Chef Wei Chen guides a blade through fish with the razor-sharp focus of a samurai. Then he layers the pale, translucent slices with thinner petals of pickled strawberry. Each movement is smooth and precise: a few dabs of yuzu-balsamic here, a sprinkle of tiny edible flower buds there. Red fruit, lemon zest and chives pop against the protein, nestled on a glass vessel that resembles a glistening disc of carved ice.
“That was the first time I’ve ever made that dish,” Chen admits later of the hirame (fluke) crudo. “In your mind it doesn’t really make sense: fish and strawberries? But reactions were good! Omakase is a constant test. That’s why we never give you a list, because (dishes are) always going to change.”
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