The Food I have only visited a handful of omakase places. But a friend was able to get a reservation at Utzutzu, so I wanted to give this place a try. Once we settled in our seats, the chef presented us with the fish that he will be preparing for the night. Few friends and I decided to try out their Sake of the day, which was the Nagurayama "Gekkyu". They presented the Sake in an aesthetic glass, it was not bad, though I prefer some of the sweeter sake. As the courses began, they were as follows... - Kinpira Gobo (braised burdock root), with asparagus topped with saffron - Nanbanzuke (marinated fish, with a slight citrus taste) Nigiri - Isaki (伊佐木 / Chicken Grunt, soft and have a slight crunch) - Shima-aji (縞鯵 / Striped Jack, hint of lime zest) - Ishigakidai (Knifejaw, smooth with a slight chew) - Horse Snake Mackerel - Golden Eye (Deep Sea) Snapper (hint of roast flavor, not overdone) - Black Seabream (almost melt in mouth) - Maguro (leaner cut but still fresh) - Amberjack (balanced with yuzu kosho) - Saba (topped with sweet kelp) - Ocean Trout - Sumiso-ae (miso and vinegar dressed with cucumber and octopus, sweet and refreshing, octopus have a slight chew, but not tough) - Uni Chawanmushi (steamed egg custard, topped with Hokkaido uni, along with shitake, spinach, and ginkgo nut) Nigiri - Scallop, Torched (slight burnt bitterness) - Shrimp From Canada (fresh, almost melt in mouth) - Otoro (delicious) - Toro Hand Roll - Tamagoyaki (the right sweetness) - Akadashi (miso soup with zucchini, mushroom, and tofu skin) - Peach Jelly (slight sweetness, not overpowering) The Miscellaneous The Utzutzu restaurant is a bit tucked away. There is no sign other than a door number, and you will know you are in the right place once you go up the stairs. The inside greets the guests with a small lounge area while they wait for their reservation. They have a sushi bar that just seats 7 people. It gives a more personal experience with the chef I believe. The service and staff were good. You know they put attention to detail when they fold the clean wipe so it is easy to use. The menu has a good variety of dishes to keep it interesting. Reservations open around 1 month in advance, it's still hard to get seating, so reserve early. All in all, the food was delicious, and quite the array of selections. Would recommend and would also want to return again.
It was a really amazing meal. Thank you Chef and everyone. All together there was about 20 or 21 items handed to us to eat. About 14 nigiri + 7 other dishes. The first an impressive Oyster Shooter had real gold leaf in it. My personal favorites were the Scallop, Wagyu, and Shrimp Nigiri. Chef uses unique flavors like yuzu, lime, garlic chip, flavored salts, to really make this a 5 star meal. The value for the cost is amazing. I don't usually eat so much fish so I was struggling to finish it all. But it was really an amazing dinner. Uni has never appealed to me, until my time a Utzutzu. To finish we were given a Mango Sorbet with maple, coconut and shisho leaf. It was unique and refreshing and a wonderful finish to the meal. The "Happy Anniversary" signs in the sorbet were nice as I had forgotten I put it on the reservation. But they remembered.The menu changes often, monthly or even daily. Don't be picky here. Just sit back and try new things. If you have allergies let them know 2 days in advance ideally. But it was very nice that chef asked us if we had any allergies or items we didn't want to eat as we were seated.There is only 6 seats total (at the sushi bar). It is very intimate and you feel like you are dining as a group. Seatings are at 5:30 and 8pm and reservations book up 6 weeks in advance. Because of the small space it felt almost inappropriate to take photos. We just enjoyed the moment but here is 1 photo for memories sake. I always keep the Menu information.
Had the pleasure of enjoying a great dinner prepared by Chef Hiroto and really enjoyed the food. Everything was well prepared with immaculate presentation. I appreciated that alongside some staples of the omakase experience, there were complimentary dishes and nigiri which venture into the more obscure types- it truly made each bite its own adventure and everything was interesting to taste. The service was great as well! Thank you for the wonderful dining experience and look forward to coming back sooner than later.
Best omakase around. Highly recommended if you appreciate seafood. Well worth the waiting list. I would happy eat here again.
The food was good and high quality! For this price point, I wouldn't say it was outstanding or particularly memorable compared to other higher end sushi places though.
The food was good and high quality! For this price point, I wouldn't say it was outstanding or particularly memorable compared to other higher end sushi places though.
Best sushi in the East Bay. World class Omakase from superb chef.
Had a great Omakase dining experience with Chef Joji. I was surprised this little hidden gem is in Alameda bc we always drive past it but never noticed it.PROS-Incredibly fresh & melt in your mouth sushi-simple but beautiful presentation-enjoyed the menu and chef’s selection of fish-This is probably one of my favorite spots for Omakase-I liked the limited seating arrangement-great location-everything was perfectly balanced and didn’t feel heavy/rich tasting. It was just the right amount of food and I was content. :)
Best sushi in the East Bay. World class Omakase from superb chef.
I love Utzutzu.The food is delicious the atmosphere is great .Employees are happy. Fun place to eat . We started our celebration for my daughters birthday having breakfast and they helped us celebrate by bringing a pancake with candle and the staff sang happy birthday without us asking for it , a complete and awesome surprise .What a wonderful way to begin the day .They made her feel very special .