Day 3 - Toyosu Market & Sushi!

We began our third day in Japan by getting up at 3AM to catch a taxi to Toyosu Market, the new venue for fish sales in the Tokyo area after relocating from Tsukiji last year. We weren't headed to Toyosu for the fish auction however, we had a much more important reason for getting up so early; sushi.

One of the fabled sushi spots of Toyko is Sushi Dai, a shop that sells the freshest sushi in the world, buying its catch as soon as Toyos market opens, and then opening their doors to customers at 5:30AM.

Getting in to Sushi Dai is a bit of a challenge, but I will summarize it here for future visitors. First, you need to arrive at Toyosu market no later than 4:30AM to secure a spot in the line. Then, you need to navigate your way into the market and find Sushi Dai inside, a much larger challenge than it sounds like.

Our Taxi driver dropped us off just before 4:30 at the designated Taxi area of the market. Directly behind our drop off point was a crosswalk leading to the market building. Once you get across and up to the building, you need to take the stairs up to the 3rd floor, as the elevators don't work this early. From there, you take a sharp left and cross past a barrier (we were nervous about this initially, but decided it was necessary) onto a walkway/bridge that leads to the main building. On the left side of the building there is a doorway that leads inside. Head in through the doors and take an immediate right. You'll note that the hallway veers left pretty quickly, so head that way. You'll see a metal gate with some stools in front of it. These stools are the waiting area for Sushi Dai.

When we arrived, a friendly group of foreigners were already waiting, including a few Australians and two groups from San Francisco. A short 40 minute wait later, the doors opened and we were welcomed inside.

Sushi Dai consists of a single sushi bar that can seat 14 in an L shape, and a table that can seat 2. We were positioned on the short side of the L, right in front of the chef, Urushibara-san. Our service began with hot green tea, miso soup and an oshibori ( a piping hot towel for cleansing your hands). The chef then immediately began service, as the Sushi Dai seating time is limited to 45 minutes to accommodate the massive lines they receive.

Yellow Tail at Sushi Dai. To Dai For!

Our first piece of sushi was a large serving of yellowtail topped with minced green onion and garlic and brushed in Chef Urushibara's signature nikiri soy sauce mix. The moment Lauren and I put these in our mouths, we were stunned. This was without a doubt the best sushi we'd ever had, combining a tantalizing savory (umami) element with the freshness of the green onions and the slight hint of vinegar and salt in the rice all to enhance the flavor of incredibly fresh yellowtail. We both agree that the yellowtail we were served is the best sushi we've had in our lives, and that includes our meal later that same day at Sukiyabashi Jiro.

Saba at Sushi Dai

Sea Eel at Sushi Dai (cooked)

Horse Mackerel

Lean Tuna

Flounder

4 types of rolls, including Tuna and Salmon Roe with cumin

The next few courses consisted of Tuna, Aji (horse mackerel), Eel, Needle fish, Uni, Red Clam, Chu-toro (medium fatty tuna belly) and flounder. We left 45 minutes later completely satisfied to find a line at least 50 people long. Suffice to say, go on a weekday and arrive early - it's worth it!

We made it back to the hotel just before 8AM, and spent the morning relaxing in our hotel room, writing yesterday's blog post and napping before our next outing. We weren't done with Sushi for the day quite yet. Our friend Carl Rosa had secured us a spot at Sukiyabashi Jiro in Roppongi, arguably one of the most famous sushi restaurants in the world and an incredibly hard spot to get into.

Our lunch seating was scheduled for 1PM, and we arrived about 10 minutes early just to be safe. Our seating was only 5 people, and started with green tea. Jiro Ono-san served us 14 pieces of sushi, while also conversing with us in English, a language he tells us he started to learn only 3 years ago, because so many customers didn't speak Japanese. The 14-piece course consisted of the following pieces: Flounder, Squid, Needle Fish, Giant Scallop, Tuna, Medium Tuna Belly, Gizzard Shad, Red Clam, Salmon Roe, Horse Mackerel, Prawn, Mackerel, Uni and Sea Eal. All were excellent, and prepared with great care, however we noticed that Jiro's sushi had a much higher vinegar content than we are used to, and in some cases this overwhelmed the flavor of the fish. Jiro Ono-san was an incredibly gracious host, and we enjoyed our time thoroughly, though when comparing our lunch to breakfast experience, we both agreed that Sushi Dai was the more enjoyable and affordable option.

The front of Sukiyabashi Jiro

The sushi bar at Sukiyabashi Jiro

Chef Jiro Ono at work

Prawn

Medium Tuna Belly (Chu Toro)

Lauren and I with Chef Jiro Ono after our meal

After a little shopping, we spent the afternoon back in the hotel room relaxing, waiting for Winn & Steve to arrive before heading to dinner together at Biodynamie Jimbocho once again. We were all a bit tired, and figured that a dinner close to home was a good idea. We all thoroughly enjoyed our meals of pasta and pizza before heading over to the Ginza district of Toyko, which is famed for its high end clothing stores and wealthy denizens to grab a drink at Bar High Five, a hidden gem that is near impossible to find, but well worth the effort.

Once we arrived at Bar High Five, the english speaking bar tenders asked each of us about our flavor and alcohol preferences, before preparing a unique cocktail for each member of the table. Unsurprisingly, Lauren's contained Gin, while Steve and Winn both had Whiskey in theirs. Mine was a combination of local spirits and very refreshing, using some sort of cherry blossom liqueur to round out the taste. We all agreed that a single drink was enough as the entire party were sleepy after a long day. We all made our way back to the hotel just after 9PM before collapsing into bed - another busy day completed.