The Absolute Best Omakase Sushi Spots in NYC for Every Budget

From splurge-worthy to an affordable $95, the city’s scene for tasting menu-style sushi remains one of the best outside of Japan.

Best Omakase Sushi NYC
Ichimura | Photo credit: Evan Sung
Ichimura | Photo credit: Evan Sung

Omakase is a Japanese phrase that represents a chef’s choice meal—essentially the equivalent of a tasting menu. While an omakase meal can be devoted to pretty much any genre of food, such engagements wed to sushi, often served from a counter to around eight guests (as is customary in Japan), have exploded in popularity over the last decade in New York City, with an ever-growing spate of high-end operators serving elegant and elaborate sushi meals over $400 per head.

With luxury ingredients like fresh wasabi root and high-quality seafood sourced directly from Japan and places like the iconic Toyosu Market in Tokyo (formerly Tsukiji Market), the Big Apple’s abundance of menus—many of which are Michelin-starred by acclaimed Japanese chefs—offer a dining experience like no other.

Thanks to ongoing inflation, some of the restaurants on this list have, again, raised prices, but that’s not to say that it’s impossible to find a great deal for much less (we’ve got a $95 rec with your name on it).

Along with spots like Genki Omakase and Shiki Omakase, from splurge-worthy counters that define the category to lower-priced, affordable options, here's the absolute best omakase NYC has for every budget.

Best Omakase Sushi NYC
Ichimura | Photo credit: Evan Sung

New Omakase Spots in NYC

Tribeca, $425
Iconic NYC sushi chef Eiji Ichimura—formerly of Brushstroke, then Uchu where he earned two Michelin stars—made his return this June with a slim 10-seat space in Tribeca. From behind a silky smooth counter made from 200-year-old cedar wood, Ichimura prepares a roughly 20-course seasonal omakase that explores aged fish techniques. The meal begins with his signature monaka, a rice-based wafer sandwich packed with plump uni tongues, ossetra caviar, and a mound of fresh wasabi. Three more otumami (small appetizers) lead into bites like 10-day matured gizzard shad, and a showstopper tuna block—soy sauce-marinated lean bluefin tuna followed by a double-decker stack of medium fatty tuna. And finally, buttery, triple layer slabs of fatty tuna.
How to book: Resy

Williamsburg, $175
Not only is the former Ito chef, Cheng Lin, finally putting Williamsburg on the omakase map, but this past September, he launched one of the city’s best bets for tremendously high-quality sushi at an impressively low price. His 18-course, $175 traditional Edomae is loaded with sterling seafood, including heaps of uni. Decked out in a simple, yet modern space with a 16-seat L-shaped dining counter, expect ingredients almost exclusively sourced from Japan (in fact, he shares a buyer with revered city counters like Yoshino and Sushi Noz). The menu begins with four small starters like seared Spanish mackerel (Fukuoka) before moving into a seasonal soup, 11 pieces of nigiri, a hand roll, and tomago. Unique to Shota, and a practice embraced by top sushi chefs in Japan, is the use of two batches of sushi rice, each seasoned with different vinegars. Bite pairings include whitefish and red snapper with light vinegar-enhanced rice, while the rice seasoned with aged vinegars is reserved for richer fish like mackerel and toro.
How to book: Resy

Upper East Side, $145
Another excellent deal by way of affordable omakases comes from the Sushi Noz team, just a few steps away. Earlier this year, co-owners Joshua Foulquier and Nozomu Abe relaunched Noz Market from a specialty fish shop to a casual omakase spot with a 10-seat rear counter inspired by the relaxed, fresh fish sushi spots at Toyosu Market. Along with a four-person stand-up hand roll bar towards the front, former Sushi Noz chef, Shigeru Sugano, oversees the operation and selects the seasonal seafood woven into the 10-course, $145 omakase. He sources from the same suppliers as Sushi Noz, which is an immediate guarantee on the quality here. Think bites like hamachi with sesame seeds, and ebi with tobiko and egg yolk oboro. Take note: Friday through Sunday features an $85 lunch omakase.
How to book: Tock

Best Omakase Sushi NYC
Bar Miller | Photo credit: Melissa Hom

East Village, $250
Executive chef Jeff Miller made a splash when he launched his globally-accented, sustainable sushi boîte Rosella in the East Village three years ago, and this past September he unleashed his second effort, an artistically-designed eight-seat sushi counter with Rosella alum James Dumapit just a stone’s throw away. Within a tiny, 250-square-foot space anchored by an oceanic-hued quartzite dining counter, the duo are serving an omakase very similar to the one Rosella offered (now the menu is only à la carte) when the place first debuted. Think sustainable, domestically-sourced seafood via 15-courses that split the difference between traditional and creative. For example, fluke nigiri comes simply layered with a shiso leaf, while bluefish nigiri is dusted with a sunflower seed and dashi seasoning.
How to book: Tock

