New Nashville restaurant offers first all-omakase experience. Here's what to expect

When a lively group of guests go silent after sipping on sake for two hours, it's a hint the food is good.

That happened at least twice at the debut of Sushi Bar, a speakeasy-style omakase restaurant attached to a new Gulch Bar called Golden Sound.

What is omakase?

The word translates to "I leave it to you," which means you put yourself in the hands of the chef for this high-end sushi experience. In the case of Sushi Bar, you're well cared for.

Other restaurants have omakase options in Nashville, including O-Ku via reservation only, and Present Tense, which now offers the service tableside.

But Sushi Bar is the first complete omakase experience for the city, meaning diners do not get to choose much about the experience beyond supplements like caviar and truffles and drink pairings from a wine, sake or Japanese whiskey list.

Sushi Bar is the fifth restaurant from Sushi Bar Hospitality, after Austin, Dallas, Miami Beach and Chicago. Nashville's location is tucked behind a dimly lit cocktail bar, a warm space filled with curves, wood and well-broadcast sound from a couple of dozen strategically placed speakers.

There are two sushi dining rooms, each with 12 seats centered around a bar where sushi chefs prepare 17 courses, all nigiri, from just shipped-in fish and wagyu beef.

Those chefs coax a light sear on toro with blow torches, pull sweet uni from wooden boxes, shower thinly sliced scallops with shavings of winter truffle and paint unagi, or fresh-water eel, with roasted bone marrow.

Where does the fish come from?

Nashville is the first market where Sushi Bar's hospitality group had to establish the logistics of shipping their fish from scratch.

"There is not one place in this market, or frankly the surrounding area, that has been bringing in the fish that we are from Japan," Stock said.

That means that Nashville residents may for the first time find a local source for hard-to-find Japanese favorites such as ishidai, also called barred knifejaw.

"The delivery, the logistics, had to be set up months ago to bring the fish in just for our restaurant," Stock said. "That was pretty exciting to see, because it also gave us a little insight that we were ... literally bringing in a product that the market hasn't had before."

Co-owner Ryan Stock believes there might be a bit of a learning curve about the experience, but with nearly all available seats booked through August and hundreds of people on a waiting list, he figures plenty are already clued in.

"It's 2024, and I think a lot of people are very traveled and certainly, even though it's new to the Nashville market, I think that there's still a level of familiarity with at least what the concept is," he said.

But there are some key differences at Sushi Bar. First, it's lively, not hushed. That's encouraged by the chefs, who ask guests questions, describe dishes and act approachable.

"What we do here is we really focus on approachability," Stock said. "We're trying to break down this kind of barrier of intimidation."

Beyond chef engagement, he said, the menu created with mostly recognizable proteins, and no odd parts or pieces. That's by design, and it cuts down on the fear factor for most pickier people.

What if I'm allergic to shellfish, seaweed and the letter Q?

Despite the nature of the experience, Sushi Bar can accommodate allergies.

After booking, guests receive a call from a restaurant employee, whose job it is to note allergies and dietary restrictions. That's when most questions about tailoring menu items can be addressed.

Can't eat shellfish? That can be easily addressed by the kitchen. Can't eat seafood? Even that's not a problem.

"How's it happen? I don't know," said Stock. "But even in that case, with a smile, we are happy to do what we can. We do have beef, wagyu, onsite, and we've had guests that have enjoyed 17 portions of incredible Japanese beef. That's probably a little rich for some people."

The crew at Sushi Bar has seen it all, he added.

"And the mentality here is always 100% yes."

What's the cost?

The experience starts at $165 per person with the option to pair dishes with premium beverage options.

Reservations are available via Tock , Wednesday through Sunday with three seatings per night at 5, 7:15 and 9:30 p.m.

The restaurant and Golden Sound bar are at 610 Magazine St.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: New Nashville restaurant offers first all-omakase experience. Here's what to expect