This Aoyama restaurant is a partnership between veteran sushi chef Michimasa Nakamura and sommelier Yoshinobu Kimura, who brings with him a decade’s experience as the head sommelier at two-Michelin-starred Narisawa in Tokyo. Nakamura, who already has two successful sushi restaurants to his name – Sushi Shin in Shirokane and Sushi Shin Hanare in Nishi-Azabu – leverages on his deep, intuitive understanding of ingredients to help them blossom to new potential. He’s creating a new style of sushi while still respecting Japanese traditions.
Kimura keeps the wine cellar stocked with more than 400 bottles from local and European artisan producers, and has a custom-designed sake refrigerator that ensures a stable temperature between -11C and -13C for a fine selection of boutique brews. Many of these beverages are exclusively to Sushi M. For the non-alcoholic pairing, Kimura has selected a range of fine teas from Japan and China.
The ‘M’ in Sushi M stands for the French word ‘mariage’, the harmonious pairing of food and drinks, which is the aim of this innovative sushi restaurant, where the drinks play an equal, rather than supporting, role in the dining experience. So you can expect unconventional sushi and drinks, such as amadai (tilefish) brushed with garum (fermented fish sauce) from Tokushima Prefecture and served with a condiment blend of fresh seaweed, wasabi and sherry vinegar, and Nagasaki oyster nigiri paired with a Japanese orange wine.
The restaurant’s sleek interior features just 12 seats around an L-shaped hinoki cypress counter. An omakase course is ¥30,000 (includes tax, no service charge), with one seating daily from 7pm. Reservations are essential, taken via phone between 2pm-5pm.