SSAW Brooklyn

The tasting menu at SSAW is exquisite! Throughout the multi-course dinner, we experienced amazing service, delicious and unique-tasting dishes that were beautifully presented on plates and glassware imported from Japan. Throughout the night, our gracious and friendly host curated sake selections that we thoroughly enjoyed. And in the space itself, there was no detail overlooked — the ambiance from the decor to the music playing was perfect. We’re going again soon!

I had such an amazing experience at SSAW! The food was absolutely incredible - super fresh, creative, and delicious. The decor and flatware were beautiful and minimalist. The service was absolutely top notch - the staff are so professional and friendly and gave us great sake recommendations. I can't wait to go back!

Such a special intimate and delicious dining experience at SSAW. The staff was kind and attentive in the style of high end Japanese kaiseki. The courses not only looked great but also tasted fantastic, and was creative. We especially enjoyed the duck course and the dessert house-made ice cream. Our friends enjoyed the wine pairing. I live in the neighborhood and love this addition! Don’t be confused by the mixed reviews on Google reviews. This place got unfairly review bombed by literally randos on a Chinese app who aren’t even in the US and I hope Google removes these fake Chinese reviews ASAP.

Wonderful addition to the Brooklyn food scene! Every detail is carefully curated from start to finish from the beautiful ambiance and decor, welcoming and knowledgeable staff, unique selection of sake and wine, and exquisite food options. Ryo introduced us to several different types of sake with various flavor profiles based on our preferences and each sake was better than the last! Can’t wait to go back. Highly recommend adding this restaurant to your regular rotation!

Amazingly authentic Japanese cuisine with an astonishing staff to guests ratio (almost one staff per two guests), open kitchen atmosphere and highly welcoming and talkative waiter/owner. We started out by not being sure which Sake we’d like and they whipped up three different kinds at absolutely reasonable price points. Afterwards we enjoyed 7 courses of highly authentic Japanese dishes with lots of fish and many different kinds of tastes not comparable to western cuisine. Our favorite was the beef cooked so tender it melts in the mouth. Decoration is raw and chique, minimalist but without being cold. It’s not a cheap place to stay, but unique and well worth it. I hope this new place catches on!

NYC is teeming with the latest and greatest, but every once in a while you have an experience that stands out like SSAW. Walking in from its unassuming exteriors, you feel like you’re being welcomed into a friend’s home — it’s intimate enough to talk and not too stifling. Every dish we had at SSAW was balanced in flavour, and the prix fixe menu was thoughtfully curated to display a beautiful cadence of ingredients and skills. One of the best meals I’ve enjoyed in the city — I’m looking forward to seeing what Chef Fukuzaki & his team continue to cook up!

TLDR: SSAW is a new kaiseki concept from Yusuke Fukuzaki. Not super stiff but more casual, the flavors are on point. Some really unique dishes that I hadn't had at other spots. I had went to the SSAW pop-up last year and was excited to finally try it for real. The menu leaves much to the imagination as it just lists the key ingredient. It's a small spot and I'd definitely recommend grabbing a counter seat. The first dish was a suppon (soft shelled turtle) chawanmushi which my wife doesn't eat. Chef on the fly, whipped together a kegani (hairy crab) version to accomodate. That is the essence of omotenashi. Everything was excellent but a few things were stand outs for me. The black scraper dish was a hybrid plate of a sashimi and a salad. An assortment of sashimi under a ponzu vinegar jelly. It was crunchy, umami-forward, cool and so many textures. The shirako tempura in white miso was also delightful. Rich, creamy but not overly heavy. The goldeneye snapper or kinmedai in béchamel was also unexpected, especially with the Sichuan peppercorn and yuzu kosho to help balance it out. The washugyu rump served gyukatsu style but with rice crackers for breading was clever and tasty. It paired beautifully with the persimmon. It was a very enjoyable experience and it's cool to see Williamsburg getting some newer things like this. Definitely will be visiting again for the hospitality, the vibes and obviously the food.

Hot off the plate report! So glad I was one of the lucky 8 getting into the official opening weekend :) TL;DR 4.5/5 round up to 5. I would go back solo (to better savor and appreciate the food) again assuming the menu would change seasonally. While it was good > great, I was expecting to be vowed. Long form. The vibe, the hospitality and the very limited wine selection were all very good. It was an intimate space - situated in a residential side street, 8 counter seats and 2 seats/2 tables on the side. We were able to watch the actions in the kitchen. Chef Fukuzaki has incredible knife skill :) Background music - soft, cheerful jazz, at a proper volume, extra half star. Throughout the meal the hosts/sommeliers were frequently engaging with us, which definitely made the whole experience especially enjoyable. I don't drink sake so I opted for wine. And I was very impressed with the 3-4 wine by the glass selection - given the delicate ingredients and intricate seasoning, it is quite challenge to navigate the wine paring. The Sicilian pinot grigio, particularly, has a thicker/rounder body, nectar consistency to it, reminding me of the 1992 Fioranello Bianco that I had once tasted, and it went surprisingly well with the wagyu beef tongue. Food wise, I would say it is a modern take on kaiseki - seasonal ingredients with non-traditional Japanese cooking techniques. Not surprising given chef's pedigree. The level of care, from prepping to plating was incredible. The food were good/great. My top 3 of the night, based on flavor profile, texture and complexity were the sweetfish (or ayu in Japanese) with roe served with pumpkin puree, mushroom tofu and the beef tongue. I like the unagi; it is just not as memorable as others. The mushroom tofu, a concentrated version of crab soup, almost gravy like, with Matsutake(?) mushrooms, was fragrant umami bomb and pallet opener. The sweetfish (ayu) was a rare treat - I haven't had it ever in the States. It was thinly breaded with a crispy exterior, soft/juicy middle and crunchy inner most (the roe). The way I would put it, a double-shots fireworks. Beef tongue. Perfectly seared, charred outside, juicy toothsome inside, with a slightly crunchy texture. The plating was a beautiful pink (beef), green (some veggie) and yellow (ginkgo) ensemble. All in all, it was a delightful experience, possibly the best dinning experiences I have had in the past 6 months. I would probably put in a reservation and back in a month or two. Hopefully, reservation won't be a mission impossible :) PSA: 330 S 3rd is a residential building with an intercom. But the entrance to the restaurant is actually one door to the right. Quite unassuming from the outside; you might miss it.