AKIKOS

"The power lunch lives on at Akikos, the stylish new iteration of chef Ray Lee’s longstanding sushi restaurant, which opened in the East Cut in 2023. For lunch, the restaurant offers a $150 omakase experience that includes a procession of small bites such as snow crab-topped chawanmushi and shokupan crowned with toro and caviar, followed by seven pristine pieces of nigiri. The whole meal takes about an hour and a half from start to finish." - Dianne de Guzman

"Treasured San Francisco sushi spot Akikos entered an elegant new era when the restaurant relocated to a new home in the East Cut. At Akikos at Avery Lane, diners can pull up a chair to the 24-seat Chef’s Stage, where they’ll get a front-row view of chef Ray Lee, head sushi chef Shinsuke Hayashi, and the rest of the team at work. It’s an ever-changing omakase experience, but you can expect Lee’s dry-aged fish featured in a stunning lineup of nigiri, plus small plates including wagyu-topped shokupan and chawanmushi accented with uni." - Dianne de Guzman, Eater Staff

"If your parents are into raw fish, Akiko’s Restaurant is the place to go. The omakase is unreal, and not as wildly expensive as some other omakase options in SF. It’s near Union Square, so if they happen to be staying there, even better. The monkfish liver will change your world. Just make sure you go to Akiko’s Restaurant, not the similarly named Akiko’s Sushi Bar nearby." - taylor abrams

"Offbeat touches make this SoMa omakase spot ($250, or $150 at lunch) stand out. So don’t be alarmed when a sashimi course is served atop a ceramic fedora for seemingly no reason, or when the buttery scallops land in front of you inside of a glass clamshell. For a place that appears to be so much about style, though, the 18 courses of nigiri, small dishes, and dessert are quite excellent. Especially the shokupan, a grilled slice of milk bread crowned with fatty tuna and an eye-widening amount of caviar. Soak in the stage-like bar that gleams, the fridge displaying cuts of aged fish, and towering flower arrangements as you watch all the other diners eat their fish off fake hats.  Cost: $150 per person (lunch) and $250 per person (dinner). " - julia chen 1, lani conway

"San Franciscans enjoy a bevy of excellent sushi restaurants, but the new iteration of longstanding sushi destination Akikos takes the cake in terms of impressive design. At the center of the room, a chef’s stage lets diners watch as the kitchen team deftly crafts pieces of nigiri made with dry-aged fish often imported from Japan’s famed Toyose Fish Market. The multicourse omakase menu also includes hot dishes such as housemade chawanmushi topped with sea urchin and maitake mushrooms and a baton of grilled milk bread crowned with toro and a glistening quenelle of caviar." - Lauren Saria, Dianne de Guzman