By Mark Pupo | Photography by Dave Gillespie
There are only 13 seats in this narrow, gleaming white room: 11 at the counter, plus a table for two by the window. Couples on dates tend to choose the latter, but when it comes to omakase sushi, in which every passing second robs a piece of nigiri of its fragile harmonies of taste and texture, you want to be at the counter to consume it the precise moment it’s been sliced.
Before opening Yasu, the chef Yasuhisa Ouchi ran Nigiri-Ya, a takeout counter in Leaside, and worked at the Melbourne outpost of Nobu. He’s Toronto’s newest Jiro Ono, tracking down the freshest seafood, fussing over the consistency and temperature of his rice, and hosting only two seatings a night (three on weekends). He presents each nigiri on an individual cut-glass tray, the morsels as glossy and ornately composed as an art nouveau brooch, and takes you on a world tour: Sri Lankan tuna, Japanese striped jack, Greek sea bream, Scottish ocean trout, British Columbian uni. The night ends with a traditional slice of flan-like tamago and a green tea panna cotta. Step out onto the dusky street, and the spell is broken.
309755 Chef Yasuhisa Ouch ran Nigiri-Ya, a takeout counter in Leaside, and the Melbourne outpost of Nobu, before opening the city’s first sushi-only omakase restaurant on Harbord. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-01-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-01.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-01.jpg 800 1200 [] https://torontolife.com/food/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu/slide/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-01/ best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-01 0 0
309756 Japanese bonito with ponzu sauce. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-02-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-02.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-02.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu/slide/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-02/ best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-02 0 0
309757 Norwegian mackerel with pickled daikon. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-03-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-03.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-03.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu/slide/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-03/ best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-03 0 0
309758 Alaskan salmon roe with fresh yuzu zest. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-04-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-04.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-04.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu/slide/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-04/ best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-04 0 0
309759 Monkfish liver with shiso leaf and grated daikon. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-05-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-05.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-05.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu/slide/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-05/ best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-05 0 0
309760 Spanish toro with fresh wasabi. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-06-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-06.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-06.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu/slide/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-06/ best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-06 0 0
309761 Japanese baby sardine with ginger and scallion. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-07-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-07.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-07.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu/slide/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-07/ best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-07 0 0
309762 Peruvian sea eel painted with tsume sauce. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-08-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-08.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-08.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu/slide/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-08/ best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-08 0 0
309763 Luscious sea urchin from Vancouver. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-09-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-09.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-09.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu/slide/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-09/ best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-09 0 0
309764 The night ends with a traditional slice of flan-like tamago (egg omelette). https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-10-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-10.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-10.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu/slide/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-10/ best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-10 0 0
309765 Guests seated at the marble-topped bar are treated to a globe-trotting orgy of sushi, delivered one immaculate piece at a time. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-11-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-11.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-11.jpg 800 1200 [] https://torontolife.com/food/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu/slide/best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-11/ best-new-restaurants-2015-yasu-11 0 0
West: 63
East: 4
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