omg… please post the reviews soon.. looks damn bloody good

simply incredible photos…

Is that a bowl of uni?!?!

in (possibly) its own cool seawater – yes…

Shockingly gorgeous tiger prawns.

What follows that mackerel (?) photo? It almost looks like chicken tendon.

The third picture, talk abotu the third picture!

ulterior – they were kuruma shrimp – which sounds like it’s basically the same thing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penaeus

that is an (sea, i believe) eel liver – it was served after its (presumably) own flesh as sushi. it is rather strong and quite good – but that small piece is about the right size – more than that and it would be too much.

@ chuckeats: What was the consistency of the eel liver. It almost looks like it’d be bouncy, or chewy.

i don’t honestly remember. i do remember an eel liver found in the bottom of a soup at Nogwai was very rubbery; and i liked the one pictured *much* more – so i presume it had a more creamy than rubbery texture – it was charred on the often-magical grill of Sushiso Masa.

Sawada (in photos above) is absolutely incredible. There are few meals you remember in vivid detail. This one makes the list at the highest level. I’ll post full account soon.

I am not sure it’s possible to visit Tokyo only once.

Misha, I can’t say I remember it in vivid detail but it is one of the best meals available on this planet – looking forward to your pics and review.

And, yes, my only regret on this visit was that it was the same season as my last visit – the Japanese are so crazy about seasonality that one must visit each season, at a minimum, to begin to get a full idea of the wonder of their food.

As I’ve always tooted (and bias – the season that I have always visited) that Oct-Nov is the best [time to visit Japan] because it features my favourite items: chestnuts and sweet potatoes. I can’t wait to see what combinations of these two sugary starches you had on your trip!

WOW!

Looks awesome:)
I really want to go back after my trip this autumn.
You were right about Ryugin, damn nice,,,,,, but i still think that my best meals were at the sushiplaces with Kanesaka as no 1 , Sushi Saito and Sushi Shintaro really close – maybe even better if i would have had dinner there- and Mizutani at 4:th place.

I have had probs with the pictures but it will come out soon;)

We had great meals at L.C. Narisawa, Kondo and plenty more but I strongly advice you to go To Inakaya in Roppongi if you want to have a fun night at a grill.

Eat and live well!

Dear Chuck!
Greetings!
As busy as ever!
Great pics as usual!
Did you check where the wasabi came from?
Cheers,
Robert-Gilles

[...] was a late October (2009) meal, immediately after the currently-being-blogged Tokyo trip.3 The food is obviously more bombastic when compared to the monkish stylings of Japanese cuisine [...]