A note on the words: omakase means you eat what the chef chooses, in the order he chooses. Akazu is red vinegar, which tints the seasoned rice under the fish a pale brown. A gunkan is a hand-pressed piece wrapped in a collar of nori so a loose topping can sit on top; gari is the pickled ginger you eat between pieces. Tuna is graded by fat: the lean meat is the plainest, chutoro the medium-fatty part, otoro the fattiest, and zuke means the fish was marinated in soy. Uni is sea urchin, and bafun and murasaki are two different species of it. Torotaku pairs chopped fatty tuna with takuan, pickled daikon. The fish here go by their Japanese names: kinmedai is splendid alfonsino, kohada gizzard shad, aji horse mackerel, shima-aji striped jack, amadai tilefish, kuromutsu gnomefish, masunosuke king salmon, anago saltwater eel, shiroika a white squid, tsubugai a whelk, tairagai a pen shell, kegani the horsehair crab, shijimi a small freshwater clam, and mozuku a fine seaweed usually served in vinegar. Matsukasa-age is a technique in which the scales are left on and fried so they stand up crisp, like a pine cone; isobe-grilled means grilled with nori. Chawanmushi is a savory steamed egg custard, tamago the sweet rolled omelet, and castella a sponge cake.
Table of Contents hide
Sushi Akazu on Tabelog (English) — opening hours, payment details and the Japanese address are kept up to date there, not here.
Hey, this is Hangover Meshi. Today I was invited out to a very good sushi restaurant in Roppongi: Sushi Akazu! It’s right by the Roppongi crossing, and it gives you that “there was a sushi restaurant here!?” feeling. I pass through this area all the time, but this is the first time I’ve come here. Really looking forward to it!
Omakase course: 27,500 yen
Normally they seem to run the course in two seatings.
We had the place to ourselves that day, so whether this was the usual run of things is anyone’s guess.
The windows are generously large, and if you look behind you there’s a clear view of the Roppongi crossing.
So, with a Yamazaki highball in hand to begin with, the course starts.
First out was a shijimi clam broth.
I think this every time, but how do sushi restaurants make their shijimi broth? The shellfish stock just comes surging out at you, and it’s wonderful. There’s no way to get shellfish flavor this intense at home, whatever you try.
This is sashimi: kinmedai from Choshi. Fatty and delicious. It’s nice when they bring out sashimi as something to drink with.
It has a firm bite while still being tender. Clean-tasting tsubugai, very easy to eat. A little flick of acidity, which works well.
Apparently a very expensive bottle. An extremely easy-drinking sake, and delicious! Not one you could drink every time, mind you.
This is the part they call toroshin, between chutoro and otoro, or so I was told. It’s packed with flavor and melts on the tongue. Not as rich as otoro, but you still get plenty of that good fat. It goes brilliantly with the mellow red-vinegar rice. I was genuinely moved!
A beautiful kohada. That exquisitely judged level of vinegar is irresistible.
Caviar sitting on top of shiroika squid from Fukuoka Prefecture. The squid is tender and delicious.
Amadai with its scales stood up and crisped, matsukasa-age style. The flesh is plump and fatty and good, and the crackling texture of the scales is excellent. Salt brings the savoriness out further. Delicious.
Shrimp from Mashike! A famous place for them.
The big, springy botan shrimp has a melting flavor. So good. And very sweet.
The shrimp is so large that it hides the rice underneath, but it really does dissolve away, so the balance ends up just right.
Black abalone from Chiba Prefecture.
And then the liver sauce! The liver sauce is outstanding. And then they put rice into it for you.
That three-hit combination is the best. Irresistible.
Melting salmon. Delicious!
Aji!? Not shima-aji!? It’s big enough that you have to ask.
Firm lean tuna with a faint dashi-shoyu flavor running through it. Good.
Uni at a sushi restaurant really is on another level from the stuff you eat elsewhere.
Tasting the two uni side by side is a real luxury!
I love torotaku done in this style. Roughly ninety percent toro to ten percent takuan, I’d say.
It often comes as a rolled maki, but as a gunkan it somehow feels more lavish. Good.
The sweet tare and the softly simmered anago make it feel almost like dessert. Delicious.
Like a sweet castella sponge cake.
So — quite a number of dishes! Every one was delicious and the whole thing was fantastic. It’s a fairly expensive place, so going on my own initiative might be difficult, but everything really was superb and it made a good memory. I’d like to become the sort of adult who can just drop into a place like this! It was a genuinely delicious restaurant, so I recommend it wholeheartedly.
Sushi Akazu Roppongi (Sushi / Roppongi Station, Nogizaka Station, Roppongi-itchome Station)
Tabelog dinner rating ★★★★☆ 4.0
I ate here and paid for it myself. Nothing on this site is a comped meal.
One more for the road?
