Sushi Obana is a relatively lesser known sushi spot amongst casual sushi enjoyers especially being all the way out in Tatebayashi. But it has a reputation of sourcing some of the best ingredients in Japan, having longstanding friendships with big name suppliers like Yamayuki. From what I read, he’s not really taking any new customers but does fill cancellations with Pocket Concierge.
Reservation: Pocket Concierge is really the only option for foreigners. I waitlisted myself for a bunch of days in December for early March and received a confirmation for a seat on Feb 19th. My reservation was for a lunch full menu seating which he does only on Sundays and it consisted of Otsumami + Nigiri. The base price was 33,000 yen.
Tatebayashi, Gunma is a 1.5-2hr trip from Tokyo depending on if you want to take the limited express or regular. The restaurant itself is about a 15min walk from Tatebayashi station and is located in a quiet residential neighborhood. Unlike Riku and Sanshin, the staff at Obana is quite small, it was just him, his wife and one worker in the back. Obana-san’s wife served as the point person for hospitality, sake sommelier and dessert maker.
Of the three sushi restaurants I went to, this was probably my favorite. The restaurant had more of a homey feel that I enjoyed. It was also one of the rare times I wasn’t placed in the corner of the counter and was placed directly in front of the taisho. Despite not being fluent in English, Obana-san explained the courses to me and had his translator app readily available to communicate. The other patrons were fairly friendly as well and spoke to me quite a bit despite the language barrier. The atmosphere felt definitely more relaxed than most sushiya’s that I have been to and it was easy to feel comfortable.
The meal started out with two types of salts for the sashimi. Both harvested from the same location but just during different moon phases. One was during the new moon phase and the other was during a full moon. Tasting them side by side there was a bit of a difference. The full moon felt a little saltier while the new moon was slightly more subtle. I’m not sure if my palate is sensitive enough to appreciate the difference but it was at least interesting.
The quality of the ingredients and the skill of Obana-san was excellent. Probably one of my favorite sushi experiences overall. The majority of the courses were great-excellent. The shari texture had a nice firmness to it and was not overpowering which paired well with the neta. The standouts for me were the uni parfait, ankimo, ikura gunkan, chutoro, and sawara-zuke. The ankimo might have been one of the best I’ve ever had.
After the meal, the diners paid and made their next reservation. They are very old school and use a handwritten planner for their reservations. I was able to make a reservation in October and they took a picture of me so that they would remember what I looked like (lol).
- Ara
- Smoked Sawara
- Uni Parfait – Bafun – signature course. Uni flavor overload (in a good way). The shari was coated in aged uni sauce in a cocktail mixer. It was then topped with fresh bafun uni and wasabi.
- Akagai
- Akagai Liver
- Chowonmushi with sea cucumber innards
- Nitokaki oyster
- Toromaki
- Shirauo – I've never seen them this large.
- Ankimo
- Kimedai
- Kohada
- Ikura gunkan – signature course. I’ve never seen ikura this color. From what I understand he removes the skin of the white salmon egg and then marinates/cures in soy it until it becomes this opaque orange. It had a creamy texture almost similar to soft cheese.
- Akami
- Chutoro
- Otoro
- Sumika
- Sayori
- Kobarshira
- Sawarazuke – Probably favorite of the night. Ordered a 2nd
- Akagai
- Amai ebi
- Hamaguro from Sendai – It was ok. Not much of a raw clam person to be honest
- Kawadari – Palate cleaner. A bit bitter
- Ebidon
- Uni – Murasaki
- Anago – quite good. I feel many places turn their anago mushy for whatever reason but this had a nice bite to it.
- Tamago ebi
- Kudzumi – Obanasan’s wife made this dish. Excellent way to end the meal
by JTrue14
2 Comments
This spot has been eluding me forever, will try to waitlist again when I’m back in october lol
That ikura… looks amazing