My personal introduction to sushi was watching actress Molly Ringwald unpack her bento box filled with sushi for her lunch in the John Hughes movie The Breakfast Club. The year was 1985, and although the kids in the movie razzed her for eating raw fish, I knew I wanted to be like Molly and eat sushi when I grew up.
I wasn’t alone. The 1980s were when sushi restaurants really took off across America. Eric C. Rath, a history professor at University of Kansas and author of the book Oishii: The History of Sushi, was interviewed by the school paper about sushi in America at that time. “You started noticing sushi everywhere in the 1980s, which is also the height of Japanese economic power,” Rath said. “There was the Shogun TV series; John Belushi, who is a true sushi lover, as the samurai chef in several Saturday Night Live skits; a song by The Tubes called Sushi Girl; and that film Repo Man with its famous line, ‘Let’s go get sushi and not pay.’”
What is the state of sushi today in Kansas City? Where did it start, who shaped it, and what’s next?
But we can’t talk about the future of sushi without looking at the past, and there are a few places—now gone, but not forgotten—that shaped how we see this Japanese delicacy and omakase-style service. Translated, the phrase means “I leave it to you” or a way of eating where we put ourselves into the chefs’ hands and allow them to select and prepare what they think will be best or most delicious.
Let’s begin with Café Beautiful in Lawrence. This little spot was located upstairs in a small apartment that overlooked Mass Street in downtown Lawrence. The chef Ken Suken opened Café Beautiful in 2006 serving omakase-style Japanese multi-course dinners that included sushi. It was BYOB, and it was one of my favorite places to eat at the time.
Then there was the chef Bob Shin and his daughters Esther and Tanya, who opened Bob Wasabi on 39th Street in 2015. He didn’t bring in every fish under the sun, but what he did have was the best quality. If you sat at the sushi bar, Shin would gladly have selected and served various fish to you, a la omakase-style, but it was not a menu item you could order. The best way to eat at Bob Wasabi was to tell Shin or his daughters about how many pieces and what you wanted to eat—nigiri, sashimi, or maki—and let Shin select the fish for you.
Finally, there was Peter Hoang, the chef whose father, Sam, owned Sakae Sushi in Parkville, Missouri. In 2017 Peter moved back to Kansas City after working as both a fine dining and sushi chef in Chicago, and he started doing omakase sushi dinners inside his father’s restaurant by request only. Sadly, the dinners stopped after Peter left town for a new gig.
What follows is a list that represents some of the best sushi spots in the metro, so your mileage may vary. Kansas City has plenty of good sushi restaurants, these were selected because they are a good representation of the past, present, and future of sushi in this city.
Jun’s Japanese Restaurant | Opened in 1978
7660 State Line Road, Prairie Village, KS
Jun’s Authentic Japanese Restaurant may just be the oldest sushi restaurant in Kansas City since it’s been operating for 46 years, but its reputation is legendary. The original location opened out south in 1978, before Jun moved his restaurant in 1994 to its current State Line Road location. Offering a full sushi bar and private rooms with tatami mat floors for larger parties, Jun’s was considered the best sushi in town, and for good reason. Jun was a trained sushi chef known for his quality selection of fresh fish, and he would gladly suggest new things to try. When he retired, he trained the new owner, who continues Jun’s legacy. Keep it simple here, start with baked green mussels, then get a variety of nigiri, and treat yourself to a Japanese beer to go with your raw fish feast.
Sushi House | Opened in 2002
5041 W 117th Street, Leawood, KS
Compared to the more traditional Japanese sushi restaurants in Kansas City at the time, Sushi House felt decidedly more sophisticated and just plain sexier when it opened in Town Center in Leawood in 2002. A chain concept from Chicago, Sushi House is decorated with sleek blonde wood, a gleaming sushi bar, and open kitchen on full display. It has a larger and nicer wine, beer, and sake selection. Order one of their original rolls that had people talking when they first opened—the Spicy Temptation roll, made with shrimp tempura, fresh mango topped with mango sauce, spicy mayo, and tobiko (flying fish roe). The use of mango is the key to some of their most popular rolls.
Sushi UNI | Opened in 2014
12841 West 87th Street, Parkway, Lenexa KS
Located in the same strip mall as Black Dog Coffee at 87th Street in Lenexa, Sushi UNI is fast, affordable, and quality sushi. Owners Jason and Landy Liu put the U N I in the name to stand for “you and I,” and they have done a nice job of making people feel like family. There’s always a daily selection of specialty sushi rolls listed on their chalkboard that’s based on dishes the regulars often order. Split one of their large sushi/sashimi combo platters with a friend, or if you’re by yourself and want to taste just the fresh fish, order their sashimi appetizer and a glass of sauvignon blanc and call it dinner.
