Mizu aims to be right up there with the top sushi restaurants in town, such as the Michelin-affiliated Ginza Sushi Ishi or the equally impressive Sushi Hinata. Don’t hold the awkward location down a narrow corridor in Charn Issara Tower and the space’s small size (a dozen seats and some seven spots at the bar) against it; sushi restaurants operate in a world where a complete lack of windows is par for the course.

In fact, the dark hardwood and monochrome upholstery make the restaurant’s shining features all the more evident: attentive service, proud craftsmanship and excellent produce. Everything from the beautiful crockery and traditional sushiya uniforms to the splendid fish knives seem to gently whisper, “We’re using only the best stuff, here.” In case the hints are too subtle, the menu even spells it out for you (in English): the rice is “super-premium short grain Koshihikari,” the soy sauce a special gluten-free blend, the green tea a house mix of sencha and matcha.

And then there’s what’s going on behind the counter: the freshly grated wasabi, the chef’s fluency when it comes to detailing the origins and seasonality of every fish he serves, the hypnotic knife-work. The end results are on par with the theatrics: rice at the perfect sourness and temperature, chunks of raw fish impeccably carved, slices of bitter cucumber leaves and sea grapes thrown in where cheaper places might use a sprinkling of chopped chives.

Of course, none of this comes cheap. At B750, Mizu’s kaisen don is about 50 percent more expensive than popular fave Sushi Masa, but that chunk of fatty tuna belly alone is worth a pretty penny. Even lunchtime, traditionally a bargain at Soi Thaniya’s many Nippon restaurants, sees steep prices: The generous and delicious bara chirashi, at B600, is double what nearby Tsukiji charges. Worth it? We think so, as long as you stick to the raw fish. Mizu’s cooked dishes (a process that takes place off-stage, in a closed off kitchen) leave us unimpressed. The snow fish (gindara ageni, B550) has beautiful texture but very little flavor. The salmon teppanyaki (B400) is even less appealing—a tad dry, the butter and mirin used to cook it overpowering. Nor can we recommend the fatty, sweet rice with seaweed (hijiki chahanm, B120).

In terms of service, those ordering omakase sets (B2,000 for three courses, including nine pieces of sushi or B3,500 for five courses/12 pieces of sushi) will see the young Thai chef lavish them with attention. In contrast, diners ordering a la carte end up completely ignored. “There are maybe 9-10 restaurants at our level in Bangkok,” the chef said on our last visit. That’s not entirely false, but Mizu still needs to become more consistent at delivering on its ambitions. No corkage charge 

This review took place in October 2015 and is based on a visit to the restaurant without the restaurant's knowledge. For more on BK's review policy, click here.