Sushi Ogawa

OGAWA IS FINALLY OPEN!!!
Came here last night (Feb 1) for their opening night. They have kept things a little bit under wraps about their grand opening. I found out because I live in the building. They have also advertised through their sister restaurant, Sushi Capitol, and Prince of Petworth has let the word out.
Located in the 2100 Connecticut Ave, NW Apartments, Ogawa is not your typical sushi bar. There is a private dining room, a regular dining room, and a sushi bar.
For opening night, they had a little appetizer plate with octopus, lotus root, and spinach topped with dried tuna.
Their menu right now has limited options but the quality of the fish was great. This place isn’t your cheap sushi spot. My boyfriend and I ordered
Seafood tempura appetizer ($ 15) — two scallops, 2 pieces of salmon, one shrimp, and one piece of bonita fish — very good quality
Ume sashimi ($ 26) — 13 pieces of sashimi — salmon, tuna, and whitefish
Ume sushi ($ 28) — Assorted nigiri and 6 maki pieces
I also had the ikura with quail egg — ($ 10) — since it was opening night, they put this one on the house!
They also serve green tea ice cream — major bonus. When we left, they gave each of their customers a special gift — Japanese sweet bread.
While it is a little on the pricey side, and the menu does not have endless rolls to choose from, the quality of the fish is top notch, the service is friendly, and the ambiance is elegant. I will definitely be back.
As of now, they only accept reservations and do not do take out, but once they get the ball rolling, they will alter that.

After visiting Sushi Capitol a few times and seeing its popularity, I heeded the restaurant’s announcement they were accepting reservations and made one for tonight at 5 pm.
I arrived a few minutes early and was greeted by two people who sat me at the sushi bar as per my telephone request. (I’m not sure if sitting at the bar meant I had to get the omakase but seeing that my prior omakase experience at their sister restaurant was good and not wanting to decide, this was ok. I found out at the end they do serve a la carte if dropping $ 100 for dinner is not your thing.)
Ogawa San and his fellow sushi partner now work here while his friend is managing the Capitol Hill location. Since I think I was the only customer for at least the first 90 minutes, I definitely got special treatment and got to speak with the gentlemen making my dinner and learned that while the grand opening was last night, they were still doing a bit of a soft opening and training and haven’t done any advertising. That said, depending on how things go, they might expand to offer lunch service.
The restaurant actually has two private dining areas which can accommodate 6 — 8 people each, and each has a sliding door for privacy and a window overlooking Connecticut Ave. The main dining area accommodates at least 16 people, and the sushi bar can accommