This week’s dinner was at Akiko’s, which recently moved into their new location on Folsom St. as of January 10. As we entered, there was a very nice cocktail bar at reception. Had we known, we would have come earlier to enjoy although since it was right by the door, it was a bit rough during this very cold, windy, rainy spell of weather). The cocktails though were delicious and served in Kimura glass (yes, I’m that Menu-esque nerd who notices that stuff).

We had seating at the counter (of course…), which seated 24 in a spacious setup that gave a birdseye view of everything. There is also non-counter seating, a couple tables of which had some nice seclusion, but the counter is really where the action’s at, an d literally so when it came to the nigiri courses.

The menu is omakase with 10 courses with 7 Otsumami (appetizer courses), 2 courses of Nigiri, and Dessert. The Otsumami courses included a wagyu dumpling, chawanmushi (with truffle), milk toast/toro/kaluga caviar (from Tsar Nicolau) which certainly allowed us to complete our bougie trifecta (wagyu, truffle, caviar. We did have a few dishes with gold leaf which is always an extra bougie completely superfluous addition, yes, I’m laughing at myself for even appreciating this).

From these initial dishes, the sashimi (kue, akami, sake) and the chawanmushi (snow crab and truffle with the truffle being very fresh, unlike so many of the disappointments we’ve suffered at so many restaurants), the Buri (yellowtail and onion jam), and the Shokupan (milk toast, toro, caviar) were my favorites, but all were executed quite well and with fantastic ingredients. Some of the presentation was quite playful – Amadai on the ceramic napkin, the Buri on top of the ceramic hats, the Hotate Sunomono served in a glass shell (of course…).

The nigiri courses consisted of two sets of 5 nigiri. From these nigiri, I’d have to say the Zuke was definitely one of our favorites. The quid was very tender and fresh. The Cherry trout with cherry blossom on it was wonderful. As were so many of the other pieces.

Before dessert, we were presented with a menu for additional pieces of nigiri and we had to try some additional pieces. The sushi chef recommended the Kamasu, we had to try some Hokkaido uni, and the hokkaido wagyu nigiri (with truffle). The uni was so sweet and creamy as only hokkaido uni can be (domestic uni is is much brighter and crisp) and the wagyu (from hokkaido which was different/new since the default A5 is typically from Miyazaki) with the truffle was so rich, flavorful, salty (from the seasoning), and aromatic from the truffle. It was great end to the main meal.

Lastly came dessert which was a sesame ice cream with, yes, more gold leaf. The ice cream was so perfectly creamy that I did wonder if it was prepared with a Pacojet (yes, thank you The Menu for making me aware of such an appliance…yes, I’m that guy).

We mostly went with various sake by the glass, which was enjoyable and served primarily in Kimura glass and Gabriel Glass. Service was generally very good…some of the servers merely did their work perfunctorily, but a few were very engaged with us which does add to the overall experience. Again, the venue was very spacious, which allowed us to feel enjoyably separate from the other diners, but within view of everyone. We were probably the oldest ones in the restaurant, but I think we’re getting pretty used to that now.

In sum, it was an enjoyable experience with some unique ingredients, preparation, and presentation.