Category: Tabemono in San Francisco

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Tabemono in SF: Really good Modern Edomae Omakase at Kinjo

Sunday, August 6, 2017

One of the tough parts of wanting to eat omakase at really good sushi places in San Francisco is that you can not go at the last minute. Really good places need to be booked days, or even weeks in advance.  Additionally, a couple of my favorite spots, like Sasaki Sushi, are not even open on Sundays.  This was the case for us on this particular Sunday, when we were craving good sushi at the last moment.  However, the last time we went to one spontaneously, we had a disappointing experience at the newly opened Robin (good fish selection but lacks fundamentals), as such we were hesitant to try another new restaurant. However, I had Kinjo on my list of eats since it opened in the beginning of the year.  Since nothing else was available, I checked “Opentable” and noticed they had a lot of time slots available.  I called the restaurant to make sure we could get bar-counter seating, as that is a must have when eating omakase-style sushi.  They confirmed that their 6:30pm and 8:30pm slots were open for the bar counter, and thus started our night of what was of lower expectations. However, this turned out to easily be one of my top 5 sushi recommendations in the not just San Francisco, but all of the Bay Area, California. Continue reading “Tabemono in SF: Really good Modern Edomae Omakase at Kinjo”

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Tabemono in SF: Sasaki – Amazing Omakase Sushi rivaling places in Ginza

Located at 2400 Harrison Street in San Francisco, there are no signs highlighting the restaurant.

March 23, 2017

I have been a huge fan of Chef Masaki Sasaki since having him prepare sushi for me at the counter of Maruya.  He is one of the few itamae (chefs) in San Francisco that can make sushi that rivals many of the high-end sushi places in Ginza, Tokyo.

I was disappointed when Chef Sasaki left Maruya, but I would see his name pop up in the media as he played consultant to many other sushi restaurants including Omakase, which eventually earned a Michelin Star.  Ironically, Maruya lost their star the following year when both Chef Masaki Sasaki and Chef Hide Sueyoshi left. When I read that Chef Sasaki was finally opening his own restaurant, I was excited and planned a visit.  During dinner service, I was able to talk with Chef Sasaki throughout our meal. He mentioned to me that one of the reasons he left Maruya was that he felt they wanted more fusion with kaiseki, while instead, he wanted to focus on Edomae style sushi. Continue reading “Tabemono in SF: Sasaki – Amazing Omakase Sushi rivaling places in Ginza”

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Tabemono in SF Bay Area – Kenzo in Napa, Good Kaiseki and Sushi but not Great

February 26, 2017

Kenzo in the Napa Valley is an ambitious opening from Kenzo Estate winery owners Kenzo and Natsuko Tsujimoto.  Interestingly, Kenzo Tsujimoto was the founder of Capcom prior to his ownership of Kenzo Estate winery.  Besides the winery, the husband and wife couple have four restaurants and tasting rooms throughout Japan where they bring the Napa Valley wines to Japan.  Now with Kenzo, they plan to bring an authentic taste and experience of Japan to the Napa Valley area with a focus on kaiseki and sushi. Continue reading “Tabemono in SF Bay Area – Kenzo in Napa, Good Kaiseki and Sushi but not Great”

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Tabemono in San Francisco: Marufuku Ramen – Excellent Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen in Japantown

February 21, 2017

After the amazing Japanese ramen imports of Mensho, Hinodeya, and Nojo Ramen in 2016, the bar is raised in the crowded San Francisco ramen scene.  You would question whether San Francisco even needs another ramen shop as Ippudo is coming later in the year to Yerba Buena Ln in Downtown, San Francisco.  This was why I was surprised to find that Marufuku Ramen quietly took over what use to be Sapporo-ya Ramen in Japantown of San Francisco.  Japantown already has its fair share of ramen places, with many being sub-par to mediocre like the former Sapporo-ya Ramen.  Thank goodness for the formerly mentioned Hinodeya, and now I can add Marufuku to the list of excellent ramen destinations in Japantown and overall in San Francisco. Continue reading “Tabemono in San Francisco: Marufuku Ramen – Excellent Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen in Japantown”

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Tabemono in SF – Affordable and Very Good Kaiseki at OzaOza

OzaOza is hidden in all the bright signs. If you look carefully and right in the middle is OzaOza’s sign. It’s easy to miss.  It’s on the second floor, next to a karaoke place.

November 22, 2016

Kaiseki is a traditional multi-course Japanese dinner.  It is the Japanese version of fine dining where a set menu of in-season ingredients is made into elaborate dishes and each item is presented in beautiful individual bowls and plates.  I have tried kaiseki meals at numerous ryokans for dinner, at Michelin 3 star Kojyu in the Ginza area of Tokyo, and at Hashiri SF.   In each of these places, dinner meals then to be quite expensive, so I was pleasantly surprised to hear that a kaiseki place opened up with an affordable price of $100/person.  One concern would be that at that price, would quality suffer and you get what you pay for.  After reading OzaOza’s website, it looked legitimate, especially after hearing he was originally from Kyoto, arguably the birthplace of kaiseki.  We made reservations for a party of four. Continue reading “Tabemono in SF – Affordable and Very Good Kaiseki at OzaOza”

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