Royal Sushi Omakase & Izakaya

Royal Sushi & Izakaya in Queen Village is technically two different concepts under one roof. But they both offer incredible Japanese food in spaces comfortable enough to turn strangers into friends within 10 minutes. In the upfront izakaya, you can sit in a booth and watch anime, pay as little as $4 for a beer, and eat things like thinly sliced hamachi in ponzu or crispy pan-seared pork gyoza. But when you want a night of the most flawless nigiri, temaki, and seafood creations Philly has to offer, get the 17-course sushi omakase menu. If you can. 

photo credit: Casey Robinson

Let’s just get this out of the way: The $300 per person sushi counter has a higher rejection rate than UPenn. Ultimately, the thrill of a meal here isn’t just about the three-week-aged mackerel or a $180 layered wagyu toast that we bow our heads to in utter appreciation, but simply getting in. A salty and savory spoonful of egg custard topped with shiny beads of osetra creates so much excitement that couples lock in their visits for the rest of the year on the spot. This creates a loyal hive committed to an indulgent marathon of seafood, along with the same company, almost every week.

The familiarity means nothing is off limits—there are conversations about tattoos, the bar’s black manekineko doll on a new shelf, and recent breakups, all while bowls of soft tuna belly, narrowly sliced white truffle, buttery uni, and a hint of truffle paste force you into the dilemma of wanting to savor something as long as possible and devour it all at once. The standards of every single element are extreme and consistently high— it’s like everywhere else in Philly is doing sushi for beginners and you’ve found the only expert-level place in town.

photo credit: Royal Sushi Omakase & Izakaya

photo credit: Royal Sushi Omakase & Izakaya

photo credit: Royal Sushi Omakase & Izakaya

photo credit: Royal Sushi Omakase & Izakaya

Each course brings gasps pre- and post-bite—like they’re a magician’s final reveal. Since you’re within earshot of the izakaya’s kitchen, you’ll see plates of chashu fly by while the staff plays sake matchmaker with a guy at the end of the counter. As they make a note of it (so he can have the same next time), the curtain separating the two sections opens, and the rowdiness of the house party in front trickles in. 

Seats in the booths or at the bar in the izakaya are also hard to come by, but you don’t have to sell the family jewels to get them. While the omakase should be saved for your birthday, the front of house is better for weeknight sh*t talking about your boss over Japanese whiskey and spicy tuna hand rolls. The constant flow of liquor makes it feel more like an endless Happy Hour than in the back, but the dishes served here are similarly revelatory. The soy drenched wings are impeccably crunchy and incredibly juicy, while the slightly sweet duck confit with a jidori egg omelet disintegrates as soon as it hits your tongue. You’ll be thinking about the ruby pink tekkadon bowl long after you leave (and certainly longer than the random person who got your number).  

photo credit: Jesse Ito

photo credit: GAB BONGHI

photo credit: GAB BONGHI

photo credit: GAB BONGHI

photo credit: Casey Robinson

The fish is outstanding no matter where you sit—you’ll end up love everything they put in front of you with the passion Philadelphians have for getting the last word in. Make your dating profile a thirst trap for someone with an in at the omakase, or stop by to watch Dragon Ball Z over a bowl of chirashi. Either way, you’ll leave feeling like the hassle of getting into Royal is justified by a night inside it. 

Food Rundown

The menus at Royal Sushi Izakaya and Royal Sushi Omakase change seasonally, but here are a few examples of the dishes you might see.

photo credit: GAB BONGHI

Long Island Iced Tea

Most of the time, this drink is bottom shelf and headache-inducing. In Royal’s case, it’s really smooth, made with quality Japanese vodka, rum, gin, and shochu. Yuzu curacao gives it a citrusy sweetness. If we had the physical stamina, we’d drink this beauty multiple times a week.

photo credit: GAB BONGHI

Curry Bun

Buns are always on the menu, and this one is a mainstay. The doughy ball of curried and tender potatoes, carrots, and onions is seared to give it crisp outer edges. Served with tangy fukujin zuke and scallion, the colorful dish works incredibly well.

photo credit: GAB BONGHI

Tuna Guacamole

We don’t know what makes this combination of slices of tuna, mashed avocado, soy sauce, spicy wasabi olive oil, and sea salt flakes magical. But we’ll keep investigating by eating endless amounts until we do.

photo credit: GAB BONGHI

Karaage Wings

This isn’t your average order of bar wings. They’re topped with a subtly tangy soy chili vinegar, red onions, and scallions that intensify each wing's crunch. There are only six in an order, so if you have a group, you’ll need more than one for the table.

photo credit: GAB BONGHI

Hotate Yaki

The good news is that you won’t find many better scallop dishes in the city. The bad news is that they only come in threes, and we want an endless amount. Grilled dayboat scallops are surrounded by a pool of creamy kabocha squash, smoky bacon dashi, and brown butter, all topped with crispy shio kombu. If they ever take it off the menu, it will be our villain origin story.

photo credit: GAB BONGHI

Wagyu Zabuton Steak

If they showed us a Rorschach inkblot shaped like this wagyu steak, our immediate emotion would be unhinged joy. It’s juicy and comes with a savory shiro dashi glaze, garlicky black sesame yakiniku, and spicy shichimi togarashi on lemon. Each bite is sweet, nicely salty, and peppery.

photo credit: Jesse Ito

Omakase

When you get the sushi omakase, you can expect 17 courses of exquisite seafood. Most recently, we had buttery cured chub mackerel and sesame sauce, and non-nigiri dishes like torched scallops topped with a layer of creamy sea urchin. If you want to go all out or are still hungry, there are pricey add-ons like the $180 Royal Toast that combines wagyu, uni, caviar, toro tartare, truffle, and chive. And once you’re drawn to a certain sake, the servers will even write down your preferences for next time. It’s a first-class, pampered experience that you can have while comfortably wearing a Sixers tee.