Sazanami: Sustainable Omakase in Beaverton

I recently became aware of Sazanami, a new restaurant in Beaverton. Helmed by Hajime Sato, formerly chef at Detroit’s Sozai and Seattle’s Mashiko, both of which he founded, he brings an omakase menu focused on sustainability to a space in a mall next to Greenway Park. I had a chance to chat on the phone with him about the restaurant, and here is some of what we talked about.

Hajime Sato

Hajime Sato, who was born in Japan, is a James Beard Award winning chef. In 2023 he was nominated for Outstanding Chef and in 2024 he won the Award for Best Chef: Great Lakes. His 2024 award was while he was at Sozai in Clawson, Michigan, located just north of Detroit. There he focused on sustainability by sourcing much of his seafood from the Midwest.

Before that he was at Mashiko in Seattle, which he opened in 1994. He operated that restaurant for 25 years, eventually selling it to some of his employees. He focused on sustainability there, too, and in 2009 he became one of the first sushi chefs to commit to using sustainable seafood. He left in 2019 and opened the aformentioned Sozai in 2021, closing it in 2025 to relocate back to the PNW. He is the sole owner of Sazanami in Beaverton.

Reading the comments on his personal Instagram page, it is clear that he made quite an impact during his time in Michigan, with a devoted following and many memories to cherish. I hope he will have a similar experience at Sazanami in Beaverton.

Choosing Beaverton and the Portland Area

Hajime lived in the Seattle area for many years, and I was curious to know why he just didn’t return to that city when it was time to move back to the PNW. He said, “So for one, I lived in Seattle for a long time and I thought maybe I can change the scenery a little bit.”

He continued. “I sold my restaurant to my employees and it’s still going strong in Seattle, so I don’t want to compete with them. And then I had a friend who said, ‘Come on down to Portland!'” Hajime was looking forward to seeing his friend here, but there was a change in plans. “He’s in Japan now, so I’m a little like, ‘Come on, man!’ I moved here and now you’re going to Japan?'”

Regardless, he’s still happy for his friend. “Good for him,” he said.

On top of it all, when he visited Portland from Michigan a while back, he fell in love with the area. “I felt like Portland still had a feeling … I’m going to call it like, ‘old school Seattle from the 90s and 2000s.’ There are more mom and pop places,” he remarked. “And the culture here kind of reminds me of what I liked about Seattle a while ago.”

He and his wife ended up buying a house in Beaverton, and they are very happy there.

Sazanami and Sustainability

The issue of sustainability in Sazanami’s sourcing is very important. Where the fish come from, how they are raised, how they are caught, and the effect on fish populations are all a part of that. It reminds me of how important these things are to the Iliamna Fish Company folks, too, who also put sustainability of the sockeye salmon and cod fish stocks front and center in their work.

I asked Hajime why sustainability is so important to him. “People ask me that question all the time,” he said. “Well, we live on the Earth, right? So why is that not important to anybody—why are people not paying attention to it? That’s weird to me.”

He thinks that everyone should want to encourage and support sustainable fishing practices and a kinder approach to all who share the earth and its oceans. “Why are we the ‘weird’ ones‽‽” He exclaimed.

The Fish Stocks and Fishing Methods

Hajime writes on the website about the issue of fish stock/population: “Some fish populations are in steep decline. We must allow these species time to repopulate so that we can enjoy them responsibly for generations to come.” Because when the fish are gone, they’re gone.

Fishing methods vary and among the most destructive are bottom trawlers used by large fishing companies. They basically drag a large, heavy metal net along the ocean floor, tearing up anything and everything in its path in search of shrimp. The bycatch levels can be off the chart (e.g., for every pound of shrimp, there are nine pounds of bycatch) and it is terribly damaging to the environment it rampages through.

But even with that, Hajime says that there are ways to mitigate disaster on the ocean floor. There’s a bycatch-reducing device that can be installed on a trawler. Or, they could use a pelagic trawl, which bounces so that it doesn’t really catch any of the bottom seafloor. Turtle Exclusion Devices can be also be attached to a trawl net, so as to allow sea turtles to escape if caught.

