This time I went with a close fried and it really developed into an extensive meal that covered all the variety and depth that Matsumi had to offer. We were able to get our favourite seats at the sushi bar and were able to watch the chef preparing our dishes, one after the other. Even though the sushi bar is now equipment with a glass shield due to the pandemic restrictions, we still had an amazing view and enjoyed the experience. Sadly, it limits the opportunity for interaction with the chef, which is something I always loved and enjoyed. In any case, for any sushi aficionado that enjoy watching, the setup at Matsumi can be highly recommended.

The Finest of Matsumi

With our order quickly growing into an opulent and extensive list of à la carte items, we also decided to insert a considerable variety of staters and side dishes, some of which were on the limited specialties menu of the week. We were surprised by an amazing amuse-bouche that kicked off the experience. It was an avocado, sake (salmon) and taco (octopus) ceviche and it was an amazing competition that greatly complemented each other. It was almost sad that we could not order a larger dish of it. We also had two varieties of konomono, which are composed of differently seared, pickled or aged vegetables. These are especially delicious at Matsumi and always a well received surprise. One of my personal favourites is horenso (spinach in sesame dressing), which cannot miss during any of my visits at the restaurant. Another absolute delight is the rare but always amazing ebi shinjo (deep fried shrimp dumplings). The shrimp is packed in tofu skin, which is then deep fried along with some fried lotus root pieces. It is just amazing and comes with an amazing composition of negi (green inions), grinded ginger and a mysterious spicy sauce that delights me even time. If this is on the specialty menu, it is a must have.

Another amazing specialty is a selection of hotategai (scallop) pieces served in some seared miso sauce along with some vegetables and shitake (Japanese forest mushrooms). The dish is served raw on a stove, which is the lid so we could prepare the scallops to our liking. It is an amazing composition and the sauce is key to the experience. The scallops were amazing as always and this combination is easily among my favourite hotategai dishes. The sauce is so nice, that even after finishing the scallops, vegetables and mushrooms, it cannot be wasted and but is an absolute joy on its own. Interestingly, this is only achieved through boiling the dish. When the dish is served, the sauce does not taste good, not even pleasant. But once the scallops are done, it is an absolute delight.

Another set of my favourites followed suit. Sake cava temaki (handroll with grilled salmon skin is just about the most amazing piece of Japanese food I can imagine. Being a long time aficionado of this dish, Matsumi is the only place on the planet where this is not just beyond all others in amazingness, but it consistently impressed even after more than a decade of sampling it regularly. The salmon skin is seared and grilled to the point of perfection and the teriyaki style sauce used in this dish is just over the moon. The sauce on its own would be something to die for and of course a well kept secret, so I cannot even report what it is exactly. Another few delights we had were tamago (egg omelet), uni (sea urchin) gunkan (battleship sushi) and unagi (freshwater eel) nigiri. The sea urchin was excellent and a fresh interlude among the heavy items with teriyaki sauce etc. The unagi (freshwater eel) is also one of my absolute favourite and hard to beat.

Oamakase Style Sashimi at Matsumi

For the main course, we had an amazingly composed plate of an omakase style sashimi selection. It came with shima aji (striped jack), otoro (bluefin fatty tuna belly), chu toro (medium fatty bluefin tuna belly), madai (red seabream), ika (squid) and maguro (bluefin tuna back). The striped jack was a new addition to the menu and something totally unexpected. Visually, it could be easily confused with hamachi (yellowtail), but is was a totally different experience all together. The texture and taste was amazing and quite distinct. The squid is usually also among the best items at Matsumi and should not be missed. The was also a small side dish of seared yuba (tofu skin) with wasabi. It was just the smallest bowl on the side, but it was an amazing surprise. It provided a fresh and acute sensation that was amazingly balanced with the spicy wasabi and a nice complementary element to the sashimi plate.

The selection of different tuna cuts was as amazing as it looked an amazing journey through a variety of tastes that is difficult to attribute to the same fish. Even the subtle differences in texture always amaze me and even though this might be an somewhat obvious observation shared by many, the otoro cut is the absolute most amazing piece of fish. It is amazing to experience again and again how this extreme level of quality is as consistent as night and day at Matsumi and am already fantasising about my next visit.

To round things off, we then had a final selection of some favourites. Paired with another sake cava temaki (handroll with grilled salmon skin), we had another piece of otoro (bluefin fatty tuna belly), madai (red seabream) and unagi (freshwater eel) as nigiri. As a final composition to melt in our mouths, we decided to take a piece of zuke chu toro (seared and flambeed bluefin medium fatty tuna belly) nigiri, which was a culminating finale of the meal. With the extensive breadth of our selection, we had to cut the dessert short and just opted for an umeboshi (salted and seared plum), which was also amazing and just about the perfect contrast to balance of the entire meal.

