Jap One is a hidden Japanese restaurant in a small back alley in Chiaia, the posh neighbourhood of Napoli. Remotely situated in a backyard close to Piazza dei Martiri, it caters to the trendy crowd with excellent menu option and a cozy bar. Its unique setup splits the restaurant in a sushi bar with additional table and a cocktail bar with more comfortable seating. The restaurant has welcoming, dark and dreamy atmosphere with stylish lighting and is very popular even during the week. For optimal seating it is absolutely necessary to call for reservation, but in a small group once can fit in as walking guests.
Hidden Sushi Gems for Dinner
Among the many sushi restaurants around, Jap One is a very nice surprise. Not only is the atmosphere very inviting, the menu option outperform almost all other options around. The number of fish left little to be desired and the drink menu is outstanding as well, offering cocktails, wine and spirits from all around the world. With most sushi restaurants catering to average taste, this place surely tries to serve traditional Japanese cuisine at a high level of quality.
The dinner started out with an amazing sashimi plate, which could have been decorated with more attention to detail, but was among the best I ever had in Napoli. It came with maguro (tuna back), sake (salmon), hamachi (yellowtail), ibodai (butterfish), suzuki (sea bass), engawa (flounder), aji (mackerel) and hotategai (scallop). I was most amazed by the engawa, aji and hotategai, which were outstanding.
To add some more, I tried the kobe beef nigiri, which was served raw and had an amazing taste and texture. The most amazing dish of the evening was surely the toro (bluefin fatty tuna belly) nigiri, which was the best toro I had so far in Italy. I also liked the hamachi (yellowtail) with green tobiko and the suzuki (sea bass) as well as the unagi (freshwater eel) nigiri. All in all it was an amazing dinner with nothing left to desire.
Sushi Guide Verdict
Jap One is definitely among the best Japanese restaurants in Napoli. It’s atmosphere is truly unique and feels both warm and welcoming while providing a fancy backdrop for a nice night out with its cocktail bar and dark but stylish look. The menu option are outstanding and far superior to most other restaurant around. The fish is served in a traditional Japanese manner and its quality and taste is of very high quality. The drink menu is extensive and offers many options from wine to cocktails and spirits. The drink menu lack some Japanese options, but this can easily be overlooked. The service staff was very friendly and welcoming, but remained distant. Also the setup of the bar does not allow any interaction with sushi chefs, which would even improve upon the otherwise excellent experience.
Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Review date: February 16, 2018
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