After some Golden Gai bar hopping I was still wide awake and figured I had to check out Tsukiji Market before going back home. Because who needs sleep! What’s one of the best things to do at Tsukiji Market? A sushi breakfast of course! And the best place to enjoy that is Sushi Dai.
It was dark out and there were already a bunch of people lined up outside the small sushi restaurant and down around the corner of the building. It was around 4:40am and the place opens at 5am. I met a fellow solo traveler from California and together we waited…and waited…and waited some more.
The sun came out and we were getting closer to the corner and finally around it. We made it past the standing area of the line and sat down in a couple seats in front of the small sushi restaurant. It was 7:45am and we waited for over 3 hours at that point. Almost there!
After waiting outside for 4 hours, we finally made it inside around 8:35am and sat down at the long sushi counter. I was tired, out of it, and ready for sushi! Of course I went with the omakase set which includes 10 pieces of nigiri (9 pieces chef’s choice plus 1 of your choice), miso soup, and rolled egg for 4,000 yen (around $35).
Small piles of fresh ginger were placed in front of us. A hot cup of green tea was ready and a piece of tamago (egg omelet) kicked off the omakase.
A hot bowl of miso soup was also included. A delicious piece of flounder was served followed by some ikura (salmon roe).
I was in sushi heaven. The next few pieces were saury mackerel, hotate (scallop), marinated akami (lean tuna), and Spanish mackerel. They were all incredible!
The last few servings included a maki roll with tuna and the other with cod roe and shiso leaf. That was followed by anago (sea eel) and the last piece was my choice. I looked over the menu and decided I had to have some uni (sea urchin). So good!
Sushi breakfast at Sushi Dai was a fun experience. I’d like to thank the guy from Cali for keeping me company throughout the whole thing. The sushi was excellent and the value was great. Was it worth the 4-hour wait? I thought so! My only regret is that I didn’t order a few more additional pieces at the end.
I have been awake for about 24 hours, it was finally time to head back to the hotel for a power nap before catching my flight back to Newark. It was an amazing 20 days in Japan and I absolutely loved every minute of it!
Sushi Dai
5-2-1 Tsukiji
Tsukiji Fish Market 6th Building
Tsukiji, Chuo 104-0045, Tokyo
+81 3-3547-6797
