Sushi W

Last updated on March 10, 2023

– New Joint on the West side

In recent years, Omakase sushi has claimed the fame it deserves. Michelin grade sushi chefs are celebrities in this town. Renowned places need reservations 3 months ahead, some even need to be prepaid. Omakase became another word for expensive fine dining. And the price, skyrocketed. Nowadays a 15 course omakase dinner is about $150 and up. The most priced place in NYC is about $800 before drinks and tips, which can almost fund a round trip ticket to Tokyo. One begins to ask, is it really worth the price, or is it just hype.

This once a weekly affair, now has become an occasional indulgent. Can’t afford to chase the stars, I search hidden gems for bargains. And I found one on Upper West.

Sushi W is on a dark block above 100th street on Broadway. There’s no sign on the storefront yet, just a little broad on the street indicates it’s a sushi place and they are open. I had a 7pm reservation and was a little early. The folks from the 6p seating were still in the middle of their dinner. I had a little chat with one of the hosts. Turns out the place just opened two weeks ago.

Just right before 7pm, things were wrapping up. As soon as people got up from their seats, the next round followed right after. Dirty dishes in the tray, clean dishes in. there was a hurry up and turn-around operation, all hands on deck. Hosts, server, dishwasher, even the sushi chef all had a hand setting up.

Some info about this place before I show you what’s on the menu. Sushi W has an hour limited for each seating. There are three, possibly four seating per night. Meaning, everyone who has 6pm reservations will sit down at the same time, and all have to get up by 7pm. There are 2 price levels of Omakase: basic ($48), Premium ($63). Basic comes with 12 piece nigiri with 2 handrolls, Premium has 3 more pieces. Fish grade and selection are the same for basic and premium. Also, Sushi W has a no-tipping policy. That’s correct, you read it right. Premium comes with 15 pieces with 2 handrolls with tip is only $63! What a deal?!

So what do we have for $63? Here goes:

• Akami
• Hamachi with basil sauce
• Chutoro
• Ika with lemon zest. (not pictured)
• Fish of the day— fluke with lemon zest
• Cooked white shrimp with zest (ebi not botan ebi)

Then we got our first “hand” roll – Ikura, I am not particularly fond of Ikura, so I opted out. Instead, I got yellowtail belly. I love yellowtail. That’s a win in my book.

• Toro with oshinko roll.
• Salmon with daikon and lemon juice
• Torched sea scallop
• Botan ebi
• Galbi

What’s next was interesting. On the menu, it is listed shabu shabu beef. I have been curious how this would be.Turns out it is not shabu shabu style. It is a piece “shabu shabu” beef, meaning a thin cut beef. They use a hand torch to seared the beef, dipped it in a “special” sauce mixed with daikon, then lay it over sushi rice to serve.

• Shabu shabu beef torched then dip in sauce with daikon
• Uni from Maine
• Unagi with sansho (not picture)
• Hamachi handroll with scallions

So, first impression… Dinner was very rush. An hour for 15+2 pieces, that is averaging 3.5 minute per bite. At my 7pm seating there were 10 people including me. That means our chefs have less than 4 minutes to make 10 pieces of nigiri. On top of that, there were people who have allergies, some ordered basic, some premium, some didn’t want wasabi (seriously…),  things got confusing at times.

Our chef kept things moving and tried to make it lively and interesting. While one of the chefs was busy making nigiri, the other explained the upcoming piece and told a little story. I do appreciate this “show and tell”. The handrolls were a nice touch to get the “audience” involved. The chefs handed each of us a piece of nori, then went around to scoop rice and ingredients onto our hands. It was awkward for me, but I can tell my fellow diners enjoyed this bit.

As for the nigiri, it is surprising that for $63, it includes Chutoro, Uni, Botan ebi. I didn’t particularly like the cooked shrimp and the salmon, but that’s my choice. The one comment I had, I felt that rice quality was inconsistent. Some pieces were too hot, some too mushy, and some undercooked. By the way, the Sushi W team did handed out a comment card by the end of the dinner, and that’s exactly what I wrote. I am not criticizing, just some honest constructive comments. I’m not complaining, really. Afterall, where else can we find a $63 Omakase that has Chutoro and Uni.

I’d love to order more pieces, but with an-hour limit, plus the 8pm reservations were already waiting in the front room, there was no chance I could have another 5-10 minutes for extras. Perhaps next time, I could make reservations for 2nd rounds?

Feeling still hungry, I walked out to the cold dark street. The pizza joint next door smelled so good.

Sushi W | 2673 Broadway, NY | December 2021