With the help of the concierge, we arranged to dine at Sushiryori Inose, which was located within easy walking distance of our hotel. We were greeted warmly, and seated at the counter. Beer and steamed abalone arrived swiftly, followed by all manner of delicious morsels, some conventional, some less so. The owner, Inose-san, was extremely friendly and liked to show off his knife skills to the appreciative audience: eventually there were 10 customers, most of us foreigners who had read about the place on Tripadvisor. We had a great time, and the final bill after several bottles of beer between us was around 10,000 yen. It was worth every penny. Inose-san has been working here for the last 23 years, I was told. Like so many places, you would never guess from the outside what treats lay in store within, and the shop is on a fairly busy street.

I dropped in without a reservation just as the place opened, and the chef came out to apologize that it was fully booked. After a few minutes of sad discussion about coming back the next day (not possible since I was leaving town then) and offering to sit outside in the rain for the chance of trying his fare, he chatted inside with his wife and managed to squeeze one more seat at the counter for me!

Moral of the story: make a reservation, even for one person. If you still want to chance it, beg pathetically and you might get in. :)

Once in, it is clear why it's so highly rated on TripAdvisor: these folks love to entertain and feed people, and they treat everyone like family. The chef made truly delicious sushi, chatting and presenting with a delighted "hai, domo!" ("here you go!") as he plunked excellent nigiri on the little platter in front of every diner.

Be sure to get sake or beer (or both) over the course of the evening, and be sure to offer some back to the chef and his wife; they really like it. :)

Cash only, and it's omakase -- you get what the chef thinks you'll like, though he'll show you the next main ingredient if there's a possibility you might not like it. For example, he showed off the sea urchin roe ("the best, fresh from Hokkaido!") before making it for the Western guests. A very filling, sake-fueled, and fun night was a very reasonable 11,000 yen for one person.

I'll come back every time I get the chance, and drag everyone I know to this place.

Kampai!

What a wonderful surprise to eat at this small out of the way sushi restaurant and eat tuna that just melts in your mouth and the owner Inose is absolutely charming.

The food was out of this world-the best sushi I've ever had. The Chef's specialty is toro (fatty tuna) that melts in your mouth. We probably had 10 different kinds (In hindsight I wish we would have photographed each piece)! He told us what each piece was as he served it. He also gave us a show of his cutlery skills with a cucumber where he made a pine tree and butterfly.

The chef and his wife were amazing. The service was superb-they had us laughing the whole night. They turned all the lights out and sang me happy birthday. Although we were celebrating my 40th, our hostess insisted that i was 25 and she 26. What laughs!

The meal was 15,000 yen. I'll be back!

It is a special place! A tiny restaurant, family run with a cheerfully chef who really likes his job preparing fantastic sushi and entertaining his guests. We never had such unpretentious but delicious sushi each of them with special character in a simple surrounding. Maybe the real boss might be his wife, also a lovely person. Both are great! Don’t look for Michelin stars and enjoy the experience. We’ll come back for sure!