Pole-and-line fishing and set nets are ways of fishing result in minimal bycatch levels. The use of circle hooks vs. J hooks, and not using longlines, which leaves behind filaments that can wrap around fish and turtles, are also thoughtful solutions. All can be implemented, if desired.

Hajime at Sazanami will do what it can to be supportive of responsible fish farming practices, as well, with attention paid to quality of the feed and a harmonious existence with the surrounding environment.

“We have solid relationships with numerous seafood sustainability experts,” he writes. “We appreciate the support we have received from both customers and industry insiders. Our education has been intense and is ongoing.”

Inside Sazanami

Most recently, this location was home to Red Curry, a popular Thai restaurant that closed on March 16, 2026. As far as what they’ve done to the interior, the biggest change they implemented was that there are no more tables.

Hajime told me that the biggest part of the improvement of the space was to open the kitchen and add a custom built sushi bar, which was made from local trees that had fallen, not ones that had been cut down.

“It’s now just a sushi bar, and we have about 13 or 14 seats right now,” he explained. “That’s normal [with omakase] because it’s basically served by me and the other chef.”

Sazanami is fully omakase and there is no a la carte option. His restaurant in Michigan was mostly omakase but a small percentage was a la carte—think an 80/20 ratio. There are no plans at this moment in time to add any a la carte options to the Sazanami menu.

What You’ll Eat and Drink at Sazanami

Of course, with omakase the chef has discretion to make what he’d like for the participating diners. At Sazanami, he’ll offer around nine courses. On their Instagram bio, it reads, “寿司 • 酒 • 割烹” / “Sushi • Sake • Kappo.” Kappo is the omakase part; sushi and sake will hold important roles in the meal as a whole, too. Here’s a description from the menu:

“A thoughtfully planned experience featuring an array of courses that build upon one another. This nine course meal includes courses from our sushi bar as well as courses from our kitchen. For those with heartier appetites, additional courses may be added near the end of your meal.”

The nine-course omakase meal ranges from $140 to $200 per person. A personalized sake pairing is available for an additional cost.

Omakase and Music

Asked Hajime what sets Sazanami apart from its peers. “That is a great question,” he said. “So, I don’t know if you’ve been to omakase these days in New York, LA, etc. A lot of places have become more nigiri, after nigiri—and just one piece of each. If you go to Japan, then omakase means a lot more than just sushi. It’s a lot of different things.”

“The style I’m doing, it’s more of an emphasis on Japanese traditional cooking,” he explained. “So you might get sushi for maybe three courses, but in between there’s a lot of small plates. And it can be cooked, it can be fried, it can be steamed, it can be sashimi, but each course is different.”

He compared it to music, where there are dynamics —“ups and downs”—and the rhythm is varied. “From beginning to the end, it might have a crescendo and all that makes it interesting for an entire meal,” Hajime remarked.

Oddly enough, this brings to mind the series “Hot Ones,” which is basically one big buildup/crescendo from a milder sauce to the infamous Da Bomb, then it drops down a bit on Scoville units. Or Sibelius’ Symphony No. 7, a single-movement orchestral work full of variety and interest, with rising and falling dynamics, deft ensemble work, tension and release—and with that glorious push to the end that for some is quite unexpected.

Hajime is not interested in serving a meal that is monotonous—just as he is uninterested in listening to music that is monotonous. Sure, there is the minimalist music genre, but the “monotony” is intentional. For a meal, he does not want to serve the same kind of thing over and over in successive courses; his intention is to never be boring or to drone on with his food.

Nine Courses

So Hajime has nine courses to work with. I asked, “Will they all be protein—will they all have a protein element or will some be vegetables?” He responded, “I love vegetables!”

He continued, “Sometimes you go to course meal places and they just overload all the flavors all the time.” This, he says, makes your palate tired. So, he will give your tastebuds a little break with a really calm vegetable dish usually to say, “Hey, just let’s do a reset and relax.”

And when I think of this kind of meal, I think of mostly of savory things. So, will there be something sweet at some point? “We’re in America, so dessert has to be there,” he said. He is considering a few things that will use Japanese flavors. “I’m not going to give you strawberry shortcake, you know what I mean?”

He’s not sure if he’s going to do it or not, but the Japanese cheesecake is something he’s considered making. “It’s very popular right now, and I used to bake it every once in a while.” He mentioned making Japanese sweet potato cheesecake and a sweet dish with Okinawan purple potato in the past. “I made a little crumble kind of thing out of it,” he said.

