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Picture an omakase counter in your head. What do you see? If you were to ask me, the space itself would be the first to come to mind: the counter, blond and likely made of hinoki wood. Chefs would materialize soon after, wearing crisp whites and quietly grating wasabi and slicing fish in one deft swipe. But if you were to ask, those figures behind the counter, were they male or female? You’d likely know the answer.
As saturated as New York is with sushi counters, it is men who overwhelmingly hold the knives. It isn’t entirely surprising, as when it comes to the restaurant industry as a whole, men dominate lead positions while only 19% of head cooks are women. And when it comes to sushi, the gap is even wider. It also comes coupled with a layer of good ol’ misogyny, as women were left out of the profession due to ongoing myths that include warmer hands and even fluctuations in hormones that can affect taste (both debunked).
But over the last few years, counters led by women have started to come to the forefront. In 2024, Morgan Adamson took over Hōseki, a six-seat counter hidden inside the basement of Saks Fifth Avenue. Nikki Zheng opened Sushi Akira in the Upper East Side in 2025, now recognized by the Michelin Guide. Ambrely Ouimette is the latest to add her name to the roster of the few, but her arrival marks a new title altogether, as she is the only female kaiseki chef in New York City.
RECOMMENDED: Two female sushi chefs on leading counters within the male-dominated industry
While her name may not be super familiar to New Yorkers (yet), Ouimette grew up here all the same. Born in Connecticut but raised in Hudson Valley, Ouimette spent her childhood on the farm upstate, gathering with the family over weekly Sunday feasts. It set her up for an itch for the kitchen, as did a stint at a seafood restaurant that led to an interest in sushi. She eventually honed her craft under chef Norio Ishii of Latitude 43 in Gloucester, Massachusetts, before moving to Denver to open Matsuhisa under chef Nobu Matsuhisa himself. But she generated a buzz all her own in Texas when she took over the reins Sushi|Bar ATX, selling out seats as soon as they dropped. She eventually left to open a counter of her own, and with family still residing in New York, she found her way back East, opening Anbā in February of this year.
With a restaurant name that translates to her own in Japanese, Anbā is entirely a creation of Ouimette’s own making. And we mean that quite literally as Ouimette designed the counter herself. Leaning into the raw and minimalist principles of wabi-sabi, Anbā glows a soft red, illuminating a simple sandy marble counter with plush white chairs tucked underneath it. Ouimette’s touches are found throughout as dried flowers hang from the ceiling, her collection of vinyl spins during the night and Elvis tchotchkes are hidden about the room, a nod to her favorite artist.
But perhaps the most striking sight is that Anbā itself is entirely staffed by an all-female team. Just a few steps away from Ouimette, her sous chef Maija Bradley is close behind, plating and serving just as well, while Audrey Crowe, who serves as the sake specialist and vibe setter (she swaps out the vinyl throughout the night), guides guests through a menu of sake, whiskies and wine. The trio set a tone that is more familiar than formal, as it is just easy to strike up a conversation about Ouimette’s housemade ferments as it is to groove alongside her as she palms rice to the rhythm of Marvin Gaye spinning on the record player.
But the most enticing sight is the journey through 18 courses as chef Ouimette seamlessly weaves classic techniques with a style all her own. A recent visit yielded starters of a custardy chawanmushi that seemingly walked through the forest with the addition of plenty of mushrooms and a dash of umami thanks to a splash of unagi broth. The Hokkaido scallop, properly seared in “lots and lots” of butter, comes partnered with a light dusting of winter truffles over an equally buttery pecan miso foam that nods to her time in Texas and the state’s corresponding pecan season. But Ouimette’s fascination with fermentation is where she shines, as she happily talks through her five types of vinegars and how she prepares her kosho, a Japanese fermented paste, dehydrating and rehydrating it in lactose ferment. It’s paired with a commitment to the art of aging fish, as a glowing collection of fish hangs in a dry ager behind her. Ask about it, and she’ll likely pull out the whole lot, fish heads and all, rattling through how long each fish has sat and how she plans to use it.
Her combined interests resulted in match-ups I’ve yet to see at any sushi counter, including a six-day-old red bream with a bright salsa verde, gold snapper—sourced by a single family in Japan that only line catches its fish—with a bright and pickly nasturtium and peach salsa and perch with an aromatic with a touch of nuoc cham and nutty sesame. Aged for three days, the finale nigiri course of toro comes to the table almost like a fine steak, its exterior crusted with a blend of black and white peppercorns, served with a veal demi-glace and a soft Japanese sweet potato.
In the coming future, chef Ouimette plans to reach more audiences who can’t regularly afford the $220 price tag, hosting casual handroll nights to reach her fellow industry friends. But we say the seated omakase is entirely worth it for a bold take on the form. Plus, if you book now, you surely boast bragging rights in the future about how you “knew her when,” as Ouimette’s status is surely set to rise.