The Shota — Restaurant in San Francisco

Dined at The Shota in July 2024 for their summer menu. This is my 4th time at The Shota.

Long story short - there is a clear reason why The Shota is the sole remaining Michelin-starred omakase in San Francisco. This is not a dig at all to amazing restaurants that have previously held a star(s) - I love you Omakase, Ju-Ni, & Wako - but rather, a reflection of The Shota's amazing consistency, warmth in service & team's knowledge, absolutely flawless execution of food & pairings, & in general bar none excellence of adhering to edomae style omakase while being innovative & creative.

I previously dined with The Shota & experienced their Fall 2022 menu, Fall 2023 menu, & Winter 2023 menu. Every experience has been 5 stars & dare I say 6. I've dined at omakases in Honolulu & Japan (Tokyo, Osaka, & Kyoto) ranging from Sushi Sho, Sushi Gyoshin Omakase, Sushi Ginza Onadera, Sushi Murayamna, Hihimanu Sushi, Gion Sasaki, Mizai, Harutaka, & more. The Shota proudly sits amongst the top of this pantheon. Of course, keep in mind omakase styles are different & to each chef, their own!

The Shota is nestled in a beautiful Art Deco building next to The Treasury (which has amazing cocktails btw) & in true New York IYKYK vibes, a glass door with bronze & gold accents is a gateway into a truly unique experience. Walking in, you're greeted with a wonderful cement floor to ceiling factory-like decor but contrasted with a pale white, CB2 style minimalist setup with a sweeping chef's counter.

Special shoutouts to Chef Seth Ridgway (who was on The Next Iron Chef Thailand season 2), Shar, & Tida. The team led by Chef Shota is absolutely spectacular & they are a key reason why I have returned & returned. For me, the people at The Shota are are standout reason of why you should go, & go again.

The team are all fountains of knowledge who are so warm, approachable, & chill that it feels like you are just hanging out with friends in your living room with a Netflix trashy show (or quality show) playing in the background. I really appreciate this ambiance of omakase where it's informative without being condescending & stand off-ish. The Shota is definitely "tshirt or polo & chinos vibes" versus "tuxedo & sit in a temple of silence formal vibes."

The menu is an absolute reflection of seasonality. Every time I've dined at The Shota they've had seafood that I've never had before or seafood that you think you know but is brand new because it's prepared in a very well thought out & executed technical manner.

Chawanmushi with shaved black Perigord truffles? Mhmmm. Instead of "dump a lot of truffles & expect fireworks," the dish is a representation of The Shota's clear, technical execution of a beautifully set egg custard with ingredients that add clear "nose, body, & finish" elements. Instead of overpowering each other & turning the dish into a 1 dimensional truffle bomb, rather, all of the ingredients work in harmony & elevate each other. It's a fantastic reflection of their ethos.

A gorgeous Hokkaido scallop (hottate) but made playful with a zest of yuzu & textural crunch from a fleur de sel? Yup.

Ora King salmon that melts in your mouth with freshly grated wasabi for that touch of spice & oomph? Yeah.

A "mini tasting menu" of different cuts of tuna (ahi) from amaki, chutoro, toro, to otoro. It's remarkable to taste the differences from least fat to most fat. On one side of the spectrum you taste the unique taste of fresh ahi & then it becomes progressively fattier & truly a wagyu of the sea where you borderline don't even need to chew & the ahi melts in your mouth.

A5 wagyu topped with Hokkaido uni & Ossetra caviar & gold leaf? Good God. The definition of indulgence & Jesus take the wheel.

The Shota also has absolutely spectacular sake pairings. I could write a separate review on how every sake served as a "cut" to the dish or "rounded it out" with secondary & tertiary notes. Also, the pairings are unexpected & out of left field which add a wonderful playful wink to the...

I remember when this was a lunch spot in the FiDi and now it's a fancy sushi spot. It's still very minimalist and white, just more upscale now, and even more minimalist with the variety of ceramic pots on the shelves being one of the only decorative elements in the space. We came to celebrate our anniversary and indulged in a $275 omakase. We were greeted with friendly smiles and they pushed our chairs in once we were seated in the padded bar stools, something I've always appreciated because there is no graceful way to scooch yourself in on a high chair. There was not only a hot towel, but also a towel ball for the sushi courses. To start, the appetizer trio was beautifully presented in a woven basket and adorned with golden mesh leaves.

