In downtown Kansas City, a sushi legacy plans a confident new chapter
Peter Hoang grew up behind a sushi counter, elbow-deep in rice vinegar and expectations. His father, Sam, has run several sushi restaurants in the Kansas City area, including the low-key but well-regarded Sakae Sushi in Parkville. Hoang was on the knife early.
He left KC when he was 18 and went on a culinary walkabout, working at restaurants in Chicago, New York, Denver, and Jackson Hole. Now Hoang is back in his hometown, soon to open Akoya Omakase, which he expects to debut in July inside the Hotel Phillips (106 W. 12th St.).
Unlike Sushi Kodawari, which opened last summer and was KC’s first dedicated omakase restaurant, Akoya is hedging its bets on the omakase front.
“I wanted to do a high-end omakase restaurant, but I also wanted to build trust here among diners,” Hoang said. “So we have an a la carte section of the menu where you can get a taste for what we do, but also the true omakase experience where the chef picks the best fish for that moment.”
The omakase options range from the $55 “Mizu” (8 pieces of chef-selected nigiri, a hand roll, and miso soup) to the $175 “Akoya” (three composed sashimi courses, 10 premium nigiri, a hand roll, shiro dashi, and dessert). The mid-tier “Umi” features two sashimi sets, eight nigiri, a hand roll, miso, and dessert for $85.
“With the omakase, we wanted to make it customizable for each person,” Hoang said. “Everybody’s different. Some people like tuna, some prefer salmon, some prefer fatty fish and others lean. Some people don’t love the super-strong, fishy taste some fish have. So we’re happy to tweak the omakase based on a conversation at the beginning of the meal. We want people to have a good time.”
For those who’d prefer to fully steer the ship, nigiri and sashimi highlights ($5 for one, $9 for two) include Japanese sea bream (tai), striped jack (shima aji), golden eye snapper (kinmedai), fatty bluefin (o-toro), and Hokkaido scallop (hotate). There’s also miso butter snow crab and A5 wagyu for those seeking something richer.
A handful of salads, composed sashimi dishes, and specialty rolls ($15-30) round out the menu, including the Toyama roll (spicy tuna and cucumber with king salmon, microgreens, gochugaru, and ponzu) and the Sukhama (a vegetarian-friendly option, with asparagus and avocado topped with seared hamachi and yuzu kosho soy).
The setting, a former Hilton Honors lounge west of the hotel’s lobby, has room for ten at the sushi counter and a few dozen more scattered among tables.
Akoya will be open Monday through Saturday, serving lunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and dinner from 5 to 10 p.m. Check akoyaomakase.com for updates on the opening date.
