Chinese Sushi

I’m a big fan of sushis.

I love their scrumptious texture, the oily sensation they distil on your tongue, their melt-in-the mouth quality.

That’s when they are good of course. And fresh. Which is scarcely the case.

I don’t know if this is so in the US or England – I’m sure it’s not in Japan – but in France, or in Paris at least, Sushi restaurant are more often than not managed by Chinese people.

I discovered this a few years ago, when I was having lunch at a little sushi place and I heard the sushichef speaking Cantonese to one of his waiters.

Oh, and they had ha-kao on the menu. And spring rolls.

I know. I’m quite sagacious aren’t I ?

So I was pretty disappointed to find out that my favourite sushiplace in Paris was not Japanese.

After doing a little bit of research, I realized that there is actually a list – THE list ! – published by the Japanese Embassy that references all the true Japanese restaurant in Paris.

So I decided to check those restaurants out. And I can tell you that there is absolutely nothing in common between the restaurants on the list, and the others.

Now I’ve got a new favourite Sushi restaurant in Paris. It’s Japanese. And everything is Japanese about the place.

It’s tiny and perfectly well-kept. It looks like a miniature restaurant, a playmobile house. In which every detail has been designed and thought of in advance. I really don’t want to sound condescending or anything because I truly admire the Japanese people and their way of living, but really ; every thing is just so cute in there! It's ravishing!

The carrots are chopped so finely, you can practically see an old Japanese Grandma spending hours on a stool to delicately carve these vegetables. In my mind, I see her handling the carrots like little baby birds, with incredible care and love. The porcelain bowls have minute and graceful drawings. You feel the sushi have been artfully cut with a precision coming from ancient tradition.

Eating sushi at a true Japanese restaurant is like taking a journey in 19^th CenturyOsaka. You marvel at the food but also at the whole universe that comes with it.

Next time you have great sushi, just close your eyes, breath, and let the fish melt in your mouth. Feel all the years of tradition that permeate through this tiny bite. Feel the spirituality of a whole people. I bet you’ll hear the humming of an old Japanese chef cutting a perfect piece of red tuna.

Okamé

260, rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré

75008 Paris

Tél : 01-43-80-20-00