Sushi, it’s what’s for Breakfast

One of the chefs at Daiwa-Zushi

Waking up at 5:30 am is tough.  Really tough but it’s what you have to do to if you want to experience what is the chaos of the Tokyo Fish Market.

Actually I lied – we snoozed so we didn’t hit the market until 7 am – but that was just perfect to grab a quick sushi breakfast before the market opens to the general public at 9 am.

Daiwa-Sushi: Sushi lovers heaven

The main sign for Daiwa-Zushi – look for the faded red curtains above the door

Seeing the line wrapped around the building for the infamous Sushi Dai, we decided instead to less popular but just as good Daiwa-Sushi.  Daiwa is supposedly the son of the chef at Sushi Dai.  I noticed the much shorter line for Daiwa-Sushi was made of primarily locals – so maybe they are on to something the tourist haven’t quite caught on to.  The wait at 7 am was a brisk 30 or so minutes before we were quickly seated at the sushi bar.  Pay attention while your standing in line as the line attendant will get a little pushy if you don’t move quickly enough!

The fattest chuck of toro I’ve ever seen!

We decided to order the omakase (chef’s choice) which was a selection of what was the freshest for that morning.  The omakase at Daiwa-Zushi runs about 3500 yen ($35 US) consisted of 7 pieces of nigiri and two-three piece rolls.  The omakase also included miso soup and green tea.

It quickly became apparent why the line was moving so quickly, within a few seconds of ordering we had our first piece of sushi:  quite possibly the fattiest looking toro (the fatty part of the tuna) I have ever seen.  It literally melted in our mouths!

The Uni from Daiwa-Zushi was absolutely delicious!

Next came the Uni and, WOW, was it good, way better than anything back home.  After the Uni came shrimp, then buri (adult yellowtail), anago (sea water eel), regular tuna, sweet egg, three pieces of tuna maki and three pieces of salmon roe maki.  I also ordered a piece of scallop (one of my favorite types of sushi) and it was on the same level as everything else.

While the sushi was not quite as good as what I had at Yosada (The rice alone at Yosada was on a different level), it still was amazing.  Also surprisingly good was the miso soup.  Packed with tiny clams, it was hands down some of the best miso I’ve ever had.

Daiwa-sushi was well worth the wait and price.  It should be on anyone’s list of places to go while visiting the fish-market.  Even for those not interested in going to the market, Daiwa should be on any sushi lovers bucket list – YUM is all I can say!