My post about the sushi restaurant in Tokyo where Barack Obama and Shinzo Abe had a dinner last night. Sukiyabashi Jiro is one of the best sushi restaurants in Tokyo and,without any question, the most famous in the world thanks to the documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi. According to the Wall Street Journal, the two heads of state had a presidential treatment as their dinner lasted for one and a half hour, 3 times longer than a meal normally lasts at Sukiyabashi Jiro. ( Most of the ” regular” people are out after 25-30 min…) Those who have ever been eating out in Tokyo might know the difference between “Sukiyabashi Jiro Ginza” (Tsukamoto Sogyo Building, B1F. 4-2-15, Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo ,tel. 03-3535-3600), 3 Michelin stars  and “Sukiyabashi Jiro Roppongi” (2*). You can quite easily get a booking at the latter, while if you are gaijin, a  foreigner who doesn’t speak Japanese, you have little chance of getting a reservation at Sukiyabashi Jiro Ginza. And you shouldn’t even try walking in as  you will be most likely turned away.

If you do want to eat sushi made by the hands of the “Japan’s living national treasure”, 86 year old sushi master Jiro Ono , you must speak Japanese or be accompanied by a fluent Japanese speaker. Claims of rude service and even foreigners discrimination at Sukiyabashi Jiro Ginza have been surfacing on the internet. Therefore i was a little nervous before going there, especially that the night before i read about  Andy Hayler’s  unfortunate experience. In fact, I was treated really nice and  it was one of my best sushi experiences in Tokyo ever. But first of all, how i got the reservation. The lunch for one was reserved by my Japanese friend. As i understood, the biggest Sukiyabashi Jiro reservation person concern was that i might not show up.( Let’s be fair, this happens in Europe or the US, people just don’t bother to cancel their bookings.) Once my friend guaranteed via her company that the cost of the lunch (31 500 Yen, the same price as dinner ) would be covered anyway, i got the confirmation.

Back to the basement next door to the Gap store in Ginza. When i entered the tiny, only ten places restaurant i was greeted by a lady ( who took my coat) and one of  the Jiro Ono’s  assistants. I was expecting icy expressions on everybody’s face, but that was not the case. The lady greeted me with a smile, so as the first assistant of Jiro Ono  and Ono’s son Yoshikazu Ono. The first thing the assistant asked me was if there was something i don’t eat. I don’t  eat eel,  i said in my poor Japanese. Almost immediately after i got my first sushi (which i will describe later in this post).  The intervals between each sushi piece were very short, 20 sushi meal took about half an hour. ( According to the Michelin Tokyo  guide ” one shouldn’t be surprised to be finished within 30 minutes”). Jiro Ono’s work discipline is incredible, once he is behind the counter, he operates like a  Swiss watch. At one point, the son of Jiro Ono asked me where i was from. I said that i am originally from Lithuania.

“So you must speak Russian, then”, – he answered in Russian. Suddenly the communication got a lot easier as i do speak Russian a little bit. comprar comida online limaAnd Yoshikazu Ono san , and Jiro Ono san were relaxed, pleasant and eager to chat. jiro dreams of sushi online linksThey didn’t seem to be  bothered at all about my basic Japanese or about me taking pictures of the sushi. sushi online order dubaiJiro Ono san even tried to place sushi in a way so it  looks more flattering in front of the camera. sushi club delivery rosarioWithout any hesitation he agreed to take pictures together and before leaving personally gave me the little menu with all the fish i had.sushi takeout reno

Speaking of the sushi, one thing that struck me was the sourness of the rice; it was much more vinegared than at other top Tokyo sushi restaurants I’ve been. sushi at home milanoThe fish quality was amazing and I did eat the eel nigiri after all. jiro dreams of sushi restaurant reviewsJiro san insisted i should try it and I just couldn’t say no to the legendary sushi master.( Actually i find eel very tasty, i don’t eat it purely because of psychological reasons.) Lunch at Sukiyabashi Jiro Ginza was a lifetime experience and i can’t wait to see  “Jiro dreams of sushi” ,a documentary about the man who has been making sushi since he was nine yet never ceases to search for perfection.   Chef Daisuke Nakazawa's new restaurant will not serve sushi. WEST VILLAGE —  A chef featured in the movie "Jiro Dreams of Sushi" is opening a new Japanese restaurant on Grove Street — but it won't serve any sushi.

A proposed menu crafted by chef Daisuke Nakazawa — who helms the kitchen at the acclaimed Sushi Nakazawa on Commerce Street and was featured in the "Jiro" sushi documentary — will branch out from Nakazawa's sushi specialties to feature an array of fresh seafood dishes.The menu at the as-yet-unnamed spot at 55 Grove St. combines Japanese and American ingredients and preparations.Prospective dishes for the $125-per-person tasting menu include: fluke carpaccio with white sturgeon caviar, Meyer lemon, seaweed and a Japanese mustard called karashi; a type of Japanese bluefish called Akamutsu with Bordeaux spinach and poached citrus jam; and sea urchin on a "nest" of spaghettini and arugula. Other seafood dishes of the proposed menu include Dungeness crab with roasted pistachio, broccoli and and a citrus-seasoned soy sauce called ponzu; live Maine scallop with creamed butter and blackened chives; and baby octopus with fingerling potatoes, citrus and soured cherry.Nakazawa will also try his hand at non-seafood items, such as an okra and honeycrisp apple salad;

duck liver with strawberry and honey; dry aged beef toast with wasabi, Himalayan rock salt and blackened leeks; and butternut squash ravioli with candied walnuts and Meyer lemon.Alex Borgognone, the restaurateur behind Sushi Nakazawa as well as the new spot, said one of his motivations in opening the new location is to accept walk-ins, in contrast to Sushi Nakazawa's strict reservation-only policy."We wanted to do something a little different, something where people can actually walk in without a reservation," Borgognone told members of Community Board 2's liquor license committee, requesting their support for his application to the State Liquor Authority. "It’s a little bit more of a casual setting, but once again at a high level."The new restaurant will also take reservations, but it will set aside a few tables to accommodate walk-ins. People waiting to be seated will be sent to a bar in the lower level of the restaurant, which can seat up to eight people and will offer the full menu for patrons who decide to stay and eat there.

Borgognone said that while the price point of the new restaurant will be "similar to Nakazawa," he's hoping to make his Grove Street venture family-friendly. He is taking over the whole building at 55 Grove St., though the top two floors will be set aside for office space, with the restaurant on the ground floor and the bar below.Borgognone said nothing will change at Sushi Nakazawa's original 23 Commerce St. location, where diners are offered a 20-course "omakase" — a Japanese term for a chef's choice tasting menu. The menu there changes daily based on the catch fishermen deliver to the restaurant, but has frequently featured such delicacies as a live Florida Tiger shrimp killed directly in front of the guest; eel from salty sea waters off the Japanese island of Kyushu; "torched" Geoducks (a breed of giant clam from Washington State); and large, bright orange Ikura caviar — roe harvested from the ovaries of salmon.The new eatery will be open from 11 a.m. to midnight seven days a week.