Tiny Urban Kitchen

Exploring Food from Boston to Hong Kong and Beyond

  • About
    • About Me
    • Tiny Urban Kitchen’s Favorite Equipment
    • Press
  • Recipes
    • Recipe Index
    • Asian
      • Chinese
      • Taiwanese
      • Thai
      • Malaysian
      • Japanese
      • Korean
    • Appetizers
    • Soups
    • Salad
    • Pasta
    • Noodles
    • Rice
    • Vegetarian
    • Meat
    • Sweets
      • Baking
      • Ice cream
      • Cookies
    • Misc
    • Kawaii (Cute)
  • Travel / Restaurants
    • United States
      • Boston
        • Jen’s Picks
        • Boston
          • Allston
          • Back Bay
          • Brighton
          • North End
          • South End
        • Cambridge
          • Kendall Square
          • Inman Square
          • Central Square
          • Harvard Square
          • Porter Square
          • North Cambridge
        • Somerville
          • Davis Square
          • Union Square
        • Greater Boston
          • Brookline
          • Arlington
          • Belmont
          • Watertown
          • Newton
          • Lexington
          • Concord
          • Burlington
          • Natick
        • Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, Berkshires
      • Vermont
      • Maine
      • New York
      • Washington DC
      • Philadelphia
      • Orlando
      • Chicago
      • Las Vegas
      • California
        • Los Angeles
        • San Francisco
        • Napa
        • Sonoma
      • Seattle
      • Hawaii
    • Canada
      • Montreal
      • Canadian Rockies
      • Toronto
    • Argentina
    • Europe
      • United Kingdom
        • London
        • Oxford
      • Italy
        • Rome
        • Piedmont
      • France
        • Paris
        • Bordeaux
      • Spain
        • Madrid
        • Barcelona
        • Catalonia / San Sebastian / Girona
      • Germany
      • Belgium
        • Brussels
      • Switzerland
      • Greece
      • Finland
      • Norway
      • Denmark
    • Japan
      • Japan Guide
      • Tokyo
      • Osaka
      • Kyoto
    • China (Mainland)
      • Beijing
      • Chengdu
      • Shanghai
      • Shaanxi
      • Shenzhen
      • Xiamen
      • Yunnan
    • Singapore
    • Hong Kong
    • Malaysia
    • Taiwan
    • Thailand
    • Australia/New Zealand
  • Michelin
    • Formerly had a star
    • Michelin Recommended
    • 1 Star
    • 2 Stars
    • 3 Stars
  • Jen’s Eating Guides!
    • Boston Restaurants
    • Boston Dishes
    • Tokyo
    • Hong Kong
    • Las Vegas
    • Napa / Sonoma
    • Taiwan (night markets)
    • Taiwanese (casual eats)
    • Street Foods of Bangkok (Part I)
    • Street Foods of Bangkok (Part II)
    • Kitchen Equipment
  • Trip Reports
    • All trip reports
    • New England
    • New York
    • Washington DC
    • Las Vegas
    • California
    • Canada
    • Europe
    • Florida
    • Japan
    • China

Sushi Ya Tokyo (すし家)

July 13, 2017 by Jennifer Che 11 Comments

Sushi-Ya-Tokyo-18.jpg
I’ve encountered Chef Takao Ishyama several times now.

I first met him when he was working at two-Michelin starred Sushi Kanesaka. Although I was initially disappointed that we did not get Kanesaka-san himself during our visit, I was still very, very impressed with every single course from that meal.

Fast forward three years. One of our friends who lives in Japan had recommended to us this new sushi restaurant called “Sushi Ya” すし家 (ya means family). The prices at Sushi Ya are a bit more reasonable than other sushi places because the chef does not use certain exotic and more expensive ingredients.

However, his skills are top notch, and the sushi is excellent.
Sushi-Ya-Tokyo-31.jpg
I visited during lunch and fell in love with the place.

I really, really enjoyed every single piece of sushi. Better yet, our entire meal for two was only $140 USD (including sake, tax, and gratuity), which felt like a steal. In fact, I enjoyed my lunch a lot more than our $400+ dinner the night before at Jiro’s apprentice’s place, 2-Michelin starred Sushi Sushi Harutaka (which I generally found too salty for my tastes).

