JPN: Daiwa Sushi (大和寿司) {MOVED}

The best 'anago sushi' I've ever eaten in my life!

UPDATE (03/03/2019): The eatery has moved to 6-3-2 Toyosu.

Being Japan's most famous and venerable market in the world for tourist destination, Tsukiji Market boasts its plethora of fresh seafood everyday. Don't miss breakfast when you happen to be there. I patronised Daiwa Sushi, a perennial favourite among Japanese and tourists alike, which is located just outside the main market area. I was quite lucky that day since I only had to queue for about an hour to get a seat.

Omakase ¥3,500 (~S$44.00)

Taste: 9/10

Entrusting the sushi chef to prepare seven pieces of sushi, six roll pieces, a bowl of miso (Japanese fermented rice, barley and/or soybean) soup and a cup of green tea, I was left truly satisfied at the end of the meal. The experience was sublime, to the point of being life-changing, to be able to eat the freshest and real sushi in its country of origin.

One of the highlights was definitely the toro (lit. fatty tuna) which melted, together with the right amount of wasabi (Japanese horseradish) that was placed between it and the vinegary rice, as it landed on my tongue. The maguro (lit. tuna) and ebi (lit. prawn) were delightfully sweet, while the uni (lit. sea urchin) was truly creamy and savoury. The roll pieces, three of tuna and three of salmon roe, were oily and bursting with flavour, but a tad too salty for my liking.

The tai (lit. red snapper) ought to be served earlier since its flavour was somewhat overshadowed by the richer variations given earlier, but it was equally fresh. The ika (lit. squid) was pretty sweet and by no means rubbery. To me, the best item was the anago (lit. conger eel) which softness simply let it dissolve in my mouth and was dreamily sweet. To finish it off, I ate the tamago (lit. egg) which was light, airy and of adequate sweetness.

The soup was hearty and full-bodied, filled with small clams that gave the soup a nice tang of the sea. There were also bits of chopped spring onions floating on top of it, and I could only wish there were more of them.

Melon's Rating

Taste: 9/10

Ambience: 5/10
Service: 9/10
Overall: 7.5/10

To be honest, I'd really love to snap a nice picture of each item from a nice angle. However, since the queue continued to grow, I decided to throw away the idea. Pika's advice: Once you've tried the sushi there, you may want to check out its biggest contender, Sushi Dai, which is located just next door!

Daiwa Sushi

(大和寿司)

5-2-1 Tsukiji

Chuo, Tokyo

Japan

(Mon-Sat: 5.00am - 1.00pm)

*Prices quoted are nett prices.

Have a nice meal,

Cliff(y)