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| - This sushi place is in my neighbourhood and I eat here pretty often (More often than any financial advisor would like).
Aoyama (and Aoyama VIP - right now it seems more for Aoyama overflow than anything else) is a bit of an odd beast. There are really two different food experiences to be had here which deserve different levels of praise.
First, let us talk about the omakase for two, it has gone up a few bucks since I first had it but this in my opinion is why you come to Aoyama. At about 90 bucks for two, it is not cheap but for such good sushi, the sting to the wallet is dulled. It starts off with some simple appetizers, nothing too special, some monk fish liver (foie gras of the sea, so to speak), some chicken with spring onion skewers, and the old adage of edamame.
A nice seafood soup is served inside of a teapot alongside these appetizers. I once read a review that docked this place a star because they found this inconvenient. I have my thoughts on that but writing reviews on reviews sounds like an endless cycle waiting to happen.
What follows is a very solid platter of sushi. This is where the difference lies between whatever else you eat at Aoyama. This is the best of what Aoyama has to offer, this is what is flown in, imported painfully far (sometimes across the country, like the Uni/Sea Urchin from Vancouver, sometimes across the world like tuna and scallop from Japan). The other sushi or sashimi platters I have had here just do not live up to it.
Do not get me wrong, there are some gems here, the Negitoro (think slightly minced tuna in a light dressing), the Una Ju (some of the best eel rice I have ever had - I am comparing this to places in Japan and South Korea), the tasty hand rolls, and the Akasaka/Aoyama courses that offer a little bit of everything are all worth trying.
I know it sounds like I have overhyped the omakase for two here (and maybe I have) but If you do not find the omakase platter up to par, please message me and tell me where you are eating instead because that is where I want to eat.
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