Akiko | North TLV

Akiko has been a fixture of north Tel Aviv’s food scene since 2006 — two decades that make it one of the longest-running sushi bars in the city, and one of the few where the chef behind the counter is actually Japanese. Tucked into the Shuster Center in Ramat Aviv Gimmel, on Aba Ahimeir Street, it is a small, intimate room rather than a sprawling chain restaurant, and it has built a loyal following precisely because it never tried to be anything bigger.

The bar is named for its founder and chef, Akiko Ben-Zvi, who comes from Kumamoto in southern Japan and moved to Israel in the 1990s following a great love. She brought with her the modesty, discipline and tradition of the Japanese kitchen, and Akiko the restaurant is essentially her cooking made public — a kitchen she opened up to Israeli diners after years of refining the craft. For the Japanese community in Israel, and for Israelis who want sushi made the way it is made in Japan, that authenticity is the whole point.

The menu is built around the classics done properly: chirashi bowls layered with salmon, tuna, sea bass and tamago; thinly sliced sashimi; nigiri; inari; and the full range of rolls from hosomaki through futomaki, uramaki and hand-rolled temaki cones. Alongside the raw work there are hot dishes — miso soup, agedashi tofu in tempura batter, yaki soba — and Akiko’s own house-style Japanese pickles. The kitchen leans on specialist ingredients brought in by personal import: particular cuts of fish, eel, unusual seaweed, egg and starch noodles, and a deep list of sake and wine. There is a genuine vegetarian section too, with tofu-and-shiitake rolls and vegetable combinations rather than token afterthoughts.

The space, designed by architect Michael Azulay in a pared-back minimalist style, seats only about 15 inside, with additional seating out on the plaza. Sitting around the bar — watching the chef work — is the closest thing in Ramat Aviv to a counter seat in a busy Japanese neighbourhood. Prices sit at the higher end (plan for roughly 120 NIS and up per person), which reflects the imported ingredients and the hands-on approach.

Practically: Akiko is at Aba Ahimeir 17, in the heart of residential north Tel Aviv, a short distance from Tel Aviv University and the Eretz Israel Museum. Delivery runs through Wolt, and you can reserve a table or order takeaway through the restaurant directly. Given how few seats there are, booking ahead is wise. Reach them on 03-6417641, follow @akiko_sushi_bar on Instagram, or see the full menu at akiko.co.il.