Secret society membership isn’t necessary, though a few high profile connections could be helpful in getting a hard-to-get reservation at this West Midtown omakase restaurant. But we continuously stalk their website for openings because we love dining at Mujo—it’s one of the coolest sushi experiences in the city, serving excellent cuts of nigiri, and it always makes us feel like we’re on a spy mission.

Come along, but first you’ll have to locate the discreet entrance beside their sister restaurant Cooks & Soldiers. Then, enter into a pitch-black foyer that leads to a tiny dimly-lit back room where billionaires would foreseeably plot global domination. Even the black-clad servers are master chameleons, blending in and out the background and answering any questions in the discreet whispers of a kind yoga instructor who doesn’t want to draw attention to your tragically bad warrior pose.

And while you may not see Ernst Stavro Blofeld, there’ll most likely be a few smartly dressed couples and at least one celebrity around the 15-seat table. But you’re not paying $225 per person just to hobnob with people with offshore accounts. You’re here to enjoy an incredible 16-course dinner that begins with small plates—like crab fingers artfully displayed in a half shell—and segues into high-grade nigiri flown fresh from Japan.

Moving at a hurried pace, the three-person chef team slice, sometimes sear, and delicately present your nigiri one by one.  And it’s mesmerizing to watch this machine-like pacing and presentation of each course, but that also means it's easy to fall behind on your job—the eating part. But being presented with your just-fileted amberjack while you’re in the middle of chewing your lightly charred otoro just presents the opportunity to have two grand moments, at the same time. 

Food Rundown

photo credit: Andrew Thomas Lee

Omakase

The omakase dinner begins with a few zensai plates like a tender roasted squash floating in clouds of cauliflower foam. Then, you'll move to 12 seasonal nigiri pieces—expect tasty cuts of fish like barracuda, goldeneye snapper, and deliciously fatty toro, all flown in fresh from Japan. And just when you think you’re full, the roasted sesame ice cream will arrive, and in between the crunch of the fried puffed rice and the pleasing squish of the sweet potato cubes that top the ice cream, your spoon will keep going back in until it’s all gone.