Midtown, $95
Stroll past the sparkling jewelry on the Vault floor of Saks Fifth Avenue for this six-seat counter tucked behind a curtain. Since June, former Kissaki chef, Morgan Adamson, has offered shoppers a tasty reprieve set in a stylish little space inside the tony Midtown department store serving a quality omakase under $100. While the interior shies away from the Japanese aesthetic of others, Adamson’s quick, 60-minute experience––which mostly relies on Japanese fish––is more minimalist and Edomae-inspired than it is modern, comprised of 12 nigiri bites from amberjack to chu-toro. Also noteworthy: like Shota (mentioned above), Adamson serves two batches of rice seasoned with different vinegars; lighter fish pair with rice imbued with a brighter vinegar, while fattier fish are served atop rice accented with a more complex vinegar.
How to book: Resy

 Best Omakase Sushi NYC
Yoshino | Photo courtesy of Yoshino

Classic Omakase Spots in NYC

Grand Central, $275 for lunch, $375 for dinner
Like many great sushiya in Tokyo that are tucked into nooks and crannies—sometimes within train stations—10-seat Joji claims the lower level of One Vanderbilt Avenue attached to Grand Central Station. Within its serene oasis of gray and blonde tones, Masa alum, George Ruan, serves a luxe, 21-course omakase for $375 (and $275 during lunch for 17 courses). Potential starters include warm dishes like amadai karaage with ossetra caviar and grilled kinki fish, before moving into 15 nigiri—of which 90 percent is sourced from Japan—like nodoguro and shima-aji. Lucky guests conclude with a piece of exceptional Japanese fruit such as musk melon. And for anyone on the go, grab some packaged sushi sets at the team’s adjacent takeout venture, Joji Box.
How to book: Resy

Tribeca, $400
Former Ginza Onodera chef, Kazushige Suzuki, presides over this eight-seat engagement that puts seafood flown in daily from fish markets in Tokyo and Fukuoka to excellent use. Throughout the $400 omakase, he incorporates seasonality and subtle Italian influences. Take, for example, his signature starter: finely pulled Hokkaido hairy crab arranged into a delicate mountain atop capellini pasta with a vibrant green sauce made from chrysanthemum. After the appetizer block, guests embark on a 10-bite nigiri series that begins with another signature: nigiri made from rice and abalone liver.
How to book: Tock

Tribeca, $295
Chef Masa Ito made a name for himself with umami-rich wagyu and caviar-laced nigiri at the Los Angeles export of Sushi Zo. However, he’s now running this venture with Kevin Kim and VCR Group (of new American eatery Little Maven, the world's first NFT restaurant ). At this 16-seat counter in a modern, yet minimalist space, Sushi Ito offers a high-end (but relatively affordably priced) omakase costing $295 for a welcome cocktail plus series of four otsumami, miso soup, 12 nigiri bites, one hand roll, and dessert. Fish is flown in four days per week from markets in Tokyo and Fukuoka, with around 90% of ingredients sourced from Japan. Look out for seasonal bites like bluefin sashimi with garlic tataki, wagyu nigiri with truffle, and the option to add on a snow crab hand-roll with golden osetra caviar.
How to book: Resy

Upper East Side and Midtown West, $750
This bastion of luxury sushi is one of the city’s longest running omakase counters and often considered an NYC bucket list restaurant. At Masa, the Columbus Circle eatery orchestrates Manhattan’s most expensive omakase option, which starts at $750—but in order to guarantee a seat at the hinoki sushi counter, it’ll cost you $950. Expect a menu laced with seasonal Japanese seafood and luxury ingredients, including mounds of otoro tartare crowned with caviar, and what could be the restaurant’s most signature bite: rice rolled into a ball with truffle and Parmesan cheese.
How to book: Via email at reservation@masanyc.com or Tock

Chinatown, $295
Tucked away in Chinatown’s Canal Arcade, chef Kunihide Nakajima debuted his covert, eight-seat sushi counter in March 2020. Those familiar with Manhattan’s sushi scene will know Nakajima earned his own devout following over the years during his tenures at venerated omakase haunts Sushiden, Sushi Inoue, and Uogashi, and opening his own place had been long anticipated by many. AtNakaji, the omakase runs $295 (or $345 for an uni tasting), and spans from otsumami to a hot plated dish before sliding to 12 pieces of nigiri, followed by soup and dessert. Fish and seafood are sourced from Toyosu Market three times a week. And within the space is a nine-seat cocktail bar, Bar Nakaji, dedicated to Japanese cocktails and rare whisky (with nearly 90 bottles on the menu).
How to book: Resy

