The Way
of the Blade
Kuro Katana means black sword. The name comes from the first knife our chef owned: a black-forged yanagiba he still uses at the counter every night.
Sushi is mostly decided before the fish reaches the counter. By the knife, by the rice, and by the hours nobody sees.
Kenji Arakawa
Nine years in an Osaka kitchen before he was allowed to cut fish for guests. He opened Kuro Katana to cook exactly the way he was taught.
Every guest at the hinoki counter can see the cut. There are no heat lamps and no pre-sliced trays. When you order, the fish is portioned, sliced and pressed in front of you.
Our shari is cooked in small batches through the evening and seasoned with akazu, a red vinegar made from sake lees. It gives the rice a deeper, rounder taste and the amber colour you will notice on every piece.
Fish arrives each morning. Some is served the same day. Some, like bluefin and sea bream, rests for several days in the cold room to develop flavour. Mackerel is salted and cured in vinegar. Knowing when each fish is ready is the real craft.
Market to first cut
- Market
The chef selects the day's fish by hand and checks every delivery.
- Cure & age
Bluefin rests, mackerel is salted, sea bream is wrapped in kombu.
- Shari
The first batch of rice, seasoned with red vinegar and held at body heat.
- First cut
Doors open. Every piece is sliced only when it is ordered.
- Whetstone
Every blade is sharpened before the kitchen closes for the night.
Each knife, one job
Using the wrong one tears the flesh. These three do almost all the work behind our counter.
Yanagiba柳刃
Long and single-bevelled. One unbroken pull per slice, never a sawing motion. It is the knife for sashimi and nigiri.
Deba出刃
Thick and heavy at the spine. It breaks down whole fish and cuts cleanly through heads and small bones.
Usuba薄刃
Flat and paper-thin. It turns daikon into translucent ribbons and shapes every garnish on the plate.