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Some restaurant reservations require setting an alarm. Japan's Sushi Saito practically requires you to be a regular already. For three nights this November, though, New Yorkers will have another way in—so long as their dinner budget has plenty of breathing room.
Chef Takashi Saito, the celebrated toque behind Tokyo’s famously exclusive sushi counter, is heading to Sushi Noz on the Upper East Side from November 5 through 7. As part of the restaurant’s 2026 Japan Series, the residency will give diners a rare chance to experience the chef's multi-Michelin-starred omakase without securing access to his members-only Tokyo restaurant or buying a plane ticket.
The price of admission? Between $1,200 and $1,800 per person.
Saito will personally helm Sushi Noz’s Hinoki Counter at 6pm and 9pm each evening, making for six seatings across the three-night run. The setting is suitably special: guests sit at a 200-year-old hinoki wood counter in a room surrounded by a dozen types of cedar, with a traditional icebox behind the chef.
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There’s a second option, too: Chef Hiroshi Ishikawa, who leads the private room at Sushi Saito in Tokyo, will serve the same menu in Sushi Noz’s intimate, six-seat Ash Room at 5:45pm and 8:45pm. (If seeing Saito himself work is the entire point of your splurge, pay attention to which counter you book.)
Sushi Saito previously held three Michelin stars before its shift away from public reservations took it out of the guide. But its reputation has hardly suffered. Access to the Tokyo counter remains exceptionally difficult for anyone outside its established clientele. Sushi Noz says the upcoming event is Saito and his team’s first collaboration dinner in the United States.
Both restaurants specialize in Edomae sushi, a Tokyo tradition that emphasizes preparing and seasoning fish and rice. The announcement hasn’t detailed the residency menu, so keep your fantasy fish lineup flexible. A limited-edition wine and sake pairing selected for the omakase will be available as an add-on.
Reservations are available through Sushi Noz’s booking platform, with a waitlist once spots fill. Before committing, read the fine print: the restaurant can't accommodate dietary restrictions or menu modifications, all sales are final and nonrefundable and corkage is prohibited.
Consider this your considerably pricier alternative to refreshing Tokyo reservation pages.