Shion

All 89 rated mentions, most helpful first

  • in:Are We at Peak Omakase Yet?27 pts

    “This is why Shion 69 is my favorite omakase. He bypasses Tsukiji market and is able get fish and uni from his hometown, which no one can do.”

    H3

  • in:Sushi Nakazawa Disappointment6 pts
    replying to u/No_Conversation_7120: Can you elaborate more on your first pick- Shion 69 Leonard? I’d like to know why it’s #1 for you! Thanks! I’ve never been…. Love to try a new one!

    “The gist is that Shion-san trained for 7 years at a top 3 sushi restaurant in Tokyo (Saito) before coming to New York. His nigiri exhibit technical perfection and he differentiates himself by sourcing a lot of seafood from his hometown of Amakusa in Kyushuu instead of through the Toyosu Fish Market in Tokyo.”

    H3

  • in:Yoshino or Shion 69?1 pts

    “Shion was overpriced at $400+ before tax. Chef Shion services 12 people so I felt it wasn’t personable.”

    H3

  • in:Tsukimi or Noz 175 pts

    “At the Noz 17 price, I would prefer Yoshino or Shion at 69 Leonard.”

    H2

  • in:Masa Omakase5 pts

    “But it is absolutely not 2 times as good as Shion, Yoshino, Noz, etc which many times match or sometimes surpass it, and those are already eye wateringly expensive”

    H2

  • in:Best Sushi Omakase4 pts

    “You’re unlikely to get a consensus between Yoshino, Noz and Shion 69 - they’re all similar price and similar caliber. Imo, Yoshino > Noz > Shion 69 but not by much.”

    H2

  • in:Thoughts on Noda?4 pts

    “If you want ever so slightly better fish for a much higher price, go with shion.”

    H2

  • in:Yoshino or Shion 69?3 pts

    “Shion I liked less and have not been back. It felt very traditional with nothing even slightly creative, which is also good in its own way but not so exciting.”

    H2

  • in:Are We at Peak Omakase Yet?3 pts
    replying to u/funthera: This is why Shion 69 is my favorite omakase. He bypasses Tsukiji market and is able get fish and uni from his hometown, which no one can do. The reason being is his high school friends are now fishermen so he has access. Shion is a true purist when it comes to omakase and a lineage of Sushi Saito. This is what makes him so different than any other chefs

    “Great spot, a bit underrated with so many high end spots now in NYC”

    H2

  • in:Best Sushi Omakase2 pts
    replying to u/MrCakemeat: Yasuda is pretty far from the others on your list. They have the widest variety of fish (sushi/sashimi or both). They will offer way more flexibility in the meal itself, but is a very different experience. The rest are basically tasting menus, done in an omakase style. They all have similar structures to the meal (kitchen dishes followed by sushi). You’re unlikely to get a consensus between Yoshino, Noz and Shion 69 - they’re all similar price and similar caliber. Imo, Yoshino > Noz > Shion 69 but not by much. I haven’t been to Noda so can’t comment, but it seems to trail slightly behind the others.

    “I think Noda has the best rice and execution edges out Shion even though they come from the same lineage.”

    H2

  • in:Traditional Omakase Recommendations1 pts

    “some think (myself included) yoshino is not as good as the apprentice shops in nyc (shion 69 Leonard - saito disciple, Noda - iwa disciple).”

    H2

  • in:Last Dinner1 pts

    “If money is actually no object, do Omakase at Sushi Noz, Yoshino, or Shion 69”

    H2

  • in:Best Nakazawa alternative?1 pts
    replying to u/laughingwalls: I am gonig to do a write up on Sushi Nakazawa, pretty soon. I think the hate is very undeserved. Essentially if your looking for a fish forward Omakase, I think you have to pay a lot more than Nakazawa. Nakazawa's strength is that its 21 course nigiri only omakase that is under 200$ that is substantially better than what you get at a 120$ place. All the criticism seems to come from snobs that eat at the 400$ sushi place. Kono/Torien/Tempura Matsui are not sushi, so if your looking for sushi I will heartily recommend Nakazawa. I don't know what people mean by not authentic. Nakazawa is a lot more authentic then anything that I've had at places that are cheaper. They offer some things that are not authentic as a supplement like Caviar or Truffle, but they don't particularly encourage it. The actual omakase itself is very straight forward is quite traditional nigiri focused omakase. Its a hell of a lot more authentic then the stuff that gets mentioned at the price points beneath it.

    “Have been to shion, found it was getting too far from the fish.”

    H2

  • in:Must go restaurants28 pts
    replying to u/nickytops: I know you said that don’t like sushi, but if you want to go way over budget: Sushi Noz, Shion 69, Yoshino are the top places

    “Great places but just thought this was funny when they added a budget and said one of them isn’t a fan of sushi and you ignored both of those”

    H1

  • in:Are We at Peak Omakase Yet?7 pts
    replying to u/funthera: This is why Shion 69 is my favorite omakase. He bypasses Tsukiji market and is able get fish and uni from his hometown, which no one can do. The reason being is his high school friends are now fishermen so he has access. Shion is a true purist when it comes to omakase and a lineage of Sushi Saito. This is what makes him so different than any other chefs

    “Now that's a fucking good rec. Thank you”

