I have five years experience in kitchens as a prep cook, anywhere from fast food/casual to bistros and fine dining. Recently I got an opportunity to interview for a sushi restaurant and I’m really nervous for the first time in a few years. I’ve never worked with Asian cuisine at all and haven’t a single clue about making sushi. I’m also nervous because my aunt was my in for the job and she found it on a Chinese messaging app. The owner was vocally worried about me not speaking Chinese. (I speak very little - lived in China for a year a decade ago.)
I really want this to go well because they’re starting me at $13/hr, 40 hours a week guaranteed, and will teach me everything. Once I can work on my own they’ll move me to $20/hr. (For reference I don’t mind the low pay because I’m currently working for $13.50)
And advice for me? Thanks guys.
Went to HFF last Saturday and got the $55 all you can eat. Ordered bluefin tuna sushi but they served me yellowfin tuna instead. I didn't realize it on the first go around because I was buzzing on the pitcher of beer that I had chugged. The color was not the deep red of the BFT akami but was the light pink color and the texture was definitely not bft. Never going back there again. Anybody going there should be careful so they don't pull a fast one on you.
Back w another sushi pic from the wknd before!! AYCE sushi w wonderful rice to fish ratio ;)
I have been making my own sushi at home. I am interested in getting my hands on authentic wasabi. Does anyone have any recommendations for where to get it? Grocery stores or online?
How I do? Was told this is safe. Used a mostly sugar to salt mixture, lathered onto the thawed salmon filet, let sit for 45 minutes, rinsed, cut, enjoyed. Will have wasabi on stock tomorrow :)
I took my wife out to swordfish for her birthday in Batavia Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, and ordered the Omakase. These are most, but not all of the courses. What are missing are the chef’s special salad and yellowtail and salmon Nigiri. The dry ice cups are part of their schtick. Bill was $200, with 40 of that being sake. First picture is Ama Ebi and Tobiko. (My wife and I both agreed that at $30 for the two pieces, it was not a good value). Next Amber Jack, bluefin, Otoro, and red snapper sashimi. Then Unagi sashimi. And finally a crab ball.
Sushi Kobayashi. Ebisu, Tokyo. April 2026.
I’ll start by saying that the shari here is handily my favorite in my limited experience with high-end sushi. It was not as mild and transparent as Sushi Harasho, yet avoided the sharper, more jarring profile I experienced at Sushi Kisen.
I was pleasantly surprised by how thoughtfully temperature control was incorporated throughout the nigiri. It became one of the defining elements behind my three favorite pieces of the night: akami, uni, and anago.
The akami was served over slightly warm shari and ended up being the most soothing nigiri of the evening. To this point, it’s the best akami I’ve had.
My favorite bite, however, was the uni. The shari here came almost chilled, which elevated both the freshness and sweetness of the uni. It was the second true “wow” moment of the meal.
I may be remembering the anago with more fondness than it objectively deserves relative to the akami and uni, but it still left a lasting impression. Served over nearly hot shari, the heat accentuated the anago’s flakiness and created a wonderful contrast with the Uni that preceded it.
Highlights for the Otsumami included the Abalone, Octopus, grilled squid and fish. My favorite was the tender octopus.
Chef Ikuya Kobayashi trained at Sushi Saito before leading both Sushi Saito Hong Kong and 3110NZ, the latter a unique art gallery and sushi counter hybrid. He earned two Michelin stars at both establishments before opening Sushi Kobayashi in October 2025.
He earned two Michelin stars at both establishments before opening Sushi Kobayashi in October 2025.
The staff consisted of just three people: Chef Kobayashi, his wife, who handled front-of-house duties, and an apprentice. Service was warm throughout the evening. His wife spoke excellent English, and my party was pleasantly surprised to learn that the apprentice also had some basic conversational Cantonese.
The booking was made via Instagram in December 2025. The meal came out to roughly ¥29,000 per person, with the omakase priced around ¥26,000 before drinks. Most of my party shared sake, while I opted for a few pours of Balvenie and Glenfiddich. The whisky pours were very reasonably priced at around ¥1,000 each, with a solid selection to choose from. Chef Kobayashi and his wife later generously offered me a pour of Suntory Yamazaki on the house, which was a delightful gift 🤗.
I believe there's now the option to book via Tableall but I'm seeing a much higher price at 42,500 PP.
The eight-seat counter was mostly filled with foreign guests, though the one regular stood out as a long-time patron of Chef Kobayashi, having followed him all the way from Sushi Saito. The corner seat was self-selected; an older couple in my party of five was seated right in front of Chef Kobayashi for their first omakase in Japan 😊. The hinoki counter felt luxurious, and I was seated next to a beautiful slab of wood from the chef’s hometown. You’ve got to love a place that respects wood.
This was the best sushi-ya I’ve visited so far. I've been dreaming of the Akami and Uni. Above all else, the shari here was unforgettable.
Course description:
Otsumami:
Nigiri:
Slowly getting better, I should probably buy myself a longer knife at some point because it's gotten hard to keep the salmon nigiri neta thin and consistent. Always run out of room on the knife!
Other than that I think my torched sushi came out nice. I added a small amount of 1/2 Kewpie, shichimi, gochujang, and garnished with yuzu kosho and a dab of unagi sauce. The other is a lightly torched ponzu sushi with gronion!
Made a little poke and some sashimi
₹265 = $2.76