Sushi Guide Verdict

Matsumi always surprises and even after more than a decade of patronage, I am still mesmerised by its constant delivery of the most outstanding Japanese dining experience. It is truly a one of its kind restaurant and deserved its rank among the best around. As a pillar of traditional Japanese cuisine in an authentic atmosphere in a familiar setting, it is a must for any sushi aficionado and a perfect choice for anyone new and curious. The restaurant provided an encapsulated and unique experience with its wooded interior, open sushi bar and tatami room. For me it is almost like stepping into another world and being on vacation. The menu options are so extensive, it can just be describes with being as complete as it could get. All varieties of fish one could dream of can be found and the taste and quality is absolutely outstanding. Preparation and presentation of the dishes is done with extreme attention to detail and deep pasha for perfection. The drink menu is extensive and features many Japanese spirits and beers to choose from. The service team is friendly, welcoming and most forthcoming. Even on busy nights they take the time to engage in conversation and truly make the experience as amazing as it is. Matsumi is truly amazing and I can recommend it without hesitation to anyone and I cannot wait to get back.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

Review date: September 4, 2020

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Unagi Kabayaki and other delights

Beyond claiming to serve always fresh and high quality fish, Yabase has also a considerable reputation for unagi (freshwater eel) dishes, which is what attracted us to check it out. We started the dinner with an amazing plate of unagi kabayaki, which is basically split, gutted, boned, butterfried and grilled freshwater eel. I was served with teriyaki sauce, of which there could have been even more. This was an amazing dish and among the best unagi I have ever had. They also served some fried eel bones, which were nice to try, but it is not a must on this dish.

As a main course, we opted for an omakase style luxury sushi plate that came with 10 pieces of nigiri and 8 pieces of sashimi and was a very representative selection of the sushi menu. The plate came with sake (salmon), maguro (tuna back) and hamachi (yellowtail) sashimi. Both the salmon and yellowtail were of excellent taste and texture and were even surpassed by the outstanding lean tuna back. It made us wonder about the tuna belly cuts they also had on the menu, but we will get back to that.

Then there were zuke chu toro (seared medium fatty tuna belly), maguro (tuna back), unagi (freshwater eel), sake yaki (grilled salmon), suzuki (sea bass), hotategai (scallop), hamachi (yellowtail), ebi (shrimp) and saba (mackerel) nigiri pieces, and ikura (salmon roe) gunkan (battleship sushi) and tamago (egg omelet). The chu toro was mind-blowing, as was the scallop and mackerel. It was clear that we hat to sample the menu a bit more, to make the most of the experience.

And so we ordered another small plate with chu-toro (medium fatty tuna belly) and o toro (fatty tuna belly) nigiri pieces, which were absolutely outstanding. To round things off, we had another small plate with unagi (freshwater eel), saba (mackerel), hotategai (scallop) and ika (squid) nigiris. squid is also one of my favourites and even though it had fierce competition this night, it was an excellent close to an outstanding dinner.

Sushi Guide Verdict

Yabase is simple but authentic restaurant with very minimalistic interior. It is neither stylish nor particularly traditional, it is simple, effective and provides a somewhat cool atmosphere. Even though it serves well as a backdrop to the experience, it is not the most inviting of all Japanese restaurant around. The menu options are extensive but leave few things to desire for demanding sushi aficionados looking for a complete experience. The food quality and taste was outstanding and rank this restaurant among the higher tier places around. The drink menu is a bit limited, but there is decent selection of wine and sake to choose from. Considering the fierce competition in Germany’s largest Japanese community, this is quite an achievement. The service team was friendly and forthcoming and made this stay and enjoyable visit, despite the glass shields between tables and somewhat steril vibe of the night.

There have been mixed reports about Yabase in recent months, so this experience has to be taken with a grain of salt. Based on this experience, this restaurant can definitely be recommend. We will be back to double check.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

Review date: July 31, 2020

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Sashimi and Nigiri Dinner

This time I started out with an 1o piece moriawase sashimi platter with hon maguro (bluefin tuna), bincho maguro (white tuna), hamachi (yellowtail), susuki (sea bass) and king sake (king salmon). As always the taste and texture of the fish was breathtaking.

As I was sitting at the sushi bar, I decided to go with the sushi bar exclusives and opted for a 7 piece omakase nigiri menu. It starte out with umi masu (ocean trout with shiso leaf), toro (bluefin fatty tuna belly) with white sturgeon roe and katsuo (lightly cherrywood smoked bonito). After that it went on with kamasu (barracuda), zuke chu toro (red wine cured bluefin medium fatty tuna), a kusshi oyster and one amazing piece of wagyu (grade a5 Japanese beef striploin). To finish the meal I chose one final piece of shirayaki (grilled freshwater eel) as an alternative to my usual choice of unagi.