    H1

  • in:Masa Have Lost Their Third Michelin Star6 pts
    replying to u/vagrantwastrel: Honestly it doesn’t surprise me. The appetizers are truly incredible, but the nigiri was just as good as Yoshino, Shion, etc. Which is to say very very good, but it makes no sense that those are 1 and Masa is 3. And I know why sushi is expensive, but fuck off with that pricing

    “Shion was a much better overall experience than Masa”

    H1

  • in:Sushi Nakazawa Disappointment4 pts
    replying to u/tunitg6: I don't think you're a sucker who only likes American omakases. I'm also not sure that Nakazawa is actually a good sushi restaurant. Nakazawa may have been good many years ago when it was featured in Billions but is Nakazawa's claim to fame not simply that he worked for Jiro-san, a restaurant popularized by a documentary? It's not even a top 20 sushi restaurant in Tokyo. There's a new class of edomae sushi restaurants that opened in New York starting with Sushi Noz in 2018. Let me be clear, *all* of the best sushi restaurants in New York City are <= 6 years old. It's upsetting that you had such a poor experience at Nakazawa. Unfortunately, everyone I know who has been there has said the same thing. There's no excuse for poorly cut, sinewy, and bad seafood. I think it's extremely challenging to read reviews and/or take recommendations from Reddit, Yelp, Google Reviews unless you know the experience and preference of the people giving the recommendations. It's clear to me that some individuals say one place is the best or their favorite but they've only been to a few places. You mention budget restaurants like Sushi By M, Thirteen Water, Sushi Lab, etc. They're fine but I think just because they're "cheap" (relatively) doesn't mean they're a good deal. Low quality uni, caviar, wagyu, etc. is cheap. They use farmed, non-seasonal seafood and the multi-chef platform leads to inconsistency. In fact, I'd say many of the workers are more line cooks than sushi chefs at some of the…

    “Spots mentioned above are all great but I personally really like Noda or amane (post shion departure), specifically because the chefs here use stronger flavored shari without overwhelming the palate.”

    H1

  • in:Cheeky Question About Omakase4 pts
    replying to u/Agreeable-Ad-7110: If you want something more like what you’re describing, go to sushi Ann. They keep serving till you say you’re done and he’ll definitely take your input. I love the place, it’s probably my favorite sub $400 place. Smaller cuts of fish but amazing rice and tbh, I’m not a massive fan of the really big cuts of fish like ikumi, even though I do like ikumi otherwise

    “I got that and then loved it so I got another along with the squid he had served.”

    H1

  • in:3 Michelin Star MASA NYC4 pts

    “But if you put on the sushi-critic glasses specifically, unless you are served by Masa himself (unlikely) the nigiri technique will fall short of other places like Noz, Onodera, or (probably) Yoshino or Shion.”

    H1

  • in:Sushi Ichimura vs Shion 69 Leonard St3 pts
    replying to u/tunitg6: Shion 69 Leonard is a top 3 sushi restaurant in NYC (my favorite). Sushi Ichimura is not. Shion Uino trained at Sushi Saito for 8 years in Tokyo before coming to New York City. His sourcing is unique in that he bypasses Toyosu and sources directly from his hometown of Amakusa in Kyushu. When you go to Shion you are treated to technical excellence and a differentiated experience. The service is meh and the counter is cold marble instead of warm hinoki wood but the food is excellent and differentiated. Sushi Ichimura, despite the star, is not a topic of conversation among serious sushi consumers in the city. While I haven't visited his new restaurant (by choice), I did visit the popup he was doing at L'Abeille while they were building the restaurant. Ichimura is obviously a talented chef who specializes in aging but his style doesn't match my preferences. He's a crowd pleaser - for the chutoro and otoro, he double and triple stacks the pieces but the otoro is so heavy that it just flattens out. He serves his uni too cold. A friend went and noticed the lack of consistency with the neta/shari ratio, huge cuts of maguro to please NYC guests who like to spend money and don't appreciate the craftsmanship of sushi. All you need to do is look at the pictures and you'll see what appeals to each of you. If you can't agree, go to Icca instead!

    “I don't disagree that Shion 69 has a tremendous presentation of balanced, carefully curated courses.”

    H1

  • in:There are too many damn sushi/sashimi/omakase spots3 pts

    “If we're talking about top omakase places, I count 13: Masa, Noz/Noz 17, Ichimura, Icca, Yoshino, Amane, Yasuda, Kosaka, Noda, Nakazawa, Shion 69 Leonard, and Mr. Moto. Why is 13 restaurants an unreasonable number of great omakase/sushi restaurants for a city that loves sushi in a metropolitan area with over 20 million people?”

    H1

  • in:High-end omakase for special occasion (recs request) 3 pts
    replying to u/bns808: Yes I feel so silly because both of those are booked, they’re my top 2 right now - I’m on waitlists for both noz and yoshino but will try calling them when they open to see if there’s anything I can do or hope someone cancels. I figured with the price they wouldn’t get booked as quickly as other places around the city that are popular but I was wrong

    “I would add Shion 69 Leonard, Icca, Noz17 (easier reservation than Sushi Noz), and Ichimura.”

    H1

  • in:Best and worst sushi omakase in NYC. And why?3 pts
    replying to u/JKBFree: Not gonna lie, but all omakases in ny are horribly overpriced after being in japan. But with that said, 15 east was quite memorable. Was a bit ago but in my mind, still stands out for service and quality.

    “But I certainly think Nakaji, Noz, and Shion were comparable to Japan, albeit not like tablelog gold.”

    H1