I vowed to come back for dinner for the full experience. [update: link to full dinner experience] 
Y9A0201.jpg
As we sat down to dinner at the tiny 7-seater sushi bar, we watched Chef Ishyama construct a “maki” roll mad from a sheet of kelp wrapped around some sort of mackerel-like fish, ginger, shiso, sesame seeds, and rice.
DSC02520.jpg
He held the roll together with a rubber band before setting it aside, presumably for us to enjoy later?
DSC02521.jpg
Our first bite was a small bowl full of what looked like clear ribbon noodles, but were actually baby eels (!) in a ponzu-like sauce. If you look really closely, you can see the tiny eyes.DSC02522.jpg
It was excellent – a light and refreshing way to start the meal.
DSC02524.jpg
Next course, meiji mono, or baby tuna, was phenomenal. It was oh-so-tender and so flavorful. Inside I wondered whether it was bluefin tuna, and whether I was eating something horribly unsustainable. I really don’t know, but I did feel a twinge of guilt as I wondered these things.
DSC02525.jpg
Next Chef Ishyama grabbed a cleaver and cut in half a crab shell artfully stuffed with two types of crabmeat. The meat was tender and sweet.
DSC02528.jpg
The first time I tried shirako (cod sperm sac) was at Sushi Kanesaka with Chef Ishyama when he was working there. Funny thing is, at the time he told me I was eating “monkfish liver”. I totally believed him until a kind reader commented on my blog post and told me the hard truth. Heh heh, it was probably good I didn’t know what I was eating that first time.

This time we had it grilled, which was quite interesting. It was smoky with that lovely char while still creamy inside.
DSC02529.jpg DSC02530.jpg
Next was crab roe (presumably from the crab we had earlier?) and the pressed kelp roll that we had watched him make earlier.
DSC02532.jpg
I absolutely loved this next course – a tuna cheek (kama), which was luxuriously fatty and super flavorful.
DSC02534.jpg 
I often don’t like monkfish liver because it can be a bit funky. In this case, I loved it.  Chef Ishyama’s version was creamy, nutty and not stinky at all.
DSC02535.jpg DSC02537.jpg
Next was grilled sablefish with mashed daikon and flounder (hirame).
DSC02536.jpg
As we moved into the sushi courses, we munched on crunchy pickled daikon as a palate cleanser.

And then it was time for sushi! We started with a trio of tuna.
DSC02547.jpg DSC02545.jpg

Sushi-ya-Tokyo.jpg DSC02544.jpg
I absolutely loved both the chutoro (medium fatty tuna) and otoro (fatty tuna), which were extremely flavorful and had excellent rice texture. The soy-sauce aged akami (tuna) I found to be slightly too salty for my preference.
 DSC02549.jpg
Next was kampachi (yellowtail) followed by squid (ika) with lime. The ika was one of the few pieces I did not love, and I definitely felt like I’d had better versions elsewhere (most notably on this trip, at Kyubey).
DSC02552.jpg
The kohada (mackerel) was nicely cured with a bright vinegar taste.
DSC02558.jpg
The akagai (surf clam) was crunchy and delicious.
DSC02553.jpg DSC02559.jpg
The aji (horse mackerel) was fantastic. I also loved the rice texture of the uni (sea urchin), though I found the uni itself to be less sweet than others I’ve had.
DSC02551.jpg
Kuruma ebi (prawn) was fine. It’s never one of my favorite pieces (ha ha, maybe because it’s cooked!) but it was solid.
DSC02563.jpg
Finally, we had hamaguri (clam), which tasted phenomenal with the floral addition of orange zest.
DSC02564.jpg
We ended with anago (sea eel) served with salt and a touch of orange zest.

DSC02565.jpg
When Chef Ishyama asked us if we wanted any “extras”, Bryan piped up and asked for uni. Chef Ishyama brought out a different type of uni from Hokkaido. Bryan thought it was delicious, sweet, and creamy. Alas, I was too full and had no room. 🙁
DSC02566.jpg
We ended with tamago (egg omelet), which was good but not in the same league as the likes of Sushi Mizutani, Sukiyabashi Jiro, or Sushi Yoshitake.

All in all, I loved my dinner at Sushi Ya. There were many phenomenal courses of things I had never tried before. I like how the focus is more on fish than shellfish, which is something I prefer. Chef Ishyama speaks enough English to get by, though you probably won’t be having long conversations with him if you don’t speak Japanese.

Highly recommended. I think I will visit this place regularly every time I return to Japan.
Sushi-Ya-Tokyo-4.jpg Sushi-Ya-Tokyo-1.jpg

Filed Under: Japan, Restaurant, Review, Tokyo, World Travel

« Tour of Top Taiwanese Street Dishes Part II: Taiwan Night Markets
Bird Land Tokyo – yakitori in the basement of Ginza »

Recent Posts

  • Nostalgic Reminders of Home: Five Guys Hong Kong January 6, 2021
  • Elementary Hong Kong January 5, 2021
  • Happy New Year 2021! A Look Back at 2020 January 1, 2021
  • Restaurant Le George Paris December 29, 2020
  • Nice Yakiniku and Fine Wine Hong Kong December 28, 2020
  • Merry Christmas 2020 December 25, 2020
  • Sushi Shikon Autumn 2020 December 24, 2020
  • Foodhallen + Amsterdam Eats and Museums December 23, 2020

Latest Chinese recipes!

