Sushi Sensei

I first started coming here 25+ years ago when I was working on a project in Honolulu; we would take our client from the mainland there because he loved it so much. My wife and I ate there in 2001 when we first started dating. It was mind blowing, surreal, sushi like you never get anywhere else, although you need to be able to eat about anything shows up (or let your companions eat yours). The chef had the reputation at the time of being the "sushi Nazi" because he would kick people out if they did not eat the sushi bites properly. We just went back this week, and were delighted to find that the place has not changed a bit! It still looks like a hole in the wall from the outside in a credit part of town, is attractive and welcoming inside, and the food is still mind-blowingly incredible. The same chef is still there, when we talked to our waiter about it, he laughed and said that the chef is much nicer now, and in fact he was all smiles when we thanked him profusely as we left. I guess another thing that did change is the prices, no surprise. It is shockingly expensive, so you need to be able to pay for it and consider it a once in X years special occasion. You can tell them to stop partway through the experience which is 12 – 14 dishes and it will be less. We went all the way through, plus a large bottle of sake, and 2 desserts, and the bill was $950 including the service charge/tip and taxes. Still, a must do if you are a sushi connoisseur!

Top two omakase experience in my life. I went to some Michelin star omakase in Paris, some in Japan, Canada, USA. Here the sushi is amazing. Even though you get pieces 2 by 2, I found the fish / spice assortment amazing. Really impressed. Some aspects are lower tier than other omakase restaurants of the same price: cheap chopsticks, pace, slightly dated decor. But the food was so good… 5*! Btw I really loved the look of the place. Conserving this type of decoration is very important. It is just very different from the current fashion, BUT I LOVE IT!

Amazing! I took my girlfriend for her birthday. She loved it so much I’m glad we we were able to go. The sushi was top notch, and omakase experience was one of the best I’ve ever experienced in all my travels. Hats off to the chef.