Sushi Guide Verdict

As many times before, this dinner was an amazing culinary experience. With seats directly at the sushi bar I could watch the sushi chef’s prepare the fish and could enjoy the select items of the sushi bar exclusive menu. The atmosphere at Sushi Ran is alway very cozy and welcoming, making me feel at home. The menu options are extensive and the quality and taste of the food was outstanding, above and beyond to be precise. The drink menu offered a wide selection of wine and sake and as usual the staff was extremely friendly and heartwarming.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

 

Review date: October 11, 2015

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As a group of 3 we were seated at the exceptionally beautiful open sushi bar and enjoyed the service of Sushi Ran’s executive chef, Mr. Takatoshi Toshi, their master chef since 2013. I had the opportunity to be his guest once before and cannot complain about any other chef there either, but this day truly was one to be remembered. It was a special delight to watch Takatoshi Toshi work. To give you an idea, here is a short video of him at a Gala Evening in Israel.

Omakase Sashimi Plate

Anyway, on this day we decided to go with an omakase style sashimi menu and basically went from one culinary explosion to the next. The first 1o piece sashimi plate came with 2 pieces of king sake (king salom), hamachi (yellowtail), hon maguro (bluefin tuna), ara (red spotted grouper) and kusshi oyster. We especially enjoyed the oyster, which seemed a refreshing and not so common addition to the mix, and enjoyed watching Takatoshi Toshi work on all the other delicious dishes he prepared for other guests in the restaurant.

Even more Omakase Sashimi

We went on to explore the amazing selection of sushi bar exclusives and were served even more delicious sashimi pieces one by one. We decided to stick with sashimi not only because we prefer to focus on the fish’s texture and taste but also because we wanted to make most of the experience and have room left for everything we wanted to try. This is true generally for me, I prefer sashimi most of the time and also enjoy nigiri but tend to skip makis most of the time.

During our culinary journey of the most exquisite menu items the sushi bar could offer, we enjoyed dishes like kasugodai (baby red eye snapper), iwashi (sardine), sagoshi (spanish mackerel). kamasu (barracuda), kurama ebi (Japanese tiger shrimp) and zuke chu toro (red wine cured bluefin medium fatty tuna). It was followed by kaisu uni (deep sea ocean packed sea urchin), toro (bluefin fetty tuna belly), kohada (gizzard shad), sujiko (salmon roe) and shirayaki (freshwater grilled eel).

Since that left some pieces left on the menu, we also tried tarabagani (king crab with crab butter aioli), which was an absolute delight. We continued with bincho toro (white fatty tuna belly), zuke sake (white soy sauce cured fatty salmon), meso anago (braised young sea eel) and a final piece of wagyu grad a5 Japanese beef striploin nigiri. If we would have asked for any more, we would have probably started from the beginning. I can’t remember anything important we left out on the menu.

More information about this truly one of a kind visit to Sushi Ran can be found on moritzrecke.com.

Sushi Guide Verdict

This truly was an amazing experience. With seats at the sushi bar and Sushi Ran’s executive chef Takotoshi Toshi as our chef for the day, we made the most of our visit for sure. As always the atmosphere was an absolute delight and we stayed there for many hours to taste everything we could think of. The menu options are truly extensive with even more exclusive items being available at the sushi bar exclusive menu. The quality and taste of the food was outstanding, with the rights words amiss to truly describe the experience. The drink menu offered everything we were looking for and as usual the staff was not just extremely friendly but also heartwarming. This was definitely one of the most amazing experiences I ever had at a sushi restaurant.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

Review date: October 16, 2015

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Moriawase Sashimi Dinner

This time I opted for a moriawase style dinner, starting out with an amazing sashimi plate. I came with copper river king sake (wild king salmon), hotategai (scallop), sustainable zuke chu toro (red wine cured bluefin medium fatty tuna), hamachi (yellowtail) and medai (wild red snapper). As I wasn’t able to eat much more, I just had one more nigiri piece of sawara (cherrywood smoked spanish horse mackerel), which is one of my absolute favourites at the restaurant.

Sushi Guide Verdict

As always Sushi Ran’s unique and traditional atmosphere captivated me. Whenever you enter the restaurant, it seems like a place of piece and quiet, no matter how crowded it might be. The food menu is extensive, serving everything any sushi aficionado could desire. The fish is always fresh, of the highest quality and intense taste. The drink menu is also extensive and offers everything one might look fore in a upscale restaurant. The restaurant’s staff was friendly and forthcoming as always.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

Review date: June 1, 2014

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Omakase Style Dinner

This time I started out with an omakase style sashimi plate. It came with hon maguro (bluefin tuna), hamachi (yellowtail), aji (horse mackerel), zuke maguro (red wine cured tuna), suzuki (sea bass), hirmae (halibut), king sake (king salmin),  kanpai (amber jack) and ika (squid). Afterwards I had an amazing nigiri plate with zuke chu toro (red wine cured bluefin medium fatty tuna), sawara (cherrywood smoked spanish horse mackerel) and kamasu (barracuda). The last order was an unagi (freshwater eel) nigri, which is always of supreme taste.

