The revered itamae, who will open his eponymous sushi bar on the top floor of the Four Seasons Hong Kong in March, speaks to us about his childhood dreams and why he'd never put caviar on his nigiri
Long before Sushi Saito first received three Michelin stars in the Tokyo guide back in 2009, it was already quite arduous to get a seat at the spartan sushi bar in the city’s Ark Hills complex. Ask anyone who has been, and they will understand—chef Takashi Saito is perhaps best known for his kodawari, that unflinching dedication to a purist Edomae ideal of sushi. Those who have had the good karma to taste his craft, including Joël Robuchon, often claim that Saito makes the best sushi on the planet. And it’s not just famous Frenchmen who sing praises of Sushi Saito—it’s frequently ranked as the top sushi bar on Tabelog, Japan’s go-to restaurant review site.
See also: Tokyo’s Sushi Saito Is Opening In Hong Kong, And Here’s What You Need To Know
This March, Saito will unveil a branch of his eponymous restaurant in Four Seasons Hong Kong, and it is already slated to be one of the year’s most highly anticipated openings. On the sushi chef’s only free day in Hong Kong recently, we had quick chat.
Was making sushi what you wanted to do when you were young? Did you have any other dream jobs growing up?
No, I wanted to be a baseball player for the Yomiuri Giants. That dream is long gone and dead now.
You are known to go to Tsukiji market daily to source ingredients. What forms your morning routine? How do you like to start your day?
I wake up at 6:00am, and go to Tsukiji at around 6:30 with Kobayashi [his second-in-command for eight years who will be manning the sushi bar in Hong Kong]. I don’t really have time to do breakfast. I usually just have a coffee, and maybe a rice ball. I have lunch at my restaurant.
How has your palate, and thus your approach to sushi, changed over each decade of your life? What flavours do you find yourself gravitating more towards today, compared to when you were growing up?
I’ve always loved fish and, obviously, I still do. I don’t think my palate has changed. But the oceans have, and the quality of the seafood is different from before when it comes to their size, texture, and oil content. There are also a lot more varieties of vinegar available nowadays. So what I do is to adapt to today's ingredients [by changing] how I age the fish; cook the rice; the amount of vinegar I use. I would like to keep the taste of my sushi as traditional as possible.
