Best Sushi in Tel Aviv: From Omakase to All-You-Can-Eat (2026)

Tel Aviv’s sushi scene has developed into something that can stand alongside the best in Europe. The city runs the full range: a 22-seat counter in Jaffa where the chef trained for six years in Japan; a rooftop bar at one of the city’s most expensive hotels; a kosher all-you-can-eat operation in Florentin; and a Japanese street-food spot doing nothing but rice balls. If you know where to look, you’ll eat very well.

This guide is organised by style and price point. For the complete searchable list of Japanese restaurants in Israel, see our Asian businesses directory.

Omakase & Fine Dining

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The top tier of Tel Aviv sushi is genuinely competitive. These three places — two of them in Jaffa — represent serious Japanese technique rather than the local approximation of it.

Terasu — Jaffa

The most-discussed omakase counter in Israel. Chef-owner Yossi Bar’s room on Yefet Street seats a small number around a counter; the menu changes with the season and the market. Everything from the rice temperature to the fish ageing is controlled to a degree unusual for Israel. Book four to six weeks ahead for weekends; midweek is slightly more available.

📍 Yefet 20, Jaffa | @terasutlv | 055-989-9366 | Directory entry

UMAI Izakaya — Jaffa

Chef Alex Abramov spent six years training in Japan before opening this 22-seat room on a quiet Jaffa side street. The menu moves between a kaiseki-influenced tasting course and a more casual izakaya mode — yakitori, niku kappo, seasonal small plates — depending on the evening and your preference. The sashimi selection is consistently the best available in the city: fish sourced with care, cut with precision.

📍 Abed El Rauf El Bitar 8, Jaffa | umai-tlv.com | @umai.modern.japanese | 052-597-7897 | Directory entry

Dinings at the Norman Hotel — Tel Aviv

Dinings brings a rooftop sushi experience to Nachmani Street, with a menu that blends Japanese precision with Mediterranean ingredients and an unobstructed view of the city skyline. The setting — inside one of Tel Aviv’s most distinguished boutique hotels — makes it the natural choice for business dinners and special occasions when you want Japanese food without leaving the White City. Prices reflect the hotel context.

📍 Nachmani 25, Tel Aviv | Directory entry

Izakaya-Style Sushi

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Izakayas occupy the middle ground: serious Japanese food and drink in a setting that doesn’t require a reservation three weeks out. All four places below do sushi as part of a wider Japanese menu.

Akiko — North Tel Aviv

A proper Japanese sushi bar in the quieter northern part of the city. Akiko draws a loyal neighbourhood crowd and does well-executed rolls and nigiri alongside a full Japanese menu. Easier to get a table than the Jaffa omakase spots, and reliably good for a weeknight dinner.

📍 Aba Ahimeir 17, North Tel Aviv | akiko.co.il | @akiko_sushi_bar | 03-641-7641 | Directory entry

Gaijin — Tel Aviv

On the Lilienblum strip — Tel Aviv’s main late-night dining and bar corridor — Gaijin occupies a premium izakaya slot: excellent cocktails, high-quality raw fish, and small plates designed for sharing across an evening. Less formal than the Jaffa omakase counters, but not casual either. Go late, order several rounds of small plates.

📍 Lilienblum 29, Tel Aviv | Directory entry

Kimuraya — Tel Aviv

The first Israeli branch of a Japanese chain with nearly 200 locations across Japan. The Kimuraya formula travels well: yakitori skewers, sashimi, kushiage, and a serious sake list in a room that feels imported rather than approximated. On Maze Street in the centre of Tel Aviv’s main dining district. If you want an authentic izakaya feel without the fine-dining price tag, this is the call.

📍 Maze 3, Tel Aviv | kimurayaisrael.com | @kimuraya.j_israel | 055-299-6579 | Directory entry

ASA Izakaya — Tel Aviv

Robata charcoal cooking is the anchor of the menu here — fish, vegetables, and meats grilled over binchotan, which imparts a smokiness no gas grill can replicate. The menu also runs sushi, gyoza, ramen, udon, and tempura. Near Habima Square, which makes it a convenient option before or after an event at the theatre or Mann Auditorium.

📍 Ahad Ha’Am 54, Tel Aviv | @asa__izakaya | 03-375-2977 | Directory entry

Casual & Delivery

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Not every sushi meal needs to be an event. These two are the best casual options in central Tel Aviv.

Wat Sang Sushi & More — Tel Aviv

Reliable sushi and ramen near the HaRakevet complex (the old train station area, now a leisure and dining destination). Wat Sang is the kind of place that does what it promises without fuss: fresh rolls, good ramen, reasonable prices. Popular for weekday lunches in the area and for evening delivery across central Tel Aviv.

📍 HaRakevet 12, Tel Aviv | watsangsushi.co.il | @wat_sang | 077-980-0443 | Directory entry

Onigiri-ya — Florentin, Tel Aviv

If you want Japanese food at street-food speed and price, Onigiri-ya in Florentin is the answer. Japanese rice balls (onigiri) with fillings ranging from classic tuna mayo to seasonal specials — cheap, fast, and done correctly. Not sushi in the conventional sense, but it belongs on this list as the street-food end of the Japanese spectrum in Tel Aviv.

📍 Florentin 34, Tel Aviv | @onigiri_ya_tlv | 03-620-9922 | Directory entry

Kosher Sushi

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Kosher-certified Japanese food in Tel Aviv is a smaller category, but the options have improved.

Yoko Sushi Bar — Florentin, Tel Aviv (Kosher)

All-you-can-eat sushi with freshly prepared rolls made in front of you, plus dim sum. The format — unlimited rolls for a fixed price — is popular for group dinners and family outings. Kosher-certified and delivering across Tel Aviv.

📍 Florentin 5, Tel Aviv | sushiyoko.co.il | @yoko.sushibar | 077-332-2230 | Directory entry

Otoro — Ramat Gan (Kosher)

A hand-roll sushi bar in Ramat Gan, kosher-certified. The hand-roll format — nori wrapped around rice and fillings, eaten immediately — is one of the most enjoyable ways to eat sushi, and it’s underrepresented in the Tel Aviv metro area. Worth the short trip from the city if kashrut matters to your group.

📍 HaChilazon 1, Ramat Gan | Directory entry

A note on kashrut: many non-certified Japanese restaurants in Israel naturally avoid pork and shellfish, but this does not constitute kosher certification. If kashrut matters, confirm directly with the restaurant before booking.

Quick-Reference Table

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Further Reading

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This guide focuses on Tel Aviv and the immediate metro area. For a broader picture of Japanese dining across Israel — Jerusalem, Haifa, Pardes Hanna, the Sharon region — see the complete Japanese restaurants guide.

Our Asian businesses directory lists all Japanese restaurants in Israel searchable by city, cuisine, and kashrut status.