Yoshi Sushi — Restaurant in Koya

I was on koyasan for a night and, due to a mistake in booking, I found myself looking for a place to dine because the ones in the temple were all full. With a simple google search I came across this place and couldn't have hoped for better. The place is hidden behind a few things in the upper part of town, close to the main temples. In itself the place is anonymous and is run by two elderly people. Both do not speak English well but are polite and do the possibile to understand. The menu consists of several choices of nigiri and hosomaki, we opted for the deluxe set (8 pieces of nigiri, 2000 yen). The quality of the fish, which was fresh, was amazing. The same was true for the rice and wasabi. Moreover, the portions were generous and the fish slices were very large. They offered me a freshly made hot tea for the meal and, after the sushi was finished, they offered a pineapple slice and a melon slice, which were also delicious. The best sushi I ate here in Japan, so much so that I decided to return the next day. The second time I opted for the standard set (8 pieces of nigiri, 1000 yen) and it was also amazing. This time they offered me a fantastic fish soup. If you make an effort to speak a little Japanese, they will be happy and even more friendly. Really...

So, let me explain this place, because you're going to be confused if you go there and don't expect some things.

TL;DR: This place is amazing, cheap, and the food is great; however, you might not find it, it might look closed, and the inside makes you feel unwelcome at the beginning.

This place is in a residential area, in a section of the town that you swear wouldn't have a restaurant. Also, there is really nothing to designate that it is a restaurant besides the lantern.

It might look closed. There was no one there at ~4PM, no hours posted in Japanese nor English, and there were no lights on.

Inside, it is a super humble restaurant. Small cardboard signs designate either the specials or the alcohol they're on (I can't read :(). Seats and general atmosphere is older.

The slices of fish you get are gigantic. Like each piece of nigiri fully fills your mouth, and you might wonder how you ever fit that fish fillet in there.

Small menu, few of the items we ordered weren't even ON the menu. However, everything is so amazingly well priced for what you get, you might as well just get the set (or deluxe set).

He is a man of EXTREMELY few words. I think he just said "hai" at a...

Saw about this tiny restaurant on google maps and seeing the reviews I decided to try it. It was definitely worth it, sushi was so good and cheap too, I’ve never eaten such quantity and quality sushi for just 1000¥. Definitely gotta try it if you’re in Koya San. The chef was alone when I went there and he barely speaks any English, but he’ll make sure you remember him by adding a lot of wasabi on his sashimi, which I have come to love. The atmosphere is simply amazing, it looks and is the typical traditional place where locals are used to go at night after work to enjoy the company of the chef and the antique atmosphere you can breath in there. If you go at lunch, don’t be fooled by its exterior, it might seem closed but it’s always open, even though I’m not sure bout the...