#12 Sushi Benkei Umi(鮨弁慶 海) in Ginza(銀座), Tokyo
The sushi restaurant spreads attraction of fishes in Niigata prefecture
The owner-operator company of this sushi restaurant locates in Niigata prefecture. Niigata is known as a treasure house of delicious fish in Japan. And, no Japanese doesn't regard Niigata as one of the best producing districts of rice.
The features of Sushi Benkei Umi
The cookeries of Yamazaki oyakata, a master of a sushi restaurant, are so unique. For example, he smokes the very fatty part of tuna and harmonizes with shari, sushi rice, brilliantly. In addition, he uses a salted rice malt for the marinating of silver-skinned fishes. I think the sushi chef of genuine Edomae sushi in Japan needs to use the cookeries of Edomae sushi. The sushi in NYC shall not apply to this opinion. If the sushi chef uses the cookeries of Edomae sushi, no matter how much his sushi is unique or creative, his sushi is in the Edomae category.
The shari (sushi rice) of Sushi Benkei Umi
The hardness of rice: slightly hard
The temperature of shari: just right
Saltiness: slightly strong
Sourness: slightly strong
Sweetness: nothing, but you can feel the sweetness of rice
Cost: very affordable
My recommended menu: smoked otoro( very fatty part of tuna)
Details of Sushi Benkei Umi
Otoro, the very fatty meat of tuna
As I mentioned above, this is a mixture of smoked fish and sushi. The aroma is not smoky excessively but appetizing. It is the texture that is worthy of a special mention. Thanks to smoking, the extra fat was reduced and the texture is somehow crispy.
Kohada, gizzard shad
Oyakata marinates kohada strongly with salted rice malt and adds the peal of yuzu. It's so unique way. As a result, shari, kohada, and yuzu harmonized well. The sourness is less than an ordinary marinating way.
Amaebi, sweet shrimp
Amaebi is a local specialty of Niigata. As the name suggests, the sweetness is strong. Oyakata doesn't serve raw fish. He cures with kelp, and this is the cookery of Edomae sushi. The meat is dehydrated, so you can enjoy the condensed texture and sweeter meat of shrimp, and the aroma and umami of kelp at the same time.
Kue, longtooth grouper
Some kinds of big fishes caught in Niigata have a reputation for their mellow tastes. Kue has both strong taste and texture. However, just raw meat is too hard to bite, so a sushi chef let it age for several days. Yamazaki oyakata brings out more taste of kue, at the same time, doesn't kill its texture. Therefore, you can enjoy the umami of kue as you chew.
Chutoro, medium fatty tuna
Zuke, being steeped in nikiri sauce, is general. But, Yamazaki oyakata leaves chutoro in garlic soy sauce. Using garlic is a borderline prohibited technique in Edomae sushi. So, I hesitated a little bit when I put sushi in my mouth. However, the aroma of garlic is quite less so the taste is sophisticated.
Tamago, sushi omelet
The texture is chewy and moist as if it is a premium fish cake. Sushi omelet is made from egg, shrimp and Japanese yam usually. But, Yamazaki oyakata uses brandy, too. OMG!
Name：Sushi Benkei Umi
Budget：Lunch 15 pieces ¥5,000, Dinner omakase ¥10,000
Details:
TEL：+81-3-3-6278-7050
Address：GINZA12 bldg. 5F, 4-12-1 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo
Opening hours：11:30～14:00, 17:30～23:00
Closed：Sunday, Japanese public holidays
Japanese website