A brand new Japanese restaurant is making its way to Greenwich village and it’s bringing some serious clout along with it.
Saito is a brand new concept that is about to be premiered by veteran chefs Hitoshi Fujita and Daisuke Nakazawa. Hitoshi worked for over twelve years at the prestigious Sushiden restaurant in Midtown (which sadly closed in 2019). The starting ground for a number of now-iconic sushi chefs, Sushiden was one of the most significant sushi restaurants in Manhattan, and working there for over a decade endowed Hitoshi with he skills he would need to found his own restaurant – Butterfish. Famous for its carefully curated omakase sushi experience, Butterfish sadly closed in 2015.
Daisuke meanwhile has been training for over two decades at some of the most prestigious sushi restaurants in the world. From 2001 until 2012, he worked as a sushi chef at Sukiyabashi Jiro, the elite sushi restaurant featured in the popular documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi. From there, he later worked at Shiro’s and eventually started his own restaurant in 2013 – Sushi Nakazawa. With three different locations in New York, DC, and Tokyo, Sushi Nakazawa is one of the most popular omakase restaurants in the city. In their one-star review of Nakazawa, the Micheline Guide stated that “Chef Nakazawa’s signature style combines supremely tender fish with perfectly seasoned rice, a spark of wasabi and judicious brush of nikiri for consistently excellent results.”.
With such a talented team behind the concept, Saito is guaranteed to become one of New York’s most important new Japanese restaurants. Moving in to the space at 70 Kenmare Street, Saito will be replacing Ramen Lab. Ramen Lab was a popular pop-up incubator that often invited guest chefs to premiere new ramen concepts to excited guests. With only one bar and five tables, Saito is expected to be an intimate yet exclusive affair, seating a maximum of 20 people at one time. In the meantime, consider visiting Sushi Nakazawa for a chance to meet the chef behind it all.
