This shoe box-sized, counter-focused omakase haunt debuted in December 2019 just before the pandemic set in, and since then has gone largely overlooked. Chef and owner Yukihiro Takeda helms the eight-seat counter, and it’s thanks to him that the Upper West Side now has a higher-quality omakase sushi option. His Edomae-style, 19-course menu runs $250 and incorporates seafood flown in from Tokyo’s Toyosu fish market several times a week. A meal could start with tsumami like ikura (salmon roe) and Santa Barbara uni before eventually moving into Hokkaido scallop, akami (lean tuna), and iwashi (sardine). Note, Takeda doesn’t necessarily follow a traditional path typically defined by serving all nigiri back-to-back. Instead, bites are occasionally interspersed with creative dishes such as a maki roll filled with soba noodles in place of rice.

Lauded for its pristine fish, Uogashi — which relocated from the East Village to Midtown after a devastating fire in 2018 — has earned a devout following for its top-quality omakases priced at $135 or $185. Choose from a long sushi counter or tables, where guests can also order izakaya-style dishes like shrimp tempura and sake-steamed clams. Back when Pete Wells visited in 2019, he gave the restaurant two stars.

Located in the back of the fast-casual Poke Wave on Astoria’s Broadway, owner Christopher Tsang has set up an omakase speakeasy with chef Osan Weng, with 30 years of sushi restaurant experience in Japan, to create two menus. The $148 omakase covers 18 courses including soup, nigiri, and a hand roll; there’s also a menu for $118 menu with 13 courses.

Sushi Yasuda is one of New York’s oldest omakase haunts, regarded as a bastion for fine fish. Here, one can sit at a table or at the bar, and order a la carte, or choose go for the chef’s choice omakase, which can cost anywhere from $150 to $250 depending on the season. Pro tip: The best seats in the house are at the far end of the sushi bar.

A freewheeling, sushi-slinging, expletive-laden omakase party in Jackson Heights and a newly opened location in Williamsburg, Sushi On Me charges less than $100 for an all-you-can-drink omakase that lasts less than an hour. The cash-only event in a Queens basement allows for a dozen people at a time, four seatings per night, seven nights a week. Dinner begins with a few sashimi courses and finishes with 12 pieces of nigiri, served one at a time.

Upscale service with a downtown vibe is the theme at Shuko, the narrow, Union Square sushi joint from Masa and Neta vets Jimmy Lau and Nick Kim. Dedicated to serving top-level sushi, and with a devout following from none other than Jay-Z and Beyoncé, the place is still going strong after almost seven years. Here, customers will find bites garnished with luxury ingredients like caviar and gold leaf to truffle, and the single omakase runs $270.  

Even before chef Nobuyuki Shikanai nabbed one Michelin star, his unfussy sushi spot had already earned a devout neighborhood following for its well-priced fresh fish. A long menu of sashimi, nigiri, and rolls — in addition to izakaya bites like shrimp tempura and gyoza — run a la carte, but the most coveted seats are at Shikana’s omakase counter. Note, while Kanoyama is open daily and accepts walk-ins, this $195 chef’s choice menu is only served Wednesday through Saturday (6:15 and 8:30 p.m.) and requires reservations.

One of Japan’s most respected sushi masters, Tadashi Yoshida of Nagaoya’s impossible-to-book Sushi No Yoshino, shuttered his lauded counter to pursue an opportunity in New York.  Now he’s serving a $500, 20-course omakase on the Bowery, which is especially important as Yoshino’s debut marks the first time a sushi master, not a protégée, has relocated from Japan to open in the city. Drawing inspiration from both France and Japan, Yoshida’s omakase commences with a series of around six tsumami that call for western and luxury ingredients like cream, olive oil, caviar, and white truffles, before moving into a traditional 10-bite Edomae nigiri serving One of Yoshida’s signature bites is sabazushi (mackerel), which he torches with a handheld binchotan grill.

Perhaps the best deal in New York for quality fish at the moment, Gouie is the new counter-only sushi stop from Keisuke Kasagi and Yudai Kanayama (Izakaya, Dr. Clark), which debuted within the Lower East Side’s the Market Line last October. It’s a casual spot and one that was conceived in response to all of New York’s pricey omakase spots. There are 18 perched counter seats plus a section “where people can just casually stand and drink and eat for a quick bite and quick sake.”

Chef Yusuke Fukuzaki — who came to New York after spending time at one of Tokyo’s most revered, three-Michelin-star kaiseki counters, Ishikawa — has designed a menu heavy on a la carte options, with a spate of seasonal specials like red rock crab tamagoyaki and simmered spiny baigai shell. The top seller is the Nami plate, which comes with seven pieces of nigiri and half a maki roll for $35. For a slightly longer menu, there’s a $75 Tokujo option, with seven pieces of chef’s choice nigiri, plus chutoro nigiri, uni over rice, ikura over rice, and one maki roll.

When a chef can turn white fish to the buttery richness of toro, you know you’re in the right place. And that’s precisely the talent of Shion Uino, who made waves when he landed in New York by way of Tokyo in 2017, having come off a decade’s worth of work at one of the world’s most prestigious sushi bars, the three-Michelin-starred Sushi Saito. The chef has most recently teamed up with 69 Leonard owner Idan Elkon to launch this high-end sushi concept priced at $480 (including tip) that centers on rare seafood and, hands down, the city’s most excellent interpretation of tamago. At the end of the meal, patrons also have the option to add on additional chinmi (rare bites). Wed to true Edomae style, the menu progresses from sashimi to a series of tsumami (small appetizers), nine nigiri bites, a hand roll, soup and that tamago, which takes on custardy texture. Uino receives seafood deliveries six times per week, and one of his childhood friend’s father handpicks most of his fish from his hometown of Amakusa in Kumamoto.

Like many of Tokyo’s top sushi bars, Nakaji is tucked away in an unassuming hallway partially decorated with charred cedar wood. Look for an illuminated box bearing the chef’s name in calligraphy, and press the doorbell to enter what might be the city’s most exciting sushi concept right now. Helmed by longtime sushi vet Kunihide Nakajima, and launched right before the pandemic, this wholly Japanese experience — which takes place at a 10-seat sushi counter and involves Japanese seafood like ice fish and sea cucumber — has quickly ensconced itself as one of the city’s most traditional Japanese experiences, from its minimalist aesthetic to its standout menu. Compared to the sushi Nakajima served during his previous tenure at Sushiden, Nakaji is a step up in price and quality, currently running $275 for a menu that includes tsumami, a hot plated dish, 12 nigiri bites, soup, and seasonal Japanese fruit. The uni omakase, which includes a 3-course uni tasting, runs $295.

As far as Brooklyn sushi goes, Katsuei is the top option. It’s beloved by locals, and a review in the Times established its destination status. In fact, after its Brooklyn debut in 2014, the team launched a West Village outlet three years later. Both locations serve some of the highest quality, most affordable sushi in New York. At the moment, the Brooklyn location’s sushi bar is closed (but the $57-$125 omakases are offered at tables), but the West Village counter is up and running, offering a sushi-only omakase for $65, a sushi and sashimi mix for $90, or a seasonal chef’s choice omakase for $140.