Michelin-starred chef brings high-end Japanese dining to Netanya with Dashi restaurant - review

To know how an internationally renowned chef moved from a three-star Michelin restaurant in Europe to Netanya, cherchez la femme. Chef Tomas Belardi, aka Tomy Sushi, was brought to our country by his Israeli wife, returning to her homeland.

The stars were aligned, the Michelin stars, that is, when chefs Tomy Sushi, an expert in Japanese gastronomy, and Daniel, a master of Asian-themed parties and events, joined kosher restaurateur Rafael to open Dashi Japanese chef restaurant.

The restaurant is yet another storefront along Independence Square, but the size and the simple decor belie the quality of this specialty restaurant. Be sure to have a reservation, as this restaurant has already made its name.

Chefs Tomy and Daniel don’t just prepare the foods; they start by processing the raw ingredients. The chefs use a great variety of specialty fish such as red tuna, red tuna tataki, yellowtail, whitefish, and processes like koji, Nikkei fusion with Peruvian elements, and rice vinegar marinate. 

The fish is salted multiple times to obtain the desired texture. It is then cut into sections, with each section a different color, flavor, and texture. A tuna dish, for example, contains several slices of tuna, each from a different part of the fish, with the richest marbled “wagyu” slices at the top. You’ll want to savor each slice. But first take in the beautiful presentation. Each dish is a work of art.

There are tricks to eating these foods. Manager Yisrael showed us how to place a piece of fish and rice between a folded sheet of seaweed, for a one-bite piece of heaven. The sashimi, he showed us, should be flipped over and eaten seemingly upside down, but it was definitely the right side up.

Exclusive omakase experience and stunning sashimi

Each fish dish warrants its own sauce. Tomy and Daniel prepare dozens of sauces for the various dishes, and no single sauce is used for two different fish. Jerusalem artichoke cream sauce was one of our favorites. Other types of fish are served with carrot sauce or a mustard cream sauce.

EATING IN a quality restaurant such as Dashi is not just about the food but also about the magnificent presentation. Each dish is so beautifully presented, it cries to be photographed and displayed.

The restaurant opens from 1 p.m. for lunch, but you will also want to go there for dinner, when the menu includes the chef’s specialties. One outstanding dish available only in the evening is the Free Style Sashimi. This is a strikingly gorgeous platter with 18 slices of fish and six different sauces (NIS 160).

The highlight, and Tomy Sushi’s specialty, is the Omakase dinner. This is a nine-course tasting menu (for two) that you will only find in gourmet Japanese restaurants. Omakase is a full evening dining experience, where tastings of nine dishes are served one after another. 

The Omakase menu starts simply, with gravlax and mixed fish dishes, but crescendos to a serving of fish grilled over coals. Not just any coals, these coals are made of bamboo imported from Japan. There is a fish and a meat version, starting at NIS 440 for two.

On our visit to Dashi, we focused on the fish dishes, but the restaurant also has a full meat menu that includes slow-cooked meats and meats grilled on the bamboo coals. There are specialty foods like goose liver, and entrecote served with grilled bok choy on garlic cream and truffle potatoes (NIS 89 per 100 gr.). There are also simpler dishes like the green salad with wasabi sauce and a piece of whitefish cooked on the Japanese barbecue (NIS 47).

Dashi has been open for just half a year. It is gaining popularity and drawing great interest from people in the know about Japanese cuisine. Reservations are a must, and don’t be surprised if the prices have gone up by the time you get to the restaurant.

• The restaurant caters events at your location, including locations outside Israel.
• Dashi kosher Japanese chef restaurant
• 1 Herzl St., Netanya
• Tel: 077-938-6100
• Open: Sunday-Thursday, 1 p.m.-11 p.m.; dinner from 6 p.m.; Saturday, after Shabbat, from 7 p.m. Closed Friday.
• Kashrut: Netanya Rabbinate

The writer was a guest of the restaurant. She is the founder and CEO of eLuna.com, the premier English-language website for kosher restaurants in Israel.