IYO Omakase

Let us start at the end: it might sound a bit cliché, but ‘it wasn’t just dinner, it was an experience’ is the reaction of almost every guest after dining at IYO Omakase (read the reviews if you don’t believe us), a restaurant set among the skyscrapers of Porta Nuova that serves authentic omakase. In Japanese, the word means ‘I leave it to you’, a gentle invitation to put your trust in the sushi master, who personally chooses the exact same menu for the few guests seated at the counter. Here, you place yourself in the hands of Masashi Suzuki, who faithfully recreates the authentic tradition of the Edomae-zushi school of Tokyo: a rigorous ritual rooted in seasonality, the daily selection of the finest fish, and an obsessive focus on the rice, which is never treated as a mere afterthought.

IYO Omakase is a kind of ‘secret’ room of around 30 square metres set inside the Michelin-starred restaurant AALTO (another notable spot, though that is a story for another time), dominated by a wooden counter: on one side seven stools for diners, on the other the station of the sushi master and his sous-chef, immaculate, streamlined and surgical. Alongside, large windows look out towards the Biblioteca degli Alberi. Nothing else is needed, because the menu speaks for itself, with nigiri taking centre stage, served in a progressive sequence of fat content and umami: first white fish, then red fish like tuna in its various cuts, followed by marinated fish and finally cooked fish.

The sushi master hands them to you directly, one by one, and you eat them strictly with your hands, in a single bite without adding any seasoning – the chef has already perfected the texture and flavour. Just as striking are the sashimi and tastes of traditional Japanese cooking, whether steamed or grilled, as well as an essential chapter in the omakase meal, the soup, made with seasonal produce (yes, even the soup is memorable).

The wine list at IYO Omakase, concise yet carefully curated, features good Italian and French labels, though purists can opt for a sake pairing alongside the dishes. The meal concludes with dessert and a cup of matcha tea, often followed by tastes of traditional spirits served directly by Masashi Suzuki, who, if you booked the second sitting (there are two dinner sittings, at 7pm and 9.30pm), has finished service and can finally unwind a little… but only a little, as he remains a true sushi master after all!