Tsukiji Kagura Sushi Honten stands out from the crowd of sushi shops in Tsukiji with its charming old-school wooden interior and flawlessly friendly service. But the shop’s most remarkable feature is its sushi rice. In true traditional Tokyo style, the rice is mixed with akazu (red vinegar), giving it an amber hue. Made by slowly fermenting sake lees into vinegar, the added akazu also imbues the rice with a rounded, slightly earthy and nutty flavour that harmonises perfectly with fresh seafood.
The Kagura sushi set (¥4,800) is the chefs' recommendation and who are we to argue? Covering the spectrum of Japanese seafood, it offers three cuts of tuna for comparison (chu-toro, bincho and otoro), plus prawn, silver fish (such as mackerel or sardine), white fish (such as snapper or sea bass), tamagoyaki omelette, ikura (salmon caviar), and other seasonal specialties like uni (sea urchin roe) and anago (saltwater eel).