Ota Omakase Sushi Pop-Up Dinners | Started in KC in 2017
David Utterback is developing a national reputation as a chef making the best sushi between both coasts. He operates two Japanese restaurants, Yoshitomo and Koji, both in Omaha, Nebraska, and holds the distinction of being Nebraska’s first James Beard-nominated chef, and the first to host intimate eight seat, omakase-style, sushi dinners there. In 2017, Utterback took his omakase dinners on the road and found a receptive audience in Kansas City. He now makes several trips each year to host his intimate and exclusive Ota dinners inside of an existing restaurant. A self-trained sushi chef, Utterback will happily discuss the history of sushi, letting you taste the difference between, say, frozen, dry-aged, and fresh fish. You’ll learn more about sushi coming to one of his dinners than you will reading any book. For more information on his dinners, follow on Instagram @omakase_ota or at omakaseota.com.
Sayachi | Opened in 2019
6322 Brookside Plaza, Kansas City, MO
Carlos Falcon and his wife and managing partner, Sayaka Gushi Falcon, made a splash in Kansas City with their two Latin seafood spots, Jarocho and Jarocho South. Then in 2019, they turned their attention to the East, opening Sayachi, their sushi and Japanese comfort food spot in Brookside. Offering the same high-quality fish that Falcon is known for procuring from fish markets across the world, guests will find a fine selection of sushi, in addition to other classic Japanese dishes. Lean into the raw fish here and order a couple of nigiri and sashimi selections. Then add the negitoro roll, made with fatty tuna and green onions, or the spicy scallop roll to your order. Pair with a glass of beer, wine, or a cocktail.
Brookside Sushi | Opened in 2020
408 E. 63rd Street, Kansas City, MO
Salvador Ortiz came to Kansas City in 1990, where he got his first job at Kabuki in Crown Center. Within three years, he managed to work his way up from washing dishes to rolling sushi. When the restaurant closed in 2014, Ortiz worked at a few spots before becoming a co-owner of the new Kabuki Sushi in Brookside. Then in 2020, Otiz had the opportunity to open his own sushi restaurant in the space of the original Brookside Poultry restaurant. With over 35 years of experience, the chef offers a wide variety of sushi and maki rolls along with a thoughtful selection of hot entrées, such as teriyaki salmon, Japanese beef curry, and Katsu Don, a panko-fried chicken or pork cutlet served over rice with sukiyaki broth and topped with a fried egg.
Kata Nori | Opened in 2023
404 East 18th Street, Kansas City, MO
The buzzy 24-seat communal hand-roll bar opened last year in the East Crossroads, introducing Kansas City to cylindrical shaped hand rolls, which are faster to make and serve. Guests can also order a selection of fresh sashimi, crudos, and a few small plates that can be enjoyed with sake, wine, or beer. Co-owners Nam Phan and Kyung Kim invited their friend and chef, Anh Pham, who worked for Uchi in Houston, Texas, to oversee the menu and fish preparation at Kata Nori. The restaurant itself is small, and reservations are a must. To start, get the three hand-roll set, which includes a spicy sake (salmon), hamachi (yellowtail or amberjack), and spicy tuna hand roll. You’ll be in and out in less than an hour.
Kura Revolving Sushi Bar | Opened in 2023
200 W 47th Street, Kansas City, MO
Colorful, chaotic, and crazy fun, Kura Revolving Sushi Bar opened in December in the former T. Loft space in the Country Club Plaza, and they have had a line out the door ever since. The Japan-based chain represents our first official conveyor belt sushi restaurant where you can choose what you want to eat from a continuous selection of fresh sushi flying past your table on conveyor belts. Don’t see what you want? You can order it from a touchscreen. A robot delivers your drinks, and when you are finished with your sushi plates, you slide them into a slot in your table where they are tallied for your final bill. Rack up 15 plates, and you will win a small prize. The sushi is good, but the experience is better.
Sushi Kodawari | Soon to Open in 2024
2100 Central Street, Kansas City, MO
Serving only eight seats a night, twice a night, five nights a week, will soon give lawyer-turned-sushi chef Karson Thompson the chance to show off his top-notch sushi skills as he plans to offer a ten to 15-course menu that will be served one dish at a time, omakase-style. Opening later this spring, Sushi Kodawari will represent the first fine-dining sushi restaurant to open in Kansas City with a fixed menu and optional drink pairings, which he promises will include some new-to-Kansas City sake selections. Located on the first floor of The Creamery building in the Crossroads, reservations will open a month at a time, with spots likely selling out fast, so watch his Instagram page for updates on his opening.