Omakase in a room

We managed to try Sushi Masuda in Tokyo's Aoyama right before Chef Rei Masuda closed his namesake restaurant to focus on his outlets elsewhere. I did hesitated when i was told the only seats available would be the one in the private room instead of the counter, but given our tight schedule this time and it's "now or never", I reluctantly said okay to such arrangement and confirmed our booking. And part of me wanted to treat this as an experiment to see how much our dining experience would change at a rather unusual setting.

Chef Masuda came highly recommended by our foodie friends as one of the top young sushi chef, and knowing he has trained at Sukiyabashi Jiro for almost a decade before going on his own 5 years ago, I had little doubt this is going to be an extraordinary meal regardless the circumstances. With most high-end sushi-ya located in Ginza area, this seems to be an odd one out, situated in the basement of a commercial building in Aoyama not far away from Omatesando station. We arrived right on time and were seated straight away in a cozy room tucked behind the sushi counter and bar.

A single omakase menu was served, starting with a few otsumami dishes followed by sushi pieces. Meal definitely went off to a good start with a series of well-executed otsumami small plates. The half-cooked ara (grouper) dressed with ponzu and chopped green onions was refreshing and with great texture. I wondered how the awabi (abalone) and caviar would work together given both featured very strong flavor on its own, but the combination was brilliant with strong mineral umami flavor dominated the palate. The mehikari (greeneye fish) was slow roasted on open-fire with the bone removed, with only a pinch of salt and lemon juice added to accompany the fatty meat and crispy skin.

The amadai (tilefish) was steamed with fish broth and served with green onion on top – again, I love the delicate texture and flavor (and take note western chefs – there are more ways to serve this fish other than pan-fried with the crispy skin and scales) The Katsuo (skipjack tuna) looked simple with two slices served but I love the distinct smokiness and fatty texture, served with a light soy sauce with grated ginger and onion on the side. And we finished with a hand roll with anago (sea eel) and cucumber, which was also excellent with the shari heavily seasoned with vinegar, which seems to be one of the chef’s signature “move”.

Then it came the time for nigiri sushi, which was brought to us in pairs. First round was ika (squid) and kawahagi (filefish) – I felt the latter was the better of the pair with almost creamy texture thanks to the liver served on top and the shari worked well with the overall richness. Akagai (ark shell) and aji (horse mackerel) were next – both hard to find with such quality outside of Japan and both outstanding this time, with the perfect hint of ginger underneath the piece of aji cutting down the fatty taste.

I felt the piece of akami (lean tuna) was a great lead-in to the trio of tuna courses served, mildly marinated with soft texture. The chu-toro (medium fatty tuna) was slightly sinewy on the side but otherwise it’s of perfect fattiness. Of all the nigiri sushi courses served, I think the o-toro (fatty tuna) has the best shari-neta combination in terms of flavor and the most memorable all evening. The kohada (gizzard shad) has excellent texture too, but I thought it’s slightly too much in terms of acidity. The kuruma ebi (giant prawn) was also one of the best I had and buri (yellowtail) was of great quality too.

Of course, one might argue the fact that it took a little longer for the course to reach us would affect the overall quality, but the difference is only academic at best, with the exception of the pair of gunkan sushi served towards the end (or we just didn't have a sharp enough palate to tell). We did find the nori slightly soggier than we expected hence left much room for improvement. But of the two, I would say the uni (sea urchins) the better one over akura (salmon roes). Then the last dish served was the egg castella cake, soft and delicate but with rich eggy taste.

Went with a few nihonshu served on neat glass carafe – starting with something lighter then stepping up in dryness and ended with something slightly off-dry. Love the Gorin Junmai Daijinjo best from the brewery in Ishikawa. Full-bodied with slightly rich flavor stood up well with the sushi with equally strong flavor and character in the middle of our meal.

As of the "experiment" that was at the back of our mind – yes strangely I did feel something was missing as we didn’t get to see the chef making the sushi in front of us, and maybe there is some intrinsic interactions between the sushi itamae and their customers even when little words were spoken. But it just meant we had a different dining experience and it didn’t make this less nice than we expected – in fact we found it more care-free and less rushed than what it would be sitting at the counter when we sometimes felt like we were regularly under the watchful eyes. And next time, we would have to try his food at his other restaurant across town, or his new namesake sushi-ya in Taipei.

(More photos on my Flickr album: https://www.flickr.com/photos/g4gary/albums/72157711179913716)

When? September 28 2019
Where? Sushi Masuda, Minami Aoyama 5-8-11, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
鮨ます田 東京都港区南青山5-8-11 萬楽庵ビル B1F
Drinks?
Hidakami Junmai Daiginjo - Hirako Shuzo, Miyagi Prefecture
日高見 純米大吟醸 - 宮城県平考酒造

Gorin Junmai Daiginjo - Shata Shuzo, Ishikawa Prefecture
五凛 純米大吟醸 - 石川県車多酒造
Sari Gowari Morohaku Junmai Daiginjo, Mouri Shuzo, Fukui Prefecture
紗利 五割諸白 純米大吟醸 - 福井県毛利酒造