Sushi Obana (鮨おばな) Tatebayashi

Tabelog 4.23 🥉⁣
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Sushi Obana commenced its legend in Tatebayashi 32 years ago. Taisho, Obana San, is one of the most respected sushi chefs in the industry. In fact, Obana San was also one of the 3 masterminds behind Sushi Tokami [鮨とかみ].⁣
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September is a good season for sushi as we will still get decent uni and maguro at the same time. My favorite nigiri was the kita-murasaki uni produced by Tachibana which came with a lychee flavor. The aka-uni was concentrated, creamy and very sweet - I just had to add one more piece to catch the last bit of aka uni season. As for tsumamis, the depth of flavor of the awabi was out of this word. I also enjoyed the warayaki sawara a lot - not much surprise, just sheer deliciousness. Let’s not forget the signature senaka and shimofuri otoro nigiri that struck a perfect balance between fattiness, sweetness and meatiness.⁣
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Reservation is only open to regular customers only, and you are advised to make your reservation 6 months in advance.⁣
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💴Budget: 33,000 yen⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
🐟 Neta: 9⁣
🍙 Shari: 9⠀⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
🦪 Tsumami: 8.5⁣
🍹Drinks: 9⠀⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
🏢 Vibes: 9.5⁣
⚖️ C/P: 10 Less

Sushi Obana is a family run sushiya in Gunma ( 90 mins north of Tokyo ) . The husband and wife team deliver one of the best sushi experiences you could possibly imagine. Humour and warmth is their style of hospitality, and the quality of the Edomae style sushi is astonishing.
Bookings are hard to come by as Obana is not accepting new customers so find someone to bring you along !! It is perhaps the best sushiya I have been and it is definitely my favourite .

It’s easy to focus on the marquee names in a meal like this , #1 boxes of Uni or incredible Tuna from Yamayuki , but there was simply a lot to love .

The best awabi steamed for 4 hours , the flavour had deeply amplified .
Seneka ( tuna back ) had great soft texture .
Shimofuri aged for 2 weeks was absolutely luscious .
First time having Nakazumi ( grown up Kohada ) was also a highlight .
The secret ikura which was a reddish/grey had deep saltiness and a vastly different texture .
This did also start my love affair with aka uni , the quality of aka uni over the last few days has been phenomenal.
Also a fun vegetable nigiri with mustard greens and daikon sprouts, I really could go on and on ….

Course menu below

Ala ? - sea perch
Sawara grilled on straw
Bafun Uni parfait
Awabi steamed for 4 hours
Nodogoro with fish head broth
Akigai himo maki
Sanma
Poached oyster with Aonori and yuzu koshi
Nakazumi
Nodogoro Kimo
Toro Taku maki

Madai
Kohada
Secret ikura
Akami
Senaka
Shimofuri
Shin - ika
Kasugo
Akagai
Iwashi
Shima ebi
Hamago
Kaiwari daiko
Kuruma ebi with head sauce
Aka uni
Murasaki uni
Anago
Tanago Less

in gunma, japan (march’24)

a splendid sushi lunch with the best company, sushi obana has exceeded an already high expectation and makes me want to come back repeatedly despite the ~1.5hour train ride to get there.

tsumami were somewhat simple but unique, started with a lovely tatebayashi tomato, before a series of sashimi. highlights were the konowata chawanmushi and uni parfait, and loved the little maki made with akagai himo and cucumber.

obana san wasn’t shy to explain in detail the making of his shari and use of ingredients, showcasing his different sources of salt for example, with some harvested on a new moon versus full moon for different intents. truly enjoyed his use of aged vinegar for his shari which matched well with the range of neta. his special connections also meant he can get some of the best fish in the country, in particular his maguro, so looking forward to come back during winter time. highlights this lunch included his kanpachi, sayori, sumi ika, sawara, as well as all his shellfish today. so plump and so much briny flavour which surpassed all the other places i visited on this trip. not to mention his ikura, my most looking forward item, in his secret blend of miso and dashi shoyu, could happily indulge in the whole bowl.

definitely one of my top top sushiyas recently, especially with the laidback environment and obana san’s humble and approachable personality making it a worthwhile journey. looking forward to coming back here, thank you for the invitation.

lunch omakase (¥28,000)
✨館林市トマト local tomato
黒鯛 kuro dai
さわらの藁焼き sawara
✨ウニパフェ uni ‘parfait’
牡蠣と柚子胡椒 oyster with yuzukosho
✨このわたの茶碗蒸し konowata chawanmushi
あん肝 ankimo
赤貝ひも　キュウリ akagai with cucumber

✨カンパチ kanpachi
小肌 kohada
✨いくら漬け ikura
赤身 akami
中トロ chutoro
大トロ otoro
✨スミイカ sumi ika
✨サヨリ sayori
✨赤貝 akagai
✨さわら sawara
牡丹海老 botan ebi
✨鳥貝 torigai
車海老丼 kuruma ebi don
✨紫ウニ murasaki uni
追加:貝割れ大根 daikon sprouts
✨追加:ハマグリ hamaguri
穴子 anago
卵焼き tamagoyaki

アイスモナカ ice-cream monaka
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would revisit: yes
introduction only
price range pp: ¥20,000-¥60,000
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📍鮨おばな
location: 5-1 otemachi, tatebayashi, gunma
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#2feastingpigs_gunma
#2feastingpigs_tokyo
#2feastingpigs_japan Less

Tabelog 4.16 🥉

1) Kita-murasaki Uni[北紫雲丹] from Hatate [羽立水產]

Our visit was in late Nov so we didn’t expect to see so many types of uni. Thanks to the special arrangement by Obana San, we got to try the no.1 kita-murasaki uni from 3 best producers. Without a shadow of a doubt, Hatate was textbook kita-murasaki uni, which was packed with ocean flavors and delicate sweetness to finish. The freshness was also outstanding as the uni was firm and creamy.

2) Kita-murasaki Uni from Tachibana [橘水產]

Tachibana has always been my favorite. The nicer ones usually come with a unique peanut butter attack and a floral finish. Again, it’s a completely new box. Hands down the best piece of uni of this winter trip.

3) Buri from Hokkaido [北海道], Ginger Shoyu

First time having buri zuked with ginger shoyu and it worked for me. To be frank, the ginger flavor was very mild but it managed to bring out more meaty flavors so that our palate would not be dominated by the fattiness of buri. The warmer shari was equally sensational.

4) Kuruma Ebi [車海老], Kuruma Ebi Shoyu

5) Kohada [小鰭]

6) Anago [穴子]

Crispy outside and velvety inside – my favorite rendition of anago nigiri.

8) Sawara Zuked with Secret Shoyu

Hard to explain the sensation – just imagine the meaty flavor of sawara crossing over with the finish of smoked salmon. The zuke process also softened the flesh. All of us were impressed by such an extraordinary interpretation of sawara.
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8) Uni Parfait

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Sushi Obana commenced its legend in Tatebayashi 32 years ago. Taisho, Obana San, is one of the most respected sushi chefs by industry people. In fact, Obana San was also one of the 3 masterminds behind Sushi Tokami [鮨とかみ]. Needless to say, Obana San has exclusive access to the best maguro offered by Yamayuki. Reservation is only open to regular customers only, and you are advised to make your reservation 9 months in advance.
-—————⁣
💴Budget: 33,000 yen⁣
🐟 Neta: 9.5
🍙 Shari: 9⠀⁣⁣
🦪 Tsumami: 8.5⠀⁣⁣
🍹Drinks: 10⠀⁣⁣
🏢 Vibes: 10⠀⁣⁣
⚖️ C/P: 10 Less