What is Omakase?
A Japanese dining experience in NYC
In case you were wondering, my favorite food is sushi. It’s been my favorite since I was a child; being loyal, it remains my favorite food to this day. Despite it being my first choice when going out to eat, I had never heard of Omakase before. I’m not sure if it’s because it’s not popular in Spain and Italy or because I had never thought to do further research on “sushi experiences”, but my first time trying it was only recently. So, what is Omakase? Omakase is a dining experience where strangers sit around a sushi bar and try different rolls that the chef makes one by one. Everyone tries them together, everyone falls in love together. Literally, it is a Japanese dining experience that means “I leave it up to you” - putting trust in the chef to serve you (typically) 15-18 distinct pieces of sushi that vary entirely from the one before.
I had the opportunity to try Omakase for the first time in New York City with my dear friend M. I visit the city twice a year for work and each time, M and I meet to spend an entire day together. She enjoys adventure and good food as much as I do - you can imagine how well we get along. This time we decided to bike across the Manhattan Bridge and then go out for dinner.
After a somewhat stressful bike ride (crazy New Yorkers and the subway zooming by us on both sides), we made our way to Sushi W. This restaurant has the best well-priced, delectable Omakase in the city, take M’s word for it. We started promptly at 19:30h, with all participants seated around the chef, eager to discover what we’d be eating that cool summer night.
We started with Akami Zuke (marinated tuna) and ended with Negi Kampachi (Minced Kampachi & Scallion Roll). There were 15 pieces in between, all notably different in flavor, all marvelous. Something to keep in mind during Omakase is that the chef will apply what he considers to be the correct amount of wasabi and soy sauce. It’s regarded as inconsiderate if you ask for more. We tried pieces with hints of truffle, basil, raw fish, scorched fish, with seaweed, without seaweed, and even some short rib… The waiter’s role in this magnificent show is to explain to you the contents of each roll as you watch the chef’s hands carefully cup the rice and stroke wasabi onto the fish. Watching his hands make the same movements over and over again mesmerized me - how long did it take for him to perfect?
The most thrilling part of this Omakase was the Ikura (salmon roe) hand roll. The waiter instructed all of us to put our left hand out so that the chef could place a square of seaweed with rice on it. He then scooped a spoonful of salmon roe on top, and we were told to use our right hand to fold the square to make a triangle and put the entire roll in our mouths!
What About Dessert?
Around the corner and down the block is one of the most famous soft-serve ice cream places in Manhattan. Ray’s Candy Store is owned by a man named Ray who’s been working in the shop since the 1970s. He’s usually there, serving you the ice cream himself. We were lucky to be served by this legend this night!
A sweet ending to an exceptional day in New York City. I can always count on my time here to be an unforgettable one. If you haven’t tried Omakase yet, I couldn’t recommend it more!
Grazie mille and wishing you the best food adventures,
Nada
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Sounds like a wonderful experience!
So good to learn about Omakase!