【2022 Top 100 Restaurants】Endo Kijin, who studied soccer in the UK, transitioned to the world of sushi at the age of 23 and eventually became independent from Sushi Saito, now running "Ebisu Endo." He has an unconventional career path, but what kind of sushi does he serve? I made a reservation for a weekday lunch and headed to Ebisu.
- Omakase: ¥28,600 + 3 glasses of sake; ¥34,400
- Served:
- Shiraku (grilled bonito) and karasumi (bottarga) soba noodles with soba seeds
- Mini ikura (salmon roe) donburi (rice bowl)
- Ice-cold refrigerator on the left
- Aomori's natural eel from Lake Ogawara, salt, and sansho pepper (grilled in Kansai style)
- Cucumber with salt koji and vinegar yuzu
- Shinsei and Hino Tori sakes
- Ankimo (monkfish liver) with wasabi
- Turnip and donko (young konjac) in miso soup
- Karei (flatfish) with white vinegar, strong wasabi, and dehydrated texture
- Mehirari (Fukushima rice) – A rare opportunity to have Mehirari raw in Ebisu!
- Tanaka 65
- Akami (lean tuna) with white vinegar and Yamada soy sauce
- Chu-toro (medium fatty tuna)
- Otoro (fatty tuna) with red vinegar soy sauce
- Kogasane (small skin) with a light vinegar finish
- Kue (longtooth grouper) smoked with straw
- Steamed horsehair crab
- A foreign staff member in the kitchen
- Mini Zuwai crab donburi (rice bowl) with egg and crab miso on shari (sushi rice)
- Sumika (Japanese spear squid) with salt and vinegar yuzu
- Anago (sea eel) with bone
- Toro taku-maki (fatty tuna rolled sushi)
- Clam miso soup
- Particularly, Endo has no prior experience in Japanese cuisine, but his creative dishes stand out. From soba noodles to the unexpected appearance of miso soup, the seasoning is elegant. As for the sushi, it is surprising how little handling it requires, with almost everything done in just two steps. The shari (sushi rice) is primarily vinegared, cooked slightly firm, and there is no additional shari offered during the meal. Despite this, there are no complaints about temperature. The toppings aim for freshness rather than aging, with accents such as straw grilling and smoking. The main tuna was from Iwate's Yamada Port, and the chu-toro and otoro were even better than those from Oma.
Source: https://www.jacquesherve.com/endo-kijin-endosushi-ebisu-39456
(Note: This is a translated restaurant review.)