Food: sushi
Address: 9^th Floor, Juno Ginza Seiwa Bldg, 8-7-7 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Phone Number: +81 (0)3 3573 5258
Website (no own site; link is to Michelin): Guide Michelin – Sushi Mizutani
Guide Michelin: 3 stars
What I paid: 26000 Yen (roughly 185 €) per person (lunch).
Visited: March 14, 2014

Sushi Mizutani (鮨 水谷) is one of only four sushi restaurants worldwide that has achieved three stars from Guide Michelin (together with Jiro, Saito and Yoshitake). Chef Hachiro Mizutani has also worked together with world renowned Jiro for about 20 years before he started his own restaurant that most people argue is better than Jiro (e.g. Tabelog.com users). Mizutani-san is also participating in a couple of episodes in the movie “Jiro Dreams of Sushi”.

Mizutani is stereotypically tricky to locate, as all of Tokyo’s top sushi places seems to be. However, I had done my homework and by forehand made a virtual street view walk in Google Maps to identify the address/building. But without knowing that Sushi Mizutani also is placed on the 9^th floor of the building it still would have been tricky to spot though all signs are in Japanese (i.e. no signs saying “Mizutani” are present). However, by checking the map below and (again) also note that the restaurant is located on the 9^th floor, it is pretty straightforward to find.

Reservations are only taken in Japanese for the 8 to 10 seats counter so you need to have the hotel concierge make the reservation for you (which is more or less mandatory for all top restaurants in Tokyo). Service is not chatty and no one speaks English so expect a quiet atmosphere. That said; there is no need for talk when you can watch chef patron Hachiro Mizutani’s masterfully producing each creation.

You also need to make a visit to an ATM in advance though it is cash only and pretty expensive (note: not all ATM machines in Japan will work with international credit cards but for instance 7-Eleven does).

There are three ways of ordering sushi in Japan:

1. omakase (chef’s choice)
2. okonomi (your choice)
3. okimari (set menu).

We opted for the sashimi and sushi omakase to be able to enjoy the best possible fish- and seafood for the moment. As for drink, we only had tea for this lunch, which I think, worked well with the food served.

No cameras are allowed and this in combination with no English spoken, no menus and that I personally have a limited knowledge of high-end sushi makes my documentation of this lunch somewhat “limited”. That said, at least a couple of the 20 something pieces we got, was I able to identify:

• Ika (Squid). Ika can be rubbery or chewy but not at Mizutani. Very good!
• Maguro (Tuna). Wonderful!
• Ohtoro (Fattiest Cut of the Bluefin Tuna Belly). Very delicious!
• Uni (Sea Urchin).
• Awabi (Abalone)
• Roe? I am not completely sure it was Roe (but the consistence and look was similar). One of my friends attending the lunch with me had a real problem with the texture and her face was very explicit about this, which of course Mizutani noted…
• Tamago (Egg). Best omelet ever!

To summarize: Not only my first meal in Tokyo but also my first high-end sushi and it was a real eye-opener for how good and tasty “real” sushi can be! I will for sure make at least a couple of more sushi reservations in this league on my next trip to Tokyo. Highly recommended!