openings

A Sushi Yasuda and Nakazawa Chef Is Behind New York’s Latest Luxe Omakase Restaurant

Murasaki uni and Zuke ikura with seaweed and red-vinegar rice. Photo: Melissa Hom

The rise of the power sushi restaurant continues: Next week, on October 5, Akashi will open on the West Village’s Christopher Street, offering a 20-course omakase tasting for $200-plus. To justify the steep price, chef Yoichi Akashi has serious chops — he worked as a sushi chef at Sushi Yasuda, and then as the chef de cuisine of Sushi Nakazawa.

Akashi’s menu will change daily, with fish sourced from both Japan and the U.S., and it won’t all be raw and cold. The omakase kappo experience means the chef will cut, boil, stew, and fry his ingredients, too. You’ll get to see him at work up close, as the restaurant is only 500 square feet, with ten seats at the sushi counter and eight table seats. (Plus, for serious high rollers, a private dining room.) Take a look:

Kohada (gizzard shad) with house-pickled ginger. Photo: Melissa Hom
Kue (kelp grouper) shabu-shabu with spicy radish and scallion. Photo: Melissa Hom
Mako garei (marble flounder) sashimi with oroshi momiji (grated spicy radish), scallion, and ponzu sauce. Photo: Melissa Hom
Hamo (conger pike) and matsutake-mushroom tempura. Photo: Melissa Hom
Yuba (tofu skin) with Ezo bafun uni (Hokkaido short spine sea urchin) and wasabi. Photo: Melissa Hom
Steamed hamo (conger pike) with matsutake mushroom, bonito broth, and sudachi citrus. Photo: Melissa Hom
The tiny space. Photo: Melissa Hom

Akashi, 14 Christopher Street nr. Gay Street, 212-367-2067.

Akashi Is New York’s Latest Luxe Omakase Restaurant