Joining a raft of new Japanese restaurants, California-import Sushi Zo offers business travellers an elegant new take on the contemporary Omakase experience to Hong Kong’s Tai Kwun precinct, discovers Nick Walton.
The Background
Nothing says corporate entertaining quite like good sushi. In contrast to many of the big hitters in Hong Kong’s line up of coveted sushi joints, which all herald their authentic Japanese lineage, Sushi Zo is as much Cali as it is Kyoto. Founded by Osaka-born Tokyo-trained chef Keizo Seiki in 2006 as La La Land’s first omakase restaurant, Sushi Zo has since opened branches in foodie capitals around the world, including London, Tokyo, Bangkok and New York (the two US branches have both earned Michelin stars), with the Hong Kong outlet, led by chef Fumio Azumi, the group’s seventh opening.
First Impressions
Your experience at Sushi Zo should start in the adjacent cocktail bar – Gishiki Lounge. As Sushi Zo, like any self-respecting omakase den, has two set seatings per night, this is a good spot to meet up before the meal, with an impressive list of Japanese single malts and sakes – including exclusive Gishiki gold leaf – matched with ambitious Japanese-inspired classic concoctions.
We have time for a round of dirty gin martinis made using a small-batch spirit from Kyoto; the martinis are well-made and in keeping with the lounge’s dark-and-moody interiors, although if you get in early enough, you might like to sample one of bartender Billy Lau’s siphon-infused spirits, served over dry ice.
When the hour of dinner arrives, we’re ushered into the main dining room, which is bathed in light that brings out the warmth of a sanded timber sushi counter that caters to just 14 lucky souls.
Chef-Driven Cuisine
Sushi Zo offers an 18-course omakase showcase (priced from HK$2,500/US$ per person) laced with the freshest ingredients flown in from Japan. In case you’re not up on your Japanese lingo, omakase means literally “I’ll leave it to you” and defines restaurants – usually tiny holes in the wall – where the chef decides what you’re eating based on seasonality and the quality of produce they have been able to source on any given day.
Sushi Zo also prides itself on the softness and slightly elevated temperature of its sushi rice – which is a bit of a departure from other sushi spots – and it works with seafood that has a similarly soft texture, including fatty cuts, salmon roe and uni. Each bite is formed at the sushi counter and is intended to be enjoyed immediately, in a marriage of flavour, temperature and texture known as Ittai-kan.
Chef Azumi kicks us off with asari no sumashijiru, a palate-cleansing broth of thimble-sized surf clams with a touch of citrus. It’s soup for the soul, Japanese style and sets the stage for the buri or yellowtail, which is sliced thin and served with sea grapes, shisho flowers, ponzu and a zesty, refreshing touch of soy sauce, dried bonito and citrus.
This is Hong Kong, so you know uni is going to play a starring role on any omakase menu, and at Sushi Zo it’s served three ways, with two unis sourced from Hokkaido and one from the deep, cold seas off the coast of Washington State in the US. This is a great way to see how this acquired taste can vary, with the Hokkaido uni fat and silky, and the US uni smaller and potent in its umami flavour.
O-toro or tuna, among the most coveted fish species in the sushi world, is similarly showcased, with three fat grades, the final fattiest bite literally melting in the mouth, before fleshy bonita is married with a touch of soy sauce and moulded onto rice seasoned with three-year-old vinegar.
Palate Pleasers
While the menu at Sushi Zo is always evolving, there are a few signature highlights to look out for. These include Kamasu or barracuda, a slightly oily white fish that has a flavour profile that lends itself to classic nigiri sushi when lightly seared and dusted with shishito pepper; o-toro from the seas off Nagasaki topped with Australian winter truffle; and delicate salmon roe soaked in savoury dashi and a capped with a dollop of salty lumpfish caviar.
Dessert is worth sticking around for; fresh Hokkaido melon and homemade black sesame ice-cream, matched with gold leaf and Chef Seiki’s own unique take on crème brûlée, offers a feather-light finish to one of Central Hong Kong’s top omakase experiences.
Summary
With crisp, attentive service, the freshest imported seafood and the timeless grace of its passionate chefs, Sushi Zo offers a throughly enjoyable and contemporary take on the omakase sushi experience in central Hong Kong.
Sushi Zo, LG1/F Block 01 Tai Kwun, 10 Hollywood Rd, Central, Hong Kong; chef’s 18-course tasting menu from HK$2,500 (US$320) per person.
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