A Personal Touch

For dinner, Hajime looks forward to speaking with each guest about what they like and what they don’t like, and can adjust the meal within what he has. He says that is a unique approach.

“It’s not just a course meal where I’ve already made everything and that you’re going to taste exactly the same things as the other couple that’s sitting next to you; that is really common,” he explained. His style is more nuanced, and that he might take a different approach for you and the person sitting right next to you. 

“At one place that I love to go in Tokyo I was there with my friend,” he said. “And literally, for the first two or three courses we got the same thing. But after that, he looked at me and said, ‘Huh. So after the seventh or eighth course, we got a completely different meal!’ And the sake pairing was completely different.”

He continued, “So that’s and that’s what I like to do, too. Of course there are limitations, I get it, because I don’t have so many ingredients yet. And of course, that will improve within several months. But that being said, I’d love to talk to you and say, ‘Hey, what am I doing today? What do you feel like?'”

Allergies and Dietary Issues at Sazanami

At this point in time he can’t really accommodate those with allergies, so celiac and gluten-free folks will not be able to participate. “If I want to use a really good soy sauce, it has wheat in it,” he explained. “And if I am to make a flavor that’s exactly what I want, then I just cannot do gluten free. So that’s really tough.”

He spoke about shellfish allergies. “The shellfish allergy is really tough because I have shellfish everywhere. Even if I can clean it up with bleach, a microscopic something might be there, because I’m there cutting shellfish, you know?” Above all, he does not want to endanger anyone coming to his restaurant, so if there is a chance you may have a reaction to wheat or shellfish, he says it’s best to stay home.

However, on the vegan front, he is offering a vegan omakase option now; originally we thought it was still in the plans, but it’s good news that it’s available now. At first he wasn’t sure about doing a vegan meal here (he had done vegan omakase at Sozai). But his wife and all his colleagues encouraged him and said, “Your vegan is so good, you have to do it!” Personally, I’m really excited about a vegan option.

Final Thoughts

He is aiming for a casual atmosphere at Sazanami, and as he said, “It’s not going to be a really stuffy place at all.” You can be yourself and not worry about fitting into some kid of scene or artificial vibe. And, if you can’t or don’t want to use chopsticks, they’ll happily offer you a fork.

“I just want you to be comfortable,” said Hajime. “That’s the main goal. And I always go back to, ‘Why am I making food?'”

He continued, “My grandma used to make me food all the time. And that is my origin. So if you think that somehow I have transformed into some kind of grandma figure, that is what I want.”

And while he wants his guests to feel at ease, he also wants you to know that for him, food is serious business and he is dedicated to a level of excellence. “I want you to experience all the stuff I do in terms of a course meal, and you feel comfortable.”

Reservations

Not only are reservations suggested, they are required, with a $30 reservation fee per person (they’ll refund it in a separate transaction). And if you have to cancel, you must do it at least three days in advance.

Reservations are transferrable, though; “If you are unable to honor your reservation, we suggest you arrange for a friend to attend in your place.” Also note that the maximum number of people in your party is four persons. And if you are more than 15 minutes late, they reserve the right to cancel your reservations.

Sazanami is an adults-only space: “Minors under 21 years of age are not permitted.”

You can make a reservation on their Square page. Read their full reservations policy here.

Opening Sazanami

The plan is to open officially this Wednesday, July 29; they were open last week in soft opening mode. They’ll be open Wednesdays to Saturdays, closed Sundays to Tuesdays. And they will be open for dinner only, with hours that could be considered a little more custom compared to most.

“It’s reservation only, so you don’t just come in at five— if you make a reservation at 5:30pm , then you’re going to get a 5:30pm start,” he said. “Whoever finishes last, then that’s the time I finish cooking. So it might be nine or ten.”

Wishing Hajime and his team all the best at Sazanami in Beaverton!

Sazanami [grand opening July29, 2026]
10053 SW Nimbus Avenue, Beaverton
Sazanami website | Instagram | Facebook

Updated July 27, 2025 to clear up the fact that the vegan omakase is available now, as this article was published, as well as pricing, and more details about the changes to the space.