Chelsea, $400
Former Ginza Iwa (of Tokyo) chef Shigeyuki Tsunoda commands the show at Noda, the exclusive, counter-only omakase engagement that can be considered somewhat of a Tokyo-NYC hybrid (but with a more upbeat feel). Located at West 20th Street, enjoy its theatrical Ken Fulk-designed space accented with plush textiles like velvet and brilliant gem stone hues, while sidling up to an illuminated, semi-circular 10-seat counter for a single omakase that runs $315 for around 20 bites. Pending seasonal availability, offerings range from otsumami like ankimo (monkfish liver) to shiro ebi (baby shrimp) nigiri. The majority of the seafood served is imported from Toyosu Market through four weekly shipments.
How to book: Tock

Best Omakase Sushi NYC
Shion 69 Leonard | Photo credit: Kat Odell

Tribeca, $480
Chef Shion Uino came to town in 2017 after spending a decade working at one of the world’s most prestigious—and impossible to book—sushi counters, Tokyo’s Sushi Saito. While he initially landed at New York City’s Sushi Amane, he has since decamped and teamed up with 69 Leonard owner, Idan Elkon, to helm this lauded eight-seat omakase counter. The $480 (gratuity included) Edomae-style experience has morphed from one paying tribute to kaiseki, to a menu based around rare seafood and, unquestionably, the city’s most excellent interpretation of ethereally custardy tamago. Uino receives six fish deliveries per week and, in terms of menu progression, patrons can expect to commence with sashimi, then move into a series of tsumami (small appetizers), followed by nine nigiri bites, a hand roll, soup and that tamago. Guests also have the option to add on à la carte bites from sashimi to chinmi (rare bites).

SoHo, $220
Sushi Ikumiis the omakase addition from the same team behind kaiseki star Hirohisa located just next door. Chef Jongin Jeong cut his teeth atthe aforementioned, but here at the 10-seat counter, he serves a series of three otsumami (appetizers) before moving into 13 pieces of sushi, including aged bites like tuna, and cured fish such as kohada and saba. The $220 omakase concludes with house-made ice cream.
How to book: Resy

Upper East Side, $495
Helmed by chef Nozomu Abe, since opening in 2018, Sushi Noz has earned street cred among sushi enthusiasts as one of the city’s premier, and more traditional omakase experiences. With a blonde wood bedecked aesthetic inspired by Edo period teahouses, this dual counter engagement offers a $495 menu built from around 95% Japanese ingredients, many of which the team imports twice a week directly from Toyosu Market. Diners begin with around six appetizers, before moving into anywhere from 13 to 18 nigiri bites. Overall, expect classic Edomae-style nigiri, with occasional global influences.
How to book: Tock

Upper West Side, $250
Chef Yukihiro Takeda debuted this sliver of an eight-seat omakase counter on the Upper West Side right before the pandemic hit in 2019, and for a while the 19-course, $250 omakase was mostly under the radar. But word has gotten out. At Takeda, expect a fairly-priced, highly seasonal Edomae-inspired meal that mixes small appetizers with nigiri, like nodoguro or kombu-cured red snapper in a roasted red rice sake sauce. The team sources all of its ingredients from Japan, with fish deliveries coming in twice a week from Toyosu Market.

East Village, $646
Tadashi Yoshida of Nagaoya’s impossible-to-reserve Sushi No Yoshino, decamped from Japan to open this 10-seat sushi counter two years ago, and it’s now one of only four restaurants in the Big Apple to have earned a perfect four-star review from The New York Times. Yoshino’s spot marks the very first time a true master from Japan (as opposed to a protégé) has relocated to open in Manhattan. Located on the Bowery, chef is serving a $646 omakase (including tax and tip) of around 21 courses with seafood sourced from the same Japanese mongers (Toyosu, Kanazawa’s Omicho, and other markets) that supplied his counter in Japan, with fish coming in two to three times per week. With a uniquely Japanese French-inspired omakase (chef spent some time working at a French restaurant in his youth), patrons experience a series of appetizers accented western and luxury ingredients like cream, olive oil, caviar, before moving into a more classically Edomae 10-course nigiri series.
How to bookTock

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Kat Odell is a Thrillist contributor.