From Jesse of Sag Harbor's Sen Restaurant and Tip Top Hospitality Group:

Tales from Tsukiji

I took a winter off from Sen to stage in Japan — four months, no pay, just learning. Through a connection, I landed at Shirogane Radisson, working in the hotel restaurant. Free room, long hours. Seemed like a good deal.

Then the chef said, You should work at Tsukiji. The guy delivering fish every morning from the market took me under his wing, and suddenly I had two full-time jobs – 4 AM to 2 PM at the fish market, 4 PM to 10 PM at the hotel. Every day. For four months.

Breaking Down Thousands of Fish a Day

My first task? Fillet an entire bin of madai (sea bream). Madai is to Japan what salmon is to America—everybody eats it. It’s the number one consumed sushi fish.

These weren’t small bins. Five feet wide, five feet deep, stacked high with fish. I worked until I couldn’t count how many I’d filleted.

The deal was simple: Finish the pile, and they’d teach me something new. So I got faster. Then faster. Then faster.

And then one day, they decided to have some fun.

The Hazing

They handed me 20 of these crazy looking fish – red spikes everywhere, looking like the devil. Break it down, they said.

I didn’t think twice. I started cleaning, slicing, moving fast. Then I put my hand over it. The back fin shot up.

A spine went under my nail and straight through my finger.

I didn’t say a word. Kept working. Acted like it was fine in front of these old school guys. And I’m wondering where everyone disappeared to… then everything around me turned white.

I woke up to a circle of guys laughing.

Yeah, we don’t break down poisonous fish like that, idiot.

Oh, NOW you tell me?

Here are the gloves. Try using them next time, kid.

That was my welcome. I was officially one of them.

The Guys on Either Side of Me

To my right? A 62-year-old man who had worked there since he was 12. He was the guy — the one who went in at 2 AM, bid at the auction, and picked out the best fish before the rest of us showed up at 4.

To my left? A Filipino guy named Lenny. He spoke English. We became tight. When I got back to the States, I convinced him to come work a summer at Sen. He did. We still stay in touch.

From Tsukiji to Toyosu: What’s Changed

Tsukiji was grimy, loud, smelled like the sea. It felt alive. Toyosu, the new fish market right over the river on the other side, is spotless. More like an ER than a market.

No fish smell. No scum. No charm.

But you can still have fun and check out the retail.

Inside Tip 📌

Most of the market including the auctions moved, but 20% stayed behind. 

So you can still go to Tsukiji -- not for the auctions, but to check out all these great places to enjoy sushi and restaurants and things like that.

Contact

🌐 Tsukiji Market

About Jesse

This card is by Jesse Matsuoka, a Hamptons resident of over 25 years. Jesse is a sake sommelier, Tip Top Hospitality partner, and co-owner of Sen, a legendary Japanese restaurant in Sag Harbor. Jesse was born in Manhattan, grew up in Tokyo, Hawaii, and Sag Harbor, and is now married to a third-generation Montauker.

Lead-in Image

Tsukiji Outer Market / Official Site