Tokyo: Sushi Sho Masa. Sushi Perfection

Thanks to @Sgee for the recommendation.

This was exactly what I was looking for. A traditional edomae specialist who ages different fish different times. The chef and staff are young, friendly, and engaging. They are pretty fluent in English and there is absolutely none of that xenophobic vibe.

They have a book of fish that they use to show you each fish and the English translation. Each piece was more flavorful or richer or brighter than the best I’ve had in LA or NYC. Rice was perfect. Not center stage like at Mori but in perfect seamless balance.

I didn’t get a chance to go to Yoshitake this time around but I can’t imagine sushi much better than this. It’s is literally twice as good as Urasawa at half the price. $250 pp all in including 4 carafes of junmai daiginjo sake. About 45-48 courses depending on how you want to count things.

Sushi display (after the first seating)

Very tender octopus. Boiled 14 minutes. Tasted like it was braised for 8-14 hours.

Sea grapes

Menuke- aged 8 days. Part of the kinki family. So tender and rich from the aging. One piece with salt one with shoyu.

Mirugai body as sushi (devoured before I could take a photo) and himo grilled

Saba

Torigai

Akagai- body sashimi and himo grilled

Hokkaido Bafun uni on rice.

Hokkigai

Sawara- Konbujime for 17 minutes. Sushi and lightly grilled.

Grilled hotaru ika

Scallop

Scallop ovary - couldn’t catch the Japanese name. Available for 1 month. Now at its peak. Creamy and sweet. Like shirako but sweeter and slightly firmer texture.

Sumi ika. The one piece that was as good as but not better than what we get at the best in LA/NYC.

Grilled sumi ika tentacles

Sakura masu- cherry sea trout

Menuke- liver and stomach braised. Liver is soft, creamy and sweet, stomach is crunchy like braised chicharone. Bonus round for us. And what a bonus round it was.

Penshell clam with nori

Meji- baby tuna marinated in Yama wasabi

Ankimo- lighter, fluffier, and more rich and delicious than our best.

Aji - with a whisper of dark miso and mustard. Richer and sweeter than the best aji here.

Katsuo no shoyu zuke- bonito marinated for 2.5 minutes

Katsuo stuffed with 1 month marinated garlic

Hokkaido kinke grilled fin. Another bonus round. Ask the right questions and show the appropriate level of interest…

Kohada- richer, thicker, and fattier than what we get stateside. Prominent but balanced vinegar finish.

Kinmedai

Menuke grilled dorsal fin- another bonus round. Our neighbors got to try this one also.

Chu toro- outrageously good

Thinly sliced and layered otoro. The otoro is so fatty the chef layers the wasabi to cut the richness. The mild sweet wasabi worked perfectly.

Maguro no shoyu zuke- lean tuna marinated for 5 minutes because it is more muscular than bonito. Mind blowing good.

Grilled toro collar- bonus round. Only 2 pieces available so gifted to my mom and myself.

Murasaki uni

Kuruma ebi
Fin

6 Likes

Another seriously amazing meal - Bravo!

1 Like

@Porthos glad to hear it worked out. Looks awesome

Looks great and also probably less than you’d pay at Mori, Shunji et al, leave alone Urasawa.