Kuala Lumpur’s omakase scene has grown considerably in recent years, but few outlets can trace a direct lineage to one of Tokyo’s hardest-to-book counters. Sushinosuke, now at Plaza Batai in Kuala Lumpur, is one of them. The original Omakase Sushi Sushinosuke opened in Shimbashi, Tokyo, in 2022 — a tiny eight-seat counter with a single private room for four — priced at just 8,800 yen for a twenty-course omakase, a figure that broke convention in Tokyo’s omakase market at the time. It became so sought-after that, by the time its owners sold the shop in January 2026 to concentrate fully on the Malaysian business, it was already fully booked through 2029.

Behind the highly successful establishment is “Sho” san (Shou Emi), born in Kobe in 1988 and educated at a Chinese international school there through elementary and junior high school. He moved to Tokyo for university in 2007, and after graduating in 2011, took his first job as a bulk ship operator at a marine shipping company — a career with no obvious connection to sushi. What followed was a deliberate pivot into the sushi industry, driven by a wish to build a career overseas in a field where being Japanese was a genuine advantage. Sho went on to train in restaurants across Tokyo and Chiba, before postings in the United States and Australia rounded out his understanding of how Japanese cuisine travels across different markets and cultures.

Sho traces much of his career, and his outlook on life, back to a single idea: that meeting the right person at the right time is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

“In my life, there have been many moments where I met the right person at the right time — a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It brought me into the sushi industry, gave me wonderful colleagues during my training as a sushi chef, brought my business partner — who is actually my high school friend — to start the business together in Japan, and then here in Malaysia. It also brought new Japanese chefs into our team here, people who started out as just friends and ended up joining us, which is how we expanded into our izakaya outlets too, and it brought me the wonderful staff we now have in each outlet. We never know what the future holds, but if we pay attention to each new encounter in our daily lives, we may find someone who can change our life and help our dream come true. I’m grateful for the people around me who have made me who I am today, and I appreciate every encounter I’ve had, and will have, in my life.”

Shou Emi, proprietor of Sushinosuke

The following is the transcript of our conversation with Shou Emi of Sushinosuke.

Tim Chew: What makes dining at your establishment worth seeking out?

Sho: We don’t only offer authentic Japanese cuisine — we also want our guests to feel the “vibe” of Japanese hospitality, or omotenashi. It could be something as simple as hearing our staff greet you with “Irasshaimase!” (Welcome!) the moment you walk through the door, or “Arigato gozaimashita” (Thank you for coming) as you leave — the same warmth you would feel walking into a restaurant in Japan.

Tim Chew: What sets your establishment apart from your competition?

Sho: We try to give our customers good memories through many small details in the dining experience — it’s deeply linked to the five senses. Beyond the food and drinks, it’s the modern Japanese interior, the Japanese city pop playing in the background, the smell of good food the moment you walk in, and the feeling you get from friendly, attentive service from our staff.

Tim Chew: How would you describe your leadership style and how has it evolved over time?

Sho: My leadership style is to understand my staff well, and guide them toward where they want to go — to help them achieve their dreams. Everyone has a different background and a different dream, and they are investing their precious time with me, in this company. Understanding the goals each staff member has, and knowing why they joined the company in the first place, helps me lead them toward achieving that goal.

Tim Chew: What are the most important skills a leader must have today?

Sho: A good leader should have a strong passion and a dream, together with good communication within the team, to bring the team to another level. Staff will respect you, follow you, open their hearts, and give their maximum to the team — if the leader himself is someone attractive, comfortable, and reliable to work with.

Tim Chew: What is your vision for the company’s future, and how do you communicate it to your team?

Sho: To bring good Japanese food to as many Malaysians as possible. I believe good food doesn’t always have to be expensive, so as a Japanese person myself, I want to introduce an affordable range of food, across different concepts, not just in KL but throughout Malaysia. I often cheer my staff on with strong words like “Let’s become the No. 1 shop in KL!” — to each outlet’s team, to keep their motivation up and make it really come true.

Tim Chew: What kind of work culture do you believe drives high performance and employee motivation?

Sho: In addition to what I said earlier — achieving individual goals together — I believe “fairness” also holds the key. First, salary increments based on a clear performance evaluation system. Second, company rules so everyone understands what is and isn’t allowed. And third, treating everyone fairly and listening to them, no matter their position — from the dishwasher to the manager.

Tim Chew: What habits or routines have contributed most to your success?

Sho: I always think about how to make the restaurant better, every day, from many angles — food quality, service, menu changes, cost control, sourcing good products from Japan, finding better logistics to cut costs, marketing, interior, staffing, training, and continuously improving our company rules and evaluation system, and so on. It’s a wonderful moment when customers leave our shops with a compliment, but I will never be satisfied with where we are now, and I will keep working to make tomorrow better.

