutoro was balanced and the otoro was packed with fattiness and meatiness that lingered for a long time. Let’s not forget the shellfish – both mirugai and torigai were extremely sweet despite the fact that they weren’t in prime time yet. The showstopper was definitely the fugu shirako nigiri – so rich and creamy, pairing well with the warm and al-dente shari, absolutely an ingenious interpretation of fugu shirako!

In short, Kurosaki is the pinnacle of modern sushiya. The rating does not do him justice as it was recently relocated, erasing all of the previous credential that was built on Tabelog.

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💴Budget: 50,000 yen⁣⁣⁣⁣
🐟 Neta: 9⁣.5
🍙 Shari: 9⠀⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
🦪 Tsumami: 9.5
🍹Drinks: 10⠀⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
🏢 Vibes: 9.5⁣
⚖️ C/P: 9 Less