Sushi Guide Verdict

The atmosphere at Sushi Ran is truly unique. It is a very cozy and quiet restaurant with an open sushi bar with an overall traditional and exquisite interior design. The sushi menu is extensive, offering both local and sustainable fish with additional special dishes available only at the sushi bar. The food is of the highest quality and the most amazing taste. The wine and sake menu is also extensive, allowing anyone to find what he might desire. Both the sushi chefs and the waiters are exceptionally friendly and forthcoming, making every visit to the restaurant an experience to be remembered.

 

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

Review date: September 11, 2013

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Sashimi Dinner

This time, I had a light omakase sashimi dinner at the sushi bar. It came with hon maguro (bluefin tuna), suzuki (sea bass), zuke sake (white soy sauce cured fatty salmon), kanpai (amber jack), bincho maguro (white tuna), sawara(cherrywood smoked horse mackerel), hamachi (yellowtail), o toro (bluefin fatty tuna) and zuke chu toro (red wine cured bluefin medium fatty tuna). To cut it short, it truly was amazing… as always.

Sushi Guide Verdict

Sushi Ran offers a truly unique atmosphere both at the open sushi bar as well as at regular tables. The food menu is extensive and the restaurant also offers various sushi bar exclusives. Everything is of the highest quality and the most amazing taste. The wine and sake menu offers anything from light aperitifs to heavy red wines. As always the service was outstanding although we were staying too long, being the last guests of the night.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

Review date: September 9, 2013

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“Welcome to KUSAKABE, it is always my pleasure to serve our guests. At KUSAKABE, we serve a multi-course sushi dinner that is based on the principle of Japanese “Kaiseki” cuisine. When I create my Omakase menu, it is my challenge to include a variety of seafood presented with creativity and offering a harmony of fresh flavors with every bite. Please join me and our capable staff at KUSAKABE for what we hope is an unforgettable dining experience.”

Source: Mitsunori Kusakabe – Owner/Chef, World Sushi Technical Skill Champion

Omakase menu

Kusakabe only offers omakase style set menus starting at $98 and allows additional orders a la carte only after the omakase menu has been served. The 7 piece menu tends to include a soup, sushi, sashimi and selected special plates with oysters or caviar. If that’s not enough, one can always go for the 10 piece set menu for $168. The a la cart menu offers some amazing highlights as well such as Toro (Low temperature aging Bluefin fatty tuna belly), Zuke Chutoro (Soy sauce cured bluefin medium fatty tuna), Negitoro (Fatty tuna with micro onion & roasted “Nori” temaki), Wagyu (A5 grade Miyazaki Wagyu strip loin), Aori Ika (Low temperature aging big fin reef squid) and many others. All of those might or might not have been part of the set menu of the day. Paring wine is offered at $125 or one can choose from the limited beer but decent wine or commendable sake selection.

During the dinner I was served an amazing zuke chu toro (sustainable bluefin medium fatty tuna) sashimi as a starter, followed by a soup and some salmon sushi rolls. It got more interesting after that with some delicious nigiri dishes.  I was served hirame (halibut), ebi (prawn), uni (sea urchin) and some wagyu (A5 grad moyazaki wagyu strip loin) as the finale of the 7 course set menu. I ordered additional dishes from the a la cart menu. I tried aji (wild-caught horse mackerel) nigiri which I enjoyed very much. After that I was blown away but a chu toro (sustainable medium fatty bluefin tuna cured in soy sauce) nigiri and an even more amazing toro (sustainable bluefin fatty tuna belly) nigiri. Luckily, I took some pictures.

Some information about my Kusakabe visit can be found at moritzrecke.com

Sushi Guide Verdict

The setting of the restaurant is a rather modern mix of raw brick walls and lots of bamboo elements and might seem a little cold or steril at times. Although the omakase style set menu offers a good variety of choices, it might not be perfect for sushi aficionados who really know what they want. It is not allowed to alter any menu items which leads to a rather low rating for the menu, although technically the a la carte menu offers a great selection of fish. The food quality it self is amazing and definitely one of the best around. Every fish had an intense and differentiating taste and everything was served very traditionally without any fancy mayonnaise sauces that are so common in California. The drink menu was very well composed, although one might consider the pairing wine option to be a little on the pricy side compared to the regular menu. Considering the overall cost for a dinner at Kusakabe however, this might be a neglectable notion. The service was outstanding with nothing to complain about. Some of the personal also worked at Sushi Ran before, giving the visit at Kusakabe a somewhat familiar touch.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

Review date: June 3, 2014

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