Best Sushi in Tokyo, Japan That You Won't Find Elsewhere On Earth

Tsukiji market was the largest wholesale fish and seafood market in the world. The market was located in central Tokyo. It closed on October 2018 and moved to Toyosu Market, which was around 2km away. Although the inner wholesale fish market are closed, retail stalls and great restaurants are located at the some place. The area remains tourist attraction to explore delicious Japanese food especially Sushi and Donburi. 

Tsukiji Fish and Seafood Market before relocation

I liked this wooden-line interior of this Japanese restaurant. It evoked the feeling of tranquility. The design triggered an emotional response such as peace and calm. The restaurant was  perfectly clean and tidy. Decoration of the table and dishes were subtle. I got the aesthetic pleasure from the enticing ambience during our lunch. There was an air-conditioner, which they would turn it on during summer. 

Japanese tea cup

Japanese tea cup was beautiful and authentic. I learnt much more from drinking green tea than reading a book about sushi. I matched the shape and colour of sushi on my plate with the pictures on the cup. After lunch, I bought a similar cup but not the same at a retail shop nearby .

Japanese rice with fish roe topping

This dish was really special. Their fish roe was much bigger. I wondered why people would eat a little bit of Japanese rice and fish roe with such a small bowl. Without seaweed roll, taste was different from Tobiko (fish roe in sushi). Tiny bowl and wooden spoon, and its design taught me one thing. Using incredible number of small plates of different colours and shapes was also their tradition.

Miso soup

Miso soup's taste was no different from the soup base that we bought at Don Don Donki and Japanese stores in Singapore. It was salty and savoury broth, added with chopped green scallion and soft white tofu.  

Every detail matters in Japan. They were very serious with food presentation. One stage before having a meal in Japan was admiration of the food before eating it. Sushi came in many colours and shapes. The chef was experienced to scoop the same amount of rice grain for the same type of sushi. He cut the same shape and size of fish too. Every piece of pickled ginger had similar thickness, size and shape and colour.

Tuna, prawn, fried egg, eel, mackerel and sea urchin sushi

Ordering sushi was a difficult task in Japan. Very few sushi restaurants provided menu with English translation. It was even confusing on what kind of fish they used for the sushi. Perhaps, we could differentiate how the sushi was made -  raw, barbecued and broiled. Referring to the picture above, two sushi with red meat were tuna; a lean cut of tuna and fatty tuna belly. The fresh fatty tuna melt in my mouth. Eating tuna belly was best experience that I ever had in my life. Other sushi contained raw sweet shrimp, sweet egg omelette (Tamagoyaki), squid, sea urchin, broiled eel and mackerel. 

A plate of colourful sushi

Top row of the picture above showed raw sweet shrimp, fried egg, fatty tuna, lean tuna and loin part of tuna. Fatty tuna cuts were more expensive than a lean cut of tuna. Second row of the sushi were topped with broiled squid, cooked eel, salmon, sea urchin and salmon roe.   

All sushi were displayed nicely in parallel on a rectangular plate. Red, yellow, orange and white were key colours to make the food look bright and enticing. It looked so delicious. 

Wasabi-maki

Wasabi has strong flavour. It is usually used as seasoning to enhance the flavour of the sushi. Wasabi-maki was sushi roll that only contained wasabi but it was NOT HOT or SPICY. This was extremely unique. Wasabi was chopped into bite-sized pieces and wrapped around rice and seaweed. Non-grated fresh wasabi was different from grated wasabi. Non-grated wasabi tasted earthy and root vegetable flavor and not as hot and spicy as grated wasabi. Grated wasabi was exposed to oxygen and oxidised, which caused wasabi hot and spicy.

Eating nigiri and maki with leaves while watching the chef making sushi

We went to another sushi eatery in Tokyo. We had the opportunity to sit at the counter and observed the skilful chef cutting fresh tuna into fine layers and wrapping rice in seaweed quickly. However, taking video or photo of the chef was offending and prohibited. There was a water tap behind him. The chef constantly wiped and cleaned the table that he used to make sushi for hygiene purpose. He used natural leaves instead of plates to serve sushi. It was a special way to enjoy our colourful meal like Japanese. We ate spicy and non-spicy tuna maki, wasabi maki, Gunkan maki (sea urchin sushi), tamagoyaki, cooked prawn sushi roll and tuna nigiri. 

Huge oysters at Tsukiji Market

Walking around Tsukiji market, I saw huge oysters. Prices varied from 500 to 800 yen per piece according to the sizes of the oysters. It took at least two bites to consume one big oyster. The texture was soft and the flavour was not briny. 

Tamagoyaki on a stick is one of the most popular food in Tsukiji Market. It is same as Tamago sushi but the fried egg rolled around a wooden stick. It is sweet and fluffy. Tamago on a stick is not my favourite food, thus, I didn't take picture. It only costs 100 yen per piece. Although the queue is long, you may watch them making Tamagoyaki quickly. You should try if you haven't tasted it before. 

Giant crabs in Tsukiji Market

Tsukiji Market sells giant crabs, some are living snow crabs and king crabs. They are bigger than my fist. Their legs are astonishing long and thick. The male crabs cost between 10,000 and 16,000 yen per kilogram. You can get smaller female crabs around 2,000 to 3,000 yen per kilogram.

Large fish roe. Each package is around 1600 yen

Japan is one of the best destination for seafood lover. Their seafood are so huge and fresh. You definitely need to wake up early to explore and eat their seafood as Tsukiji Market will be very crowded.