City restaurant Besuto joins Japanese omakase restaurant trend

Besuto opens on Tuesday, December 7 at Circular Quay, the 12-seater the latest in a spate of tiny Japanese omakase restaurants in Sydney.

With Haco, Kuon Omakase and its spin-off Kuon Tempura already up and running and others on the way, the reduced staffing model of the omakase – with chefs delivering food direct to customers at the counter – sidesteps one of the most pressing issues facing local restaurants.

Besuto co-owner Hirofumi Fujita has hired chef Hirofumi Kano to work alongside him.

"You can't have enough Hiros in a kitchen," quipped a punter lucky enough to sit through one of the restaurant's trial runs.

We asked for highlights of the meal, with the diner declaring a photo finish between the miso-marinated toothfish and a Japanese riff on steak frites that paired wagyu eye fillet, white miso potato and caviar.

When CBD workers return in greater numbers in February, Besuto (meaning best in Japanese) will offer a quicker business lunch version of the $180-a-head menu, which runs to 18 or 20 courses.

Co-owner Joel Best says seafood nigiri is the star of the show. "Hirofumi [Fujita] garnishes every art piece to highlight the fish and bring out the flavour. They are brushed with 18-year-old aged soy. Every fish requires a different amount of seasoning depending on fat content."

They're aiming to have the country's best Japanese whiskey list. "We have started with 20 and every week we will add to this," says Best. "Japanese whiskey, in my opinion, is the best whiskey in the world. They pride themselves on the tradition and the quality of the water, the malt used and how they blend each particular flavour. Like most things Japanese it is about precision."

Open lunch and dinner Tue-Sat.

6 Loftus Lane, Sydney, besutosydney.com