Royal Sushi & Izakaya
Japanese restaurant · Queen Village ·
Japanese pub with chef's sushi counter & drink-friendly fare
Japanese pub with chef's sushi counter & drink-friendly fare
"Royal Sushi & Izakaya, one of the hottest seats in town, received a Bib Gourmand for their Japanese cooking. The restaurant is walk-in only, and offers an a la carte menu, as well as a high-end omakase through a separate reservation. The restaurant is located in Queen Village and owned by Jesse Ito, who also recently opened Dance Robot, a Japanese comfort food spot in Center City." - Maddy Sweitzer-Lamme
"Jesse Ito’s dual‑concept Queen Village sushi bar and izakaya, included on the Bib Gourmand list." - Melissa McCart
"Technically two restaurants in Queen Village, this spot pairs a casual, walk-in-only izakaya up front with a hidden back room where eight-time James Beard–nominated chef Jesse Ito helms an eight-seat, L-shaped omakase counter serving a 15-course, seasonally rotating tasting anchored by exemplary nigiri. The $350 omakase — the only option — recently featured bibimbap with nori-butter rice and assorted fish; dry-aged fatty bluefin tuna nigiri crowned with Osetra caviar; live scallop nigiri; and an artistic tartlet topped with caviar, salmon, fatty bluefin tuna, and yuzu cream. A third of the tri-fold menu lists optional add-ons; yes, you do want the $32 piece of wagyu: a melt-in-your-mouth, galbi-marinated A5 Miyazaki ribeye, and you should add Itosan’s tamago — the sweet egg omelet made by Ito’s father — as the ideal cap to a flawless meal. While the izakaya is dark (sometimes “phone flashlight on to read the menu” dark) and moody, the back room is brighter and quieter, and with only eight seats you may leave with a new friend or two (including chef Ito). This is the hardest reservation to book in Philly — I tried every night for a year and a half, at midnight exactly — so set a Resy notify for rare last-minute openings; if you nab a seat, your server may even offer to make your next pre-paid reservation for three to four months out. If you can’t get into the omakase, you’re not settling: sit at the izakaya bar and order a few rolls, like the Bloc Party and Aka-Taka." - Zoe Becker
"Wildly popular and much-awarded after nine years in Queen Village, this restaurant centers on Jesse Ito’s omakase counter and is known for a best-in-the-city selection of sake and shochu; since January 2021, longtime collaborator Justin Bacharach has run the rest of the menu while the two collaborate on some dishes, with Bacharach also long developing the desserts." - Maddy Sweitzer-Lamme
"If there were a rare scenario in which Philadelphians had to choose only one restaurant to dine at for the rest of their lives, a high number would choose Royal Sushi & Izakaya in Queen Village. Yes, the omakase experience is the best in the city, but their karaage wings also add to the popularity. They’re topped with a subtly tangy soy chili vinegar, along with red onions and scallions that intensify the super crunch of each wing. The order of six is never enough, but it does have us considering a monogamous relationship with the place. Royal's sushi omakase is the single hardest reservation to book in Philadelphia. (At the end of the meal, diners can rebook for the following month, and many do—thus creating a defacto club of omakase regulars.) Open slots become available 30 days in advance, so we suggest setting an alarm or 10 and signing up for the waitlist notifications. It's rare, but not unheard of, to get a last-minute reservation. Alternatively, you could dine in the walk-in-only izakaya portion of the restaurant, get “lost” heading to the bathroom, and try to blend in with the Eagles player gulping toro." - candis mclean
