Inside Hinoki's Omakase: 10 Nigiris, 5 Appetizers + 1 Very Friendly Japanese Chef

Hinoki Japanese Restaurant
G/F Keyland Building, 851 Arnaiz Avenue, Legaspi Village, Makati City
Open Tuesday to Sunday, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Contact 0917 650 7417 for booking or visit @hinoki.mnl on Instagram

(SPOT.ph) One of the most satisfying Japanese dining experiences is an omakase, but it can also be the most intimidating. Not at Hinoki Japanese Restaurant in Arnaiz Avenue in Makati. Chef Yusuke Hino, the affable guy behind the bar, like a favorite uncle who always treats you to the best meals, sets the stage by showing you what fish to expect first, by speaking a few words of Tagalog, and even saying a few jokes. And the nigiri he serves? Wide-ranging and fresh. All locally sourced, he says, with a new batch delivered three times a week. “Napakamasarap,” as his brother, who happens to be dining when we visit, would say.

Images in the Hinoki Instagram might suggest a serious, quite stringent atmosphere in the restaurant but our evening turns out to be fairly casual and relaxed, set against the beautiful origami-inspired wooden interiors by Studio Ong (same guys who did Bruce Ricketts’ Iai and JP Cruz’s Inato), with a bit of Zen garden thrown in. There is an area for a la carte dining, too, and a few private rooms, but the omakase bar, which sits eight, is really the main stage—and it does suggest a theater stage in the way it’s lit and in it’s almost modular design.

We get to sample the P10K++ omakase, which consists of 5 appetizers, 10 nigiri, and one signature dish which is a choice between Sushi Rice Risotto and Wagyu Sukiyaki. The meal starts with a White Fish Carpaccio using Lapu-lapu and a very simple Shijimi Clam Soup to warm the stomach. It’s an excellent double bill that sets the tone for a dinner that’s all about simplicity, subtle flavors, and letting the inherent tastes of seafood shine.

Next comes the Beef Carpaccio using A5 Wagyu. It is served with chopped fresh wasabi plopped beside it, followed by a bowl of Somen Noodles with a clear soup and a plump piece of fried oyster on top, flavored with a bit of sea urchin powder. And just before the series of nigiri begins showing up in front of us, out comes a divine Miyazaki Beef Sandwich.

Chef Hino asks first what size sushi we prefer and we pick small—the better to taste more of the fish and also so that we don’t feel too full by end of the meal. He starts us with a tail fish that’s been aged for a week, followed by an amberjack fish which inspires, among our group of six diners, the first uttering of the word “Napakamasarap”—which would turn out to be the word of the evening, thanks to his chef brother and lady companion.

Throughout, Chef Hino would be patiently slicing fish, taking care to use their best parts, folding, massaging balls of rice, and brushing meat with little hints of a special soy blend he mixes himself—subtle enough to enhance flavor but never overpowering the featured raw fish. There’s his Spanish mackerel with touches of ginger and onion leeks. There’s horse mackerel after, red snapper, an akami marinated in a special sauce, chutoro (medium fatty tuna) and otoro (extra fatty tuna), and a generous serving of Baffin uni—or sea urchin—which, according to the restaurant’s social media, is from “the cold nutrient-rich waters of Hokkaido where they feed on a high quality Kombu” which gives the uni here “a deep natural sweetness.”

Apart from the P10K++ omakase, there’s also an P8K++ version, which consists of 3 appetizers, 9 nigiri, and 1 signature dish. Their a la carte menu is made up of elevated renderings of Japanese staples like tempura, hamachi, gindara and sukiyaki (their bestseller), all using premium ingredients.

The owners of Hinoki, Luis Recto and his father have long been fans of Chef Hino (the family is also behind the excellent M Dining, and Luis is part-owner of Jabroni’s), discovering the chef and his brother first in a little omakase restaurant in Makati called Kobikicho. Kobikicho closed sometime in 2011–its demise brought about mostly by being way too ahead of its time, too early for this current period in local dining where bespoke menus and the use of premium ingredients have become par for the course. Before Hinoki, Chef Hino was also in the old Inagiku at Makati Shangri-la as well as at the Caesar’s Palace in Bluewaters Dubai.

Over the years, Chef Hino has accumulated a loyal fan base that opening a restaurant with him in mind is just the most natural things. Luis knows the man is highly integral to the restaurant and the omakase experience it offers —not only because of the Japanese chef's expertise and years of experience but because of his character. It even sounds like they named the establishment after him, though "hinoki" also refers to a cypress tree native to Japan. “There’s something charming in a Japanese chef being able to speak in Tagalog,” says Luis. “Omakase is a very personal experience. It can be a little daunting if you don’t know so much about the cuisine and the right ways to go about it. Having someone who can communicate with you, tell you ‘don’t worry’, that’s like a warm hug.”