Hiro’s Kitchen — Sushi and Sake, 309 W Daggett Av, Ste 101, Fort Worth. @hiroskitchenfw. 4:30-8:30pm Sun, 5:30-10pm Tue-Sat.
As Will Ferrell’s Mugatu from the now-classic comedy Zoolander would say, “Omakase is so hot right now.”
Fort Worth diners are lucky to have so many places serving exceptional fish these days. Just a couple of months ago, we warmly reviewed Nikuya Rooftop, perched high above the city in the Sinclair Hotel downtown (“Nikuya High,” Sep 16). With respect to that lofty (literally) experience, Hiro’s Kitchen — Sushi and Sake feels a little more my speed. For starters, it’s in South Main Village, or I guess what we’re calling “Bricktown” now, tucked into a small space that once housed a pottery studio. There’s no big restaurant group behind this endeavor and no outside investors — just a husband-and-wife duo and a dream.
Originally from Niigata, Japan, Chef Hiroto “Hiro” Ochiai refined his skills at Jean-Georges Tokyo before moving to New York in 2017. There, he joined the teams at Sushi Amane and Shion 69 Leonard, where he served as sous chef and beverage director. But New York is expensive, and Hiro and his wife, Nami, found it hard to find their footing.
Photo by Emmy Smith
Then, while visiting a friend in North Texas, the couple struck up a conversation with the owners of The Holly, the organic wine bar next door to what is now Hiro’s Kitchen. The owners encouraged them to host pop-ups at the bar, which eventually led to the move into their own space. Hiro’s Kitchen opened in August, and the couple now lives just a five-minute walk away. Hiro says people have been kind to them since the moment they landed at the airport, and the neighborhood has embraced them, too.
Hiro’s offers two nightly seatings, at 5:30 and 8:30, for 15 guests each, and reservations are for 90 minutes. All seating is at a bar-height sushi counter, which may not be comfortable for young children, so it’s probably best to call up the sitter and make a night of it. While my husband and I are not yet old, we do eat like old people — usually around 6, usually while watching Jeopardy! So, perhaps to prove to ourselves that we could still hang, we opted for the late seating on a recent Friday.
Photo by Emmy Smith
The room is bright and smells of new wood. I don’t usually love “big lights,” but here they make sense, so Hiro can see what he’s doing, and so can you. Nami, an International Sake Sommelier, presented us with a menu of sake bottles and recommended a flight for us to learn about the nuances of the fermented rice beverage, then choose what we liked. Between the jazz over the speakers and the lively conversation, her explanations were sometimes hard to hear, but having to focus more on her words just made it all the more immersive. Other than snapping photos, our phones stayed firmly in our pockets throughout the night.
A little bit of patience is part of the deal, too. Our first bite didn’t arrive until about 8:50, which surprised us given the hour between seatings. But remember, it’s just the two of them. We used the wait to get to know our fellow guests and chat with Nami about our sake selections.
Photo by Emmy Smith
You can order off the menu choose-your-own-adventure-style or, for the full experience, go for the omakase, preferably paired with a sake flight, then sit back and watch the show.
Our adventure began with a trio of appetizers: a tartare of yellowtail and squid topped with herbs, lemon zest, and a tangy eggplant miso sauce; a refreshing turnip-and-carrot salad topped with Japanese sea bream; and a delicate bite of black cod with a miso-and-sake glaze. None of it was like anything I’ve tasted in Fort Worth, and our cosmopolitan neighbor at the bar remarked that it reminded him of some of the best fish he’s had at much pricier restaurants in New York City. Lucky us.
Next came a parade of sushi and sashimi as Hiro warmed rice in his hands, chatting about how he got here, before forming a little bed for the outstanding seafood to shine. Amberjack, mackerel, trout, and salmon belly were all melt-in-your-mouth tender, with no hint of a fishy aftertaste. Thinly sliced raw scallop had none of the rubberiness cooked scallop sometimes has. A salmon hand roll and a palate-cleansing miso soup rounded out the meal before we finished with a light, addictive Japanese egg custard I’m still thinking about.
For $90 per person, we felt we got our money’s worth and left stuffed — no small feat with delicate Japanese food. That makes Hiro’s Kitchen a relatively approachable splurge for a special occasion or date night. The price point and the vibe match the neighborhood that Hiro and Nami now call home, and we hope they stick around a long time. Fort Worth may have welcomed them with friendly Texas charm, but it’s us who are lucky to have them here.
Hiro’s Kitchen — Sushi and Sake
Autumn Omakase $90 pp
Sake flight $38
Yuzu 75 $14
Suntory Toki Highball $12
Photo by Emmy Smith
