While for many the idea of an expensive meal is inextricably tied to steak and caviar, some of the most expensive restaurants in both the U.S. and the world are those which specialize in Japanese techniques that can take many years for a chef to master.
A type of meal in which a series of small dishes is chosen and prepared by a top chef, omakase has been gaining significant popularity in major U.S. cities while six of the 10 most expensive restaurants in the world currently have sushi on the menu.
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By either looking at the cost of a tasting menu per person or crunching the price of the dishes on the menu for an average, UK-based gaming platform Slingo identified Morihiro and Sushi Ginza Onodera in Los Angeles as some of the most expensive in the world — the average check at either will amount to $400 or £314 per person.
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This is how much a meal at some of these first-class sushi restaurants will set you back
While the top place on the list was taken by New York's Caviar Russe due to the presence of many rare types of caviar on the menu (the average check will set one back $555 person), three of the restaurants in the top five and six in the top 10 that Slingo identified as the most expensive in the world either focus exclusively on sushi or serve it as part of a wider Japanese menu.
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"As a 13-time Michelin Star recipient, Sushi Ginza Onodera holds itself up to high standards," write the report's authors. "Ranked in joint second place, the Japanese restaurant serves quality Edomae-style traditional sushi with fish imported from Tokyo."
Other restaurants to land in the top 10 included n/naka, Sushi Kaneyoshi, Q Sushi and Hayato — all in Los Angeles. While the list includes LA's French-American Melisse and Kitchen Table and Restaurant Gordon Ramsey in London, both Japanese food and the city of Los Angeles absolutely crushed this list with such a high number of restaurants.
Omakase, kaiseki and other types of Japanese dining gain star status in U.S.
Seven of the top 10 restaurants on this list were in the City of Angeles with only two in London and the top spot taken by New York's Caviar Russe.
Kaiseki, which is another type of Japanese dining style that mirrors a traditional meal served before tea ceremonies during past eras, has also been gaining recognition in the United States — Hayato, which has an average tasting menu check of $295 and tied for eighth place with fellow LA restaurant Melisse, has a dining room with only seven seats while reservations need to be sold out for months in advance due to the high numbers of deep-pocketed locals looking to experience kaiseki.
While this particular ranking looked at the most expensive restaurants by averaging out the entire menu, different ones identified entirely different restaurants by the presence of chart-topping individual dishes or checks when combined with wine or other alcohol (this ranking looked at the cost of food alone.)
