It’s no secret that I am a big sushi lover. And I am lucky to have dined at 8 Japanese restaurants within the past 13 months being here in Sydney. Although I have to say I wasn’t expecting Sydney’s Japanese (omakase) dining scene to move so fast. Of the 8 I went to… 2 opened recently in the past month, 2 closed down and 1 had a change in sushi chef.

My friend and I visited Jizakana in August 2019. And at the time of our dinner, Jizakana was into their fourth month of operation.

Upon entering the restaurant, the staff led us through the main dining area and to the back of the restaurant. That’s when we realised the sushi counter for the omakase was in a separate space. And as we pushed the noren (traditional Japanese fabric divider) aside, we were greeted by the sight of chef Hideaki Fukada standing behind the L-shaped counter. And shortly after everyone arrived, we commenced our omakase dinner, AUD130 (+ AUD20, truffle) with:-

1) Dish #1 (above) – Snapper (tai) with shaved truffle.

2) Dish #2 (above) – Steamed egg (chawanmushi) with crab and its innards.

3) Dish #3 (above) – Sashimi platter of skipjack tuna (katsuo), penshell clam (tairagai) with caviar from Russia, and abalone.

  

4) Dish #4 (above) – Assortment of baked oyster with ponzu butter, sea pineapple, cod, imperador and cuttlefish tempura.

5) Dish #5 (above) – Sea urchin hand roll with truffle.

  

6) Nigiri sushi assortment (above) – Cooked-yet-not-cooked salmon topped with seaweed (kombu), and scorpion fish.

7) Dish #6 (above) – Miso soup.

  

  
  
  

8) Nigiri sushi assortment (continued) (above) – Whiting, lightly-boiled scampi (shabu shabu), premium fatty tuna (otoro) from Japan with sea urchin and truffle, marinated tuna, sardine, squid with grated homemade mullet roe, skipjack, flame-seared premium fatty tuna (aburi otoro) and sea eel (anago) from Japan. I enjoyed the sushi except for the sardine which tasted slightly fishy. And as we went our own ways in eating the sushi, I thought it was interesting that chef Fukada san told us specifically to eat the fish topping (neta) side down for the marinated tuna sushi. I also thought it was interesting for the sea eel sushi, he applied the sauce onto the sea eel before torching it. I mean, it’s usually the other way right?

  

9) Dish #7 (above) – Handroll with salmon roe (ikura), premium fatty tuna (otoro) and sea urchin.

10) Dish #8 (above) – Egg omelette (tamago).

11) Dish #9 (above) – And because we were in the first seating and started 15 minutes late (had to wait for latecomers), we didn’t have enough time to have our dessert at the counter. So we were shifted to the main dining area.

My friend and I enjoyed our dinner at Jizakana. And I liked that a separate space was used for our omakase meal. I felt like I was transported to Japan. It was bright and modern, yet had an authentic vibe. And because it’s a small space that could only fit 6 people, it was quite an intimate dining experience. No conversation with chef Fukada san was private. And so… One customer asked chef Fukada san about his background. To which he happily shared he’s 46 years old and had accumulated 26 years experience.

Would I be back to Jizakana? Oh yes! I would. However as I blog this, 11 months after my dinner… Chef Fukada san has since left Jizakana to open his own restaurant Kuon Omakase in July 2020. So one may ask, “What about Jizakana then?” Interestingly, chef Toshihiko Oe left Masuya Japanese Restaurant to take over the space within Jizakana. Naming it Sushi Oe! So what can I say? Sydney may have lost 1 omakase venue (Jizakana), but has gotten 2 new omakase venues in return; Kuon Omakase and Sushi Oe. :)