Sushi Nonaka

This is one of the best sushi spots in NYC. They have both omakase and a la carte menus, but the sushi counter is for omakase only.Previously, there was no sign outside and it was a bit hard to find. Now, the restaurant name is displayed outside so you can easily find it on Amsterdam Ave.When you enter, inside is a Korean restaurant called Boka, which I've never seen very busy. Sushi Nonaka is on the lower level, with a clean, warm atmosphere and also has lovely outdoor dining in the warmer months.I came with my boyfriend last night for dinner and tried the omakase for the first time. We hadn't come specifically for omakase, but wanted to dine at the counter.The Omakase Sushi ($110+) comes with starters, 9 pieces of sushi, a hand roll and miso soup. The portions are on the smaller side, but it was absolutely delicious. The sushi here, you eat with your hands, but because they are on the smaller side, they are easy to eat.My favorite was the uni (from Hokkaido) by far. The chef put a generous portion of uni on the rice and it was just mouthwatering. Other highlights for me were the fatty tuna (chu toro) and tuna taku (toro taku) handroll. Everything tasted very fresh.The only thing I didn't love was that some of seasoning or toppings they added to the fish were "Americanized" and a bit overpowering--I personally prefer very simple, so I can enjoy the flavors of the fish.Nevertheless, Sushi Nonaka is a fabulous place for a nice sushi dinner and I look forward to dining again soon.

As an upfront disclaimer, this review is not about the sushi/omakase experience here.My friend and I came by to try their weekday lunch special recently - we both ordered the pork katsu lunch box. Despite there not being anyone else in the restaurant at the time, it took quite a while for us to get our food :(Overall, the meal was passable -- there weren't any glaring problems, but I felt that the quality was a bit lacking and that holistically, the composition of the bento was sloppily haphazard.The katsu tasted fine -- a little bit less tender/hard to chew than I expected -- and I did quite like the potato salad. The other components were all.. fine? ish? but rather disjointed. Everything felt pretty random and in particular the sprinkling of scrambled egg on the rice was definitely the strangest part to me -- it had very little flavour by itself and didn't really contribute to the rice, either.The price point was pretty good, but only after leaving did we notice that we were each charged $1 more than the listed price on the menu :( Obviously not a big amount but the lack of attention to detail seems to have been a recurring theme here, so it still feels a bit bad.I probably wouldn't come back for their lunch menu in the future, but it does seem from other reviews that the sushi seems to be a better choice

Sushi Nonaka is finding its footing at a complicated moment. New mid-tier, mid-level sushi restaurants abound (e.g. Sugarfish, which just opened a new location a few blocks south). Excellent mid- to high-end sushi restaurants that offer exceptional quality are becoming more common (e.g. One-Bite just a few blocks north). And the New York proletariat's standards for sushi seem to be on the up-and-up, generally. We have a greater appreciation for better-than-grocery-store sushi than we did ten years ago or even five years ago -- and many of us are willing to pay more for it. The upshot of all of this? There's a lot more competition in the sushi space than there used to be, regardless of the tier -- and Nonaka seems to be feeling out where it belongs in this space. About a year ago, I would've characterized Sushi Nonaka as a mid-tier, mid-level restaurant. It has, since our last visit, upped its prices for omakase options, but also upped its game for these higher-priced options. There is now a sushi counter special omakase for $230; omakase sushi and sashimi for $160; "regular" omakase for $98; "beginner" omakase for $69; and a "sushi set" for $59.50. It seems that Nonaka is jockeying for a position in the high-end market, the mid-tier market -- and all the other markets in between! Our recent meal included the "regular" omakase (3 types of starters; 9 nigiri; hand roll; miso soup), "beginner" omakase (2 kinds of starters; 8 pieces nigiri; hand roll; miso), and a sushi set (8 nigiri; 1 hosomaki; miso). In the interests of brevity, I'll just review the "regular" omakase, here. If you dine at a table, the courses are served in threes, a nice upgrade from before, when everything was served at once. (The "set menu" still serves all the nigiri and rolls at once.) The "regular" omakase was quite presentable. It's not quite as excellent as One Bite for the same price, but is on par with enough others that I wouldn't say the pricing is unreasonable. Shari is fair, made with a very neutrally seasoned medium-short grain rice, served at room temperature, and on the more compacted end of the spectrum. Neta, flavorful across the board with a few standout pieces as noted below, is cut a bit larger than is traditional. It's not so large that eating nigiri in one bite is impossible, however. (Enormous neta was all the rage in the 1990s... Glad we mostly got over that!) - The trio of starters included marinated akami topped with a soft-boiled quail egg; seared salmon in vinegared, grated mountain yam; and a third course that I invited my children to take since they were hungry. (It may have been a white fish with microgreens?) The first two items were also included in the "beginner" omakase, well executed, and surprisingly traditional. (Mountain yam is still a bold ingredient for many gringos.) Next came three sets of three nigiri: - Branzino (mild in flavor, tender in texture; traditionalists might find this too mushy), torched salmon, red snapper - Amberjack (nice fat summer fish), chutoro, ebi (sweet, maybe a bit less firm than ideal) - Maguro zuke, miso cod, and Hokkaido uni (silky, bright gold, excellent flavor) Temaki was filled with finely minced akami and tsukemono -- of good quality -- but the nori had lost its crisp by the time was delivered to the table. (This is why one ought to eat in front of the chef if possible.) It came alongside a few pieces of sweet tamago with a good number of layers. We closed the meal with miso soup, which I enjoyed as always. The kombu enriched broth comes with not only the standard issue wakame and tofu, but also a few small brown mushroom heads -- beech, I think? -- which are lovely. The bottom line is that Nonaka still serves pretty good sushi for prices that are, when it comes to the "omakase" meals, fair for the quality. (I did not think the quality of the set menu justified the price.) Be aware that at least for meals not before the chef, the sushi served is calibrated to Americanized palates, which may work better for some guests than others. If you can plan far enough to make a reservation and don't have reluctant sushi eaters in your party who need to order a la carte, there is better omakase to be had at these price points in NYC and even on the UWS. Where Nonaka is still by far the clear winner, however: I don't think you can find a lovelier, more hospitable place than its fairy light-strung, breezy, peaceful outdoor garden if you need a place to dine with your pups in warmer months. We are deeply loyal to our dog-friendly establishments. We'll keep coming back.

Another great choice for omakase in Upper West Side! Didn't even realize that it existed even though I'm only a block away. The spot is tucked in the basement of a restaurant called Boka. It's interesting how dark the main floor is and when you enter Sushi Nonaka, it's bright and very well lit up! The venue offers 3 different levels of omakase with various price points and the overall the experience was great and the sushi was on point which would be expected from an omakase experience!

One of the absolute best sushi omakase experiences I've ever had. As a sushi connoisseur I've tried sushi all over the world including Japan. This was hands down one of the best finds in NYC. The staff was incredible. The sushi was unbelievably fresh they fly in their fish from Japan. The overall experience was first class. If you're looking for a unique experience and incredible sushi look no future. A +++

I thought long and hard about writing this review, and after that thought, decided to post it.We came to Sushi Nonaka for a celebratory dinner maybe a month ago. We did the omakasse and we were really excited to try it out. On my VERY FIRST PIECE, I bit into a GIGANTIC bone. Like, I've rarely seen a bone this huge left in a piece of fish before.The chef was super apologetic and re-made me the piece, but no mention of it was made ever again. They didn't financial compensate us, either. Otherwise, all in all, the omakasse was about average quality. So, why write this review? Bones in food are a huge safety issue. Omakasse at Sushi Nonaka is NOT cheap. It's supposed to be ten of the chef's BEST pieces. To have a gigantic bone in there isn't acceptable. If this were my restaurant, I'd be mortified. We won't be back.

Unfortunately, we had a terrible experience with this restaurant. Service: we ordered Omakase special, house of hot sake and Boka KFC, the food came to the table was extremely slow, we waited around 1hour and half to get the Omakese special after the Boka KFC was served, while we are waiting, my husband ordered two beers. Food quality: The food was really average, there is nothing special, and the last desert took them another 25 minutes to bring it to the table, we almost had to leave as we waited too long for every dishes to come, to be honest the taste is really not that fresh compared to any other sushi restaurant we have been to. Price: It was surprisingly expensive with the food that they offered. I would say this meal is definitely unworthy of the price. I am not sure if they made the mistake or something wrong with the kitchen. Very disappointed in our first experience with this place.

The first omakase ever that I very much enjoyed EVERY SINGLE PIECES!! Each piece was simple yet unique in its own flavors, the chefs have outdone themselves on creating these. We also ordered fried squid legs and shrimp tempura (3 for $18?!?!?!). I'd skip on the shrimp tempura (only gave in because we were so hungry when we first got there) and the house hot sake for $38, it wasn't hot for long cause we were seated outside (temp in the 50s that night). We got a bottle of a cloudy cold sake after and it was def a better choice. At this point I have forgotten how one of the desserts tasted like but the chocolate mousse was much more memorable LOL$98 on 10 immaculate pieces, literally just take the money. Can't wait to come back and hopefully get the omakase at the chef's counter ($195) after eating instant ramen for a bit.

Really good sushi and service. Had take-out in a bitterly cold night and it was ready very fast. Very nice staff.

Authentic Japanese sushi! I've talked to the owner here, and she's genuinely Japanese, as are her chefs! The price are very reasonable and the quality is incredibly fresh!