Kyubey Shinjuku is located on 6th Floor of Keio Plaza
Its preferable to book in advance.
Japan is the home of sushi, make no mistake. Above average sushi bars are plentiful in Tokyo and all the major cities across the Land of the Rising Sun, so it was a minor coup that I managed to snag a table for 2 in 2014 - yes the memory was so vivid all those years ago- for Kyubey, which is rated as one of the TOP 5 Sushi Restaurants in Japan !
Sukiyabashi Jiro is the NO. 1 in Japan and helmed by sushi craftsman Jiro Ono who even has a film after his perfection to his craft. At 93, he is still working tirelessly creating works of art and the waiting list runs into the years.
A meal to lift the senses and spirits. My beaming smile made me look 15 years younger !
Mere mortals like us have to accept the next best ones, hence Kyubey is the BEST SUSHI I have eaten in my life. When we arrived at 8.30 pm on a drizzly weekday evening, I was expecting to be turned away from such an esteemed place. However, the serving manager must have seen our tired and hungry foreign faces and must have taken pity on these 2 tourists. We snagged a small table near the door, and my wife and I were giddy with delight at this Anthony Bourdainish "No Reservation" success !
Much more pleasant surprises were to follow, we had the first course of sushi set of 10 pieces. The sushi was warm to the lips and the flavour was just bursting out from the fish and the sticky rice.
The sushi was a mixture of cooked and raw delights, each one hitting all the right notes. Never had I tasted such refined creations from ALL of the sushi bars and restaurants in Singapore. The standouts were the tuna belly (toro), the squid and the sea urchin roe (Uni).
The timing of the placing of the sushi plates MUST be precisely calculated, as must the temperature of the fish meat,in order to optimise the flavour of the sushi. Truth be told, there was a burst of flavour upon putting the first piece of art-food work into my mouth. I kid you not.
The sea urchin roe probably upped my cholesterol level by 25 basis points, but what the hell, I live once and the chance to eat awesome food is to experience one of life's greatest experiences.
Sashimi of Tuna Belly, Sardines and Threadfin
May had the sashimi set and it went together with some chawamushi (poached egg Japanese style in a ceramic cup).
To top off a perfect evening, we had the grilled cod, which was so succulent and flavourful.
Less is indeed more.
Our wallets (mine actually) was lighter by some US$ 300 (US$ 150 per pax) but this experience will last a lifetime.
My Review
Food : 5 / 5
Service : 4.5 /5
Ambience : 4.0 / 5
Price : US$ 150 per pax with some sake each.
The famous cousin of Kyubey is the one in Ginza but there is a reservation fee of Yen 7000 so perhaps for tourists, we can try our luck at this 2nd outlet at :
6th floor Keio Plaza
2 Chome 2 - 1
Nishishinjuku, Shinjuku City
Tokyo
16830
Japan.
Sushi Lovers, this is the PLACE
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