Comments

  1. Frances Fung says

    July 14, 2017 at 9:42 pm

    Not sure when the “next time” you plan to re-visit, but it may not be Ishiyama-san at Sushiya anymore as the talk on the street is that he is planning to venture out to open his own place later this year. Just FYI. 🙂

    Reply
    • Jennifer Che says

      July 15, 2017 at 3:09 pm

      Whoa really?! I’ll have to find out where that place it. 🙂 Thanks for the heads up.

      Reply
      • Frances Fung says

        July 18, 2017 at 1:59 pm

        No shortage of excellent places in Japan for sure. Will certainly keep you updated when/if I find out more. Nowadays I tend to stay away from “more-touristy” establishments. 🙂

        Reply
        • Jennifer Che says

          July 24, 2017 at 11:27 pm

          Sounds good! 🙂

          Reply
          • Felicia says

            January 31, 2018 at 9:28 pm

            Hi Frances and Jennifer, I heard that Ishimaya-san is moving in Apr 2018. Are you aware of where he will be moving to? Thanks!

          • Jennifer Che says

            February 1, 2018 at 11:17 am

            Hi Felicia,
            I didn’t know he was moving in April! He didn’t mention anything the last time I was at his restaurant.
            Jen

  2. Eric Chan says

    November 14, 2018 at 5:37 pm

    Hello, I recently visited Sushi Ya with my friends with the new chef Mamoru Hashimoto (previously at Kanesaka). It was absolutely wonderful. Admittedly this was my first visit to Sushi Ya; no previous experience with Ishimaya-san so I cannot compare. Hashimoto-san is relatively young (he said he was 33) and is very funny and chatty. A very relaxed atmosphere. He speaks a bit of Cantonese (we had two guests from Hong Kong that evening) and a bit of English. He cracked jokes throughout the evening; for example, when he learned I was visiting from Boston, he called his clam sashimi “clam chowder” and also tried to convince us that the uni was from “Santa Barbara” (it was actually from Hokkaido). Anyhow, the meal itself was lovely and so was the overall experience. Happy to share pics if interested.

    Reply
    • Jennifer Che says

      January 31, 2019 at 11:31 am

      Wow thanks for sharing. I’m glad you had such a great experience. 🙂

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Tsukiji Fish Market Auction + Sushi Bun Breakfast - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    August 6, 2017 at 12:39 am

    […] Posts  Sushi Ya Bird Land Tokyo Tour of Top Taiwanese Restaurants Part I: Noodles, Dumplings, and Breakfast Tour […]

    Reply
  2. Afuri Ramen Tokyo - Yuzu Shio Ramen in Ebisu - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    October 11, 2017 at 5:38 am

    […] Posts  Sushi Ya Bird Land Tokyo Tour of Top Taiwanese Restaurants Part I: Noodles, Dumplings, and Breakfast Tour […]

    Reply
  3. The Tempura Bar at Shikigiku IFC Hong Kong - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    February 21, 2020 at 4:03 pm

    […] fellow Japanese food enthusiast friend (we actually met randomly in Japan while dining at Sushi Ya) told me about Shikigiki IFC. It is his favorite place in Hong Kong for tempura. He especially […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Welcome to Tiny Urban Kitchen!

JenChe

Hi, my name's Jen and welcome to my cooking, eating, and travel site! I am a Boston to Hong Kong transplant, born and raised in Ohio with parents from Taiwan. Feel free to head on over to the About page if you want to learn more about me, or just explore away, maybe starting with the Recipe Index or one of the travel pages! I hope you enjoy this site!
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Archives

Categories

Awards

Saveur
PFB

BostonGlobe

Most Recent Posts

Five Guys Hong  Kong

Nostalgic Reminders of Home: Five Guys Hong Kong

Elementary HK

Elementary Hong Kong

Happy New Year 2021! A Look Back at 2020

Restaurant Le George Paris

Restaurant Le George Paris

Great Yakiniku and Fine Wine

Nice Yakiniku and Fine Wine Hong Kong

Merry Christmas 2020

Sushi Shikon Autumn 2020

Foodhallen + Amsterdam Eats and Museums

4850 Restaurant Amsterdam

4850 Amsterdam – Nordic Inspired Creative Food

Van Wonderen Stroopwafels Amsterdam

Van Wonderen Stroopwafels Amsterdam

France!

Yam'Tcha Paris
David Toutain Paris
Divellec Paris
Breizh Cafe Paris
Clamato Paris

Kawaii! (Cute)

Norway!

Food Advertising by logo

Chinese Recipes

Okra with Chicken
Food Advertising by logo

Shop & Support us!

Spain!

Girona Spain
Amelia San Sebastian

Japan!

Bulgari Il Ristorante Luca Fantin
Sukiyaki Imafuku Tokyo
Sushi Ishimaya Tokyo
Disney Sea Tokyo
Tempura Fukamachi Tokyo
Shinjuku Gyoen

Cambridge restaurants

Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2021 · Foodie Pro Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress