OMAKASE RISING

The once-underground scene keeps getting more popular, thanks in part to an influential group of omakase obsessives. CALLUM MCDERMOTT takes a seat at one of Australia's most in-demand tables.

- CALLUM MCDERMOTT

I'm at Sokyo's renowned omakase, with five other lucky guests. It's one of Sydney's toughest reservations to snare, and we're excited. Chef Sanghyeop Kim stands behind the transparent counter. He's new to the role but if he's nervous, it doesn't show. As he fashions a cavalcade of 20 or so dishes, knife gleaming as it transforms the imperador, trevally, akami and whatever else was fresh at the market this morning into art, he narrates exactly what he's doing, while his captive audience tests him with erudite and esoteric questions. The couple next to me tell him that they do this omakase - every month. Twelve a year? Surely no one does something this special that often?

"Once a month, yeah, that's cute," says Michael Shen, laughing when I ask him. "My numbers aren't too bad these days, but I have friends whose frequency of omakase makes me look amateurish." Shen has amassed a large following through I'm Still Hungry, his blog specialising in detailed omakase reviews. He's part of a small group of omakase devotees who share tips, notes, and often bookings with one another (useful when the best are booked out months in advance). They go up to 50 times a year, they're in the same group chats, they worship the same chefs, and some of them even get their levels tested regularly - because of how much raw fish they eat. And they direct their online followers to the best omakase experiences in town - part of the reason they're so difficult to book. "Whenever I go out for omakase, it's always the same people there, doing the same rounds," says Dan Hong, mercury - the Merivale executive chef and notable omakase aficionado. "We all know each other, it's a crazy community." In 2018, Gourmet Traveller wrote that Sydney's best omakase restaurants were secret and underground. Now, they all have vast mainstream followings, with new openings joining the ranks each month.