Sushinosuke’s Malaysian story began in July 2023, with the opening of its outlet in Pinnacle Petaling Jaya, a cosy establishment that was incredibly popular among those who knew. Unlike the typical omakase shops of Tokyo, Sho and his partner wanted to preserve the same guiding idea behind the original Shimbashi shop: good food, at a reasonable price, with a sense of fun.

Every ingredient continues to be imported through the same trusted suppliers at Tokyo’s Toyosu fish market that Sho built relationships with during his years running the Shimbashi shop. As he grew more familiar with the Kuala Lumpur dining scene and identified stronger business opportunities in the city, the group has grown to include seafood izakaya, Kappa Kaisen Izakaya, in Bukit Damansara in February 2023, after Executive Chef Masanori Iwaasa joined the company.

In February 2026, a second izakaya, Sushi & Grill Izakaya Penko, opened in Medan Pasar, following the arrival of manager Shu Watanabe. Today, the group operates three outlets in Kuala Lumpur, with further expansion in Malaysia in the pipeline as Sho works toward his goal of bringing affordable, authentic Japanese food nationwide.

Sho relocated Sushinosuke from Petaling Jaya to a more spacious establishment at Plaza Batai, starting operations there on 1 June 2026. The new restaurant seats up to 39 guests at both the omakase counter and in rooms, and is comfortable enough for a private gathering without losing the intimacy of a proper omakase experience. Its location in the upmarket neighbourhood of Damansara Heights, surrounded by a cluster of office buildings, makes it a convenient stop for an after-hours dinner with colleagues or clients.

Having sat through a number of omakase dinners over the years, this is, without exaggeration, among the most accomplished renditions we have come across — and rare in that the ambition on the plate is matched by genuine value. The full twenty-course dinner omakase was priced at just RM388++ — a figure that would be considered modest even for a fraction of the courses served elsewhere, and one that speaks directly to Sho’s own conviction that good Japanese food doesn’t need to come at a premium to be done properly.

The restaurant currently offers its signature 20-course dinner omakase, a 14-course lunch omakase, (which is currently only available on weekends at the point of publishing) and an à la carte selection, besides an extensive range of Japanese sakes (including the ultra-premium Kamoshibito Kuheiji), liquor, beer and beverages.

Dinner Omakase (20 Courses, RM388++): The dinner menu (shown in the photos above) is the full expression of Sushinosuke’s philosophy, unfolding over twenty considered courses that build in weight and complexity throughout the meal. It opens gently with mozuku seaweed and yam, before easing into a swordfish dressed in onion soy sauce and a Miyabi snapper finished with sesame soy sauce. A trio of palate cleansers — wasabi leaf, creamy tofu, and sweet marinated radish — resets the tongue ahead of a chawanmushi of scallop and Chinese cabbage, followed by boiled abalone in its own sauce and boiled octopus. The tuna component alone spans three separate preparations: bluefin tuna noten, akami and toro, bookended by chicken grunt (locally known as isaki), trevally, ark shell, and Japanese tiger prawn. Engawa dressed in a radish ponzu leads into the meal’s signature course, a Sushinosuke-original bowl layering uni, ikura and tuna over rice, before the meal winds down with an unagi hand roll, a dashimaki egg, and a bowl of miso soup. Dessert closes proceedings with matcha ice cream and warabi mochi.

Lunch Omakase (14 Courses, RM188++): The lunch omakase is a more compact affair, condensed to fourteen courses for guests with less time on their hands, but built on the same foundations. It shares the same opening notes — mozuku seaweed and yam, the wasabi leaf, creamy tofu and sweet marinated radish trio, and a scallop and Chinese cabbage chawanmushi — before moving through Miyabi snapper, trevally, red shrimp and swordfish. The tuna course is trimmed to its two core cuts, akami and toro, and the engawa course is served instead as an engawa and salmon roe rice bowl, a more streamlined take on the dinner’s separate engawa and Sushinosuke bowl courses. The meal closes on the same notes as dinner: an unagi hand roll, a dashimaki egg, a bowl of miso soup, and matcha ice cream with warabi mochi to finish.

Beyond a memorable meal, Sushinosuke’s effortlessly classy, premium and fun setting also makes it a natural choice for entertaining business clients or hosting a small company dinner. Whether it’s a more intimate counter seat for two or the full establishment booked out for a private event, Sushinosuke is definitely a worthy contender for one of the top Japanese omakase restaurants in the city!

Sushinosuke is located at Lot 8-A (first floor), Plaza Batai, Jalan Batai, Bukit Damansara, 50490 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Book your seats at https://www.tablecheck.com/en/sushinosuke-my/reserve/landing

For more information, head over to https://www.instagram.com/sushinosuke_omakase/

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Photos by Andy Kho Photography (http://andykho.com)