Chawanmushi - steamed egg: Great! silky, custardy egg soup with mushrooms and meaty fish

Sawara - Spanish mackerel: Great! succulent and plump

Hotate - scallop: Excellent! sliced into a checkerboard and topped with a bit of sea salt

Ji Kinmedai - golden big eye snapper: Great! meaty and toped with a dollop of chive seasoning

Katsuo & Shiro Ika - seared tuna with dip, squid noodles with uni sauce: Good! Three pieces of tuna were browned outside and red on the inside, went well with the katsuobushi and chive dip. The squid and carved radish on the side wasn't necessary, but presented nicely. The squid noodles in uni sauce were delicious. After we finished the noodles, the chef offers a ball of seasoned rice to help polish off the uni sauce.

Next we were presented with a trio of beautiful tuna, as well as the giant tuna head. Apparently the guy was 300 pounds, and then was aged for 3 weeks. I tried my best to refrain from naming the tuna.

Honmaguro Akami - lean tuna: Good! delicious, shiny and blood red Honmaguro Toro - belly fat tuna: Great! can't go wrong with fatty tuna Honmaguro Temaki - tuna handroll: Great! tasty tuna mix with perfectly crisp seaweed. Mine unraveled a bit when I put it on the plate to take a photo of it, so chef put the next handroll directly on my plate as long as I promised to give one handroll to Mr. Joy. What a fun chef!

Ebi & Uni - shrimp & sea urchin: Good! crispy fried shrimp with a side of shiso leaf and lemon wedge The uni nigiri was on a bed of salmon roe. I could have used a little more rice to balance out the salty roe.

Kohada - gizzard shad: Great! meaty silver skinned fish

Anago - saltwater eel: Great! very tender teriyaki eel

Akadashi & Inari - miso soup & sushi in tofu skin: Okay! soy broth and sweet tofu skin to taper off the savory dishes

Hojicha - roasted green tea ice cream: Good: refreshing and cool green tea flavor with chestnut shavings

Our chef concluded the meal with a toast in green jade goblets and a single candle on the side. Lastly, our bill arrived in a Japanese comic about a dude named Shota.

The sushi was great, and the service might have been even better. When I was hopping off my stool, our waitress was actually hurrying over to give me a hand. Everyone was not only accommodating, but also very...

I went to The Shota with a friend of mine for my birthday dinner and I wasn't disappointed. We both picked the omakase experience and added some supplements and a la carte items throughout the experience. Their service was exceptional. Let's talk about the service first - it was exceptional. Any small detail you could think of, they provided service for that - taking care of your coat, getting you seated, putting the napkin on your lap, pourig drinks, cleaning the plates after every sample... you name it. The staff was very friendly. The place was packed when we went. There was only bar dining experience from what I could tell, but still, each group was seated far apart that it felt like a private dining experience. The music choicd and the ambiance were great as well. Now let's talk about the food. Here is all that we got per person - Aburi Toro (seared tuna belly) Uni Mategai (razor clam) Hamo (conger eel) Tako sakura ni (japanese octopus) Asari & Soramame (neck clam & Fava beans) Kanpachi, hon masu & shiro ika (young amberjack, cherry trout, white squid) Kasugodai (young sea bream) Hotate (Hokkaido sea scallop) Uni (Hokkaido sea urchin) Kamasu (baracuda) Ayu (sweetfish) Honmaguro akami (lean bluefin tuna) Honmaguro Toro (faty bluefin tuna) Saba (mackerel) Anago (sea water eel) Honmaguro temaki (bluefin tuna handroll) Akadashi (aged miso soup) Tamago (savory egg custard) Hojicha (roasted green tea) Hokkaido ensui uni

We also ordered a bottle of Senkin classic muku, tochigi (sake).

The presentation of the food was amazing. The plating was very vibrant and appealing, and every cut of the fish that we tried was super fresh. Miso soup, temaki, and mategai were okay (have had better), but everything else was delicious. Uni and tuna were buttery, smooth, and so light that it would melt the moment you put it in your mouth. They encourage you to use your hands instead of chopsticks for eating fish, so they provide you with wet napkin to clean your hands. Overall, it was a great dining experience. I knew when I made my reservation that they don't do anything special for any sort of celebrations (except lighting a candle towards the end so you can make a wish), so keep that in mind when you make...