Sushidokoro Mekumi NY

One of the best omakase experiences I’ve had in New York. Every course shows the chef’s care and respect for the ingredients, and Chef Hajime is genuinely dedicated to his craft. Nothing is overdone or masked with unnecessary fillers—just the pure, original flavors as they should be. Most pieces were melt-in-your-mouth and truly worth savoring. I finished the entire meal with absolutely no complaints. Truly recommend if you want to know the taste of a good omakase in Japan.

Authentic and traditional, with delightful atmosphere. Highlights for hairy crab dishes. Menu changes coordinates seasonal flavor, showcasing omakase experience. Chefs are not quite used to introducing each dishes yet, and servers had billing issue that need to be improved. But they all positively handled requests, and had a lot of flexibility. I do wish they can show the fish processing step in front of us instead of bringing fish slices from the back. The pace is slower than other places anyway. Overall good price for the quality, probably Michelin one star next year.

Sushidokoro was an amazing dining experience; everything was exceptional - from the food, atmosphere & ambience, to the hospitality by all members of staff. Head chef Hajime Kumabe and sous chef Kairi Kurahashi made sure every guest had a wonderful time. If you get the opportunity to grab a reservation, please follow through! You won't regret it.

I am a bit of a sushi geek, having eaten at many highly esteemed sushi restaurants in Japan such as Sushi Namba, Sushi Takamitsu, Sushi Ryujiro, Sushi Hashimoto, and many more. But I tell people the best meal I ever had in my life was the snow crab course at Sushidokoro Mekumi in Ishikawa Japan on November 26, 2024. So when I heard that the second-in-command, Chef Kuma, was opening up a satellite location of Sushidokoro Mekumi in NYC I was ecstatic. Luckily I was able to book a 5:30 PM reservation on the Tock website within the first two weeks of their opening. Since then, the restaurant has been fully booked. Chef Kuma has done an amazing job recreating the experience of dining at the restaurant in Ishikawa while adding his own signature touches. The restaurant is located next to the Four Points Sheraton and is easy to find. When you walk inside there is another door to enter the restaurant and you walk down a short hallway to a wooden sliding door which opens up to a beautiful wooden counter with about 8 comfortable seats in a serene atmosphere. The restaurant provided a beautiful menu card that could be taken home as a souvenir but I forgot to take it. At the Ishikawa location you can take pictures of the non-sushi appetizers but then once the nigiri starts you are not allowed to take any more pictures. I’m pretty sure when I made the reservation this rule was stated. The people next to me were taking pictures of the nigiri when nobody was looking so I’m not sure how strictly this rule will be enforced at the NYC location but it would be best to respect the rule because it is meant to encourage you to eat the sushi immediately when it is served so that it has the optimal temperature, texture, and flavor profile when eaten. Also, a lot of the nigiri is extremely delicate, so it will just fall apart if you don’t eat it immediately. So from memory they served: Otsumami (appetizers) Boiled octopus in dashi 🐟 Hairy crab with crab miso 🐟 Wild Yellowtail wrapped in daikon 🐟 Pacific Barrelfish Hand Roll 🐟 Red Sea urchin 🐟 Grouper 🐟 Nigiri 🍣 Wild seabass 🍣 Squid 🍣 Sweet shrimp 🍣 Marinated Bluefin tuna 🍣 Hairy crab nigiri topped with purple sea urchin 🍣 Streamed Salmon Roe Gunkanmaki Black throated sea perch 🍣 Gizzard Shad 🍣 Saltwater Eel 🍣 Toward the end there was the option to order extras, which could either be anything already served or about 5 or 6 new courses. I ordered Striped Jack nigiri 🍣 Purple Sea Urchin nigiri 🍣 Wild Yellowtail nigiri 🍣 Finally the meal ended with a few finishing courses: Hairy Crab Miso Soup 🦀 Futomaki made with a rich dashi omelette 🥚 Shrimp Castella 🦐 Fig daifuku served with hot green tea. 🍵 It was a phenomenal meal. Chef Kuma is an extremely friendly and humble chef who is quite mesmerizing to watch as he transforms ingredients into masterpieces before your very eyes. The sous chef is also a certified sommelier so the restaurant has an extensive drink menu of high quality wine, beer, and sake. I’m already eager to return for my next meal which I’m under the impression will be very different as Chef Kuma rotates through seasonal ingredients.

Food is amazing. Chef and the wait staff are all very attentive and thoughtful. It’s a great price point compared to other high end omakase places. Will definitely come back💕

Of course, the food was absolutely delicious, but what impressed me even more was how perfectly the chef and sommelier anticipated exactly what guests would want. Their attentiveness made the experience truly special. The interior was beautifully simple, allowing the elegance of each dish to shine. From the first course to the last, the entire meal felt like watching a beautiful film unfold—perfectly paced, deeply moving, and unforgettable.

We came here for a birthday celebration: food generally was good but shrimp and otoro was very fishy. The service left us very disappointed. Servers started to remove our wooden trays when we were just served with the last course sweet course fig daifuku. It was a hassle trying to eat the daifuku while the server removing trays from the bottom. In addition, all other parties of two celebrating birthdays (each with only one birthday person, same as us) received two or even three complimentary desserts, while we only received one. When I politely asked why, the server explained that those guests “ordered extra food” and the dessert was “only for the birthday person.” This reasoning felt inconsistent for a fine dining omakase experience, where service and hospitality should be uniform regardless of whether guests order additional items. Small gestures like this make a big difference, especially when celebrating a special occasion. We will not be back.

Incredible meal. Wonderful attention to detail from the very friendly staff, and the fish and preparation were outstanding. Maybe the standout was the shari, which was perfect in every way. One of the best meals I’ve ever eaten.

I am a bit of a sushi geek, having eaten at many highly esteemed sushi restaurants in Japan such as Sushi Namba, Sushi Takamitsu, Sushi Ryujiro, Sushi Hashimoto, and many more. But I tell people the best meal I ever had in my life was the snow crab course at Sushidokoro Mekumi in Ishikawa Japan on November 26, 2024. So when I heard that the second-in-command, Chef Kuma, was opening up a satellite location of Sushidokoro Mekumi in NYC I was ecstatic. Luckily I was able to book a 5:30 PM reservation on the Tock website within the first two weeks of their opening. Since then, the restaurant has been fully booked. Chef Kuma has done an amazing job recreating the experience of dining at the restaurant in Ishikawa while adding his own signature touches. The restaurant is located next to the Four Points Sheraton and is easy to find. When you walk inside there is another door to enter the restaurant and you walk down a short hallway to a wooden sliding door which opens up to a beautiful wooden counter with about 8 comfortable seats in a serene atmosphere. The restaurant provided a beautiful menu card that could be taken home as a souvenir but I forgot to take it. At the Ishikawa location you can take pictures of the non-sushi appetizers but then once the nigiri starts you are not allowed to take any more pictures. I'm pretty sure when I made the reservation this rule was stated. The people next to me were taking pictures of the nigiri when nobody was looking so I'm not sure how strictly this rule will be enforced at the NYC location but it would be best to respect the rule because it is meant to encourage you to eat the sushi immediately when it is served so that it has the optimal temperature, texture, and flavor profile when eaten. Also, a lot of the nigiri is extremely delicate, so it will just fall apart if you don't eat it immediately. So from memory they served: Otsumami (appetizers) Boiled octopus in dashi Hairy crab with crab miso Wild Yellowtail wrapped in daikon Pacific Barrelfish Hand Roll Red Sea urchin Grouper Nigiri Wild seabass Squid Sweet shrimp Marinated Bluefin tuna Hairy crab nigiri topped with purple sea urchin Streamed Salmon Roe Gunkanmaki Black throated sea perch Gizzard Shad Saltwater Eel Toward the end there was the option to order extras, which could either be anything already served or about 5 or 6 new courses. I ordered Striped Jack nigiri Purple Sea Urchin nigiri Wild Yellowtail nigiri Finally the meal ended with a few finishing courses: Hairy Crab Miso Soup Futomaki made with a rich dashi omelette Shrimp Castella Fig daifuku served with hot green tea. It was a phenomenal meal. Chef Kuma is an extremely friendly and humble chef who is quite mesmerizing to watch as he transforms ingredients into masterpieces before your very eyes. The sous chef is also a certified sommelier so the restaurant has an extensive drink menu of high quality wine, beer, and sake. I'm already eager to return for my next meal which I'm under the impression will be very different as Chef Kuma rotates through seasonal ingredients.

Really enjoyed the restaurant but thought the forte was in the sake, desert and otsumami, not the nigiri. The nigiri, while it had premium ingredients and excellent pairings / sequence, felt off. The rice was too much in many pieces, especially the crab/uni piece which had a thin single sliver of California uni and thin patch of crab, followed by 70% rice. So it was essentially vinegared rice with seaweed. The uni from Santa Barbara I have usually found to not be as exceptional as bafun (both available, in fact the higher end bafun uni is available on an add on menu for $38). I can imagine this might have been an economic choice to improve margins. Also found the kohada (which is difficult to prepare) to have great texture but the cure could have been a bit heavier and more nuanced. Was not as intensely flavorful as other sushi joints. There was also not a single piece of unmarinated tuna on the menu (only piece was marinated and from Canada). This was totally fine since Mekumi optimizes on local seafood/availability, the tuna from Canada does count as local. For a higher end experience, would have expected the crab to be sourced from Ishikawa. While all pieces on the menu were available for order, few if any of the guests opted for additional pieces. The highlights were really the desert which had a maki piece for egg and a delicious egg custard infused wirh shrimp. Sake pairings and choices were outstanding and very flavorful.