AboutOpen since 2021
A Hokkaido sushi counter, in the high desert
01The chef
Daisuke Morimoto
Mizunara is the Japanese oak that grows on the hills above Otaru. Daisuke grew up under it, and named his counter after it when he opened on West Bannock Street in 2021.
He apprenticed for nine years in Sapporo, the first two of them washing rice and grating wasabi before he was allowed to touch a knife. Then came six years at a counter in Seattle, where he met Anna, who grew up in Meridian. When her family needed them close, they moved to Boise and found a city ready for a ten seat counter.
Anna runs the dining room and the sake list. Daisuke is behind the counter every night it's open, and he still grates the wasabi.
People assume sushi in Idaho has to be a compromise. A box on a plane gets here as fast as a truck gets to Portland.
The difference isn't distance. It's how often you order and how little you let sit. Mizunara buys for three days at a time and would rather run out than serve a fish on its fourth.
02Where the fish comes from
Six sources, three deliveries a week
Every box is opened at the counter the morning it lands. What doesn't pass goes back.
Toyosu market, TokyoTue, Sat
Bluefin, sea bream, horse mackerel and the seasonal white fish, bought by an agent Daisuke has worked with since Sapporo and flown through Seattle.
HokkaidoTue
Scallops and, in autumn, salmon roe that we cure here in soy and sake.
AlaskaThu
Line caught king salmon and black cod from small boats in Sitka, in season from spring to early autumn.
Hawaii and the PacificThu
Bigeye tuna from the Honolulu auction, and yellowtail when Japan's is out of season.
Santa BarbaraThu, Sat
Sea urchin from divers who pack it the same afternoon, and spot prawns when there are any.
IdahoWeekly
Cucumbers, shiso and myoga from a grower in Kuna, and rainbow trout from the Magic Valley for the hot kitchen's specials.
03House rules
What we won't do
A short list, kept since the first night.
Nothing frozen that doesn't have to be
Wild salmon and mackerel are frozen before raw service, as food safety rules require. Everything else arrives fresh, and we'll tell you which is which.
No imitation crab, anywhere
The California roll has real snow crab in it, which is why it's $14.
Nothing cut ahead for a case
Fish is sliced when it's ordered. Cut fish goes flat within the hour.
Come and sit at the counter
Ten seats, twice a night. It's the best way to see where the fish on this page ends up.