Every culture with access to the ocean has its own take on seafood. For instance, the French have bouillabaisse, the Spanish paella de mariscos, the Italians cioppino, and the Japanese sushi and sashimi.   

But few restaurants allow diners to try all of these at once — except this one. Tucked away in a back alley in the popular district of Ebisu, just five minutes from the station, Sakana Bar offers freshly-caught seafood done in almost every conceivable way. An extremely popular hangout for parties and girls’ nights, the restaurant’s claim to fame is its oyster comparison tasting course, created with the intent of letting guests understand the true freshness of domestic seafood.  

This “true freshness” varies seasonally, of course, and it is with this understanding in mind that the restaurant’s chefs and owners visit various farms and fisheries, so as to better grasp which crops and catches are most flavorful at which time of the year. This lets the owners, in their own words, best tell the ingredients’ and producers’ “story of taste”. Their extensive network of suppliers across Japan allow them to serve nothing but the best to their steady stream of customers, many of whom are regulars who keep coming back for the revolving menu. It helps that in spite of the "Bar" in its name, the family-friendly restaurant accommodates guests of all ages.   

Though it may offer seafood prepared in culinary styles from all over the world, it is perhaps ironic that Sakana Bar Ebisu's most highly-demanded offering is, in fact, Japanese. A byFood-original menu item exclusively available through reservation, the Sakana Bar Plate is a selection of the freshest seafood purchased that morning from the market. Coupled with the oyster tasting comparison course, it’s enough to satisfy even the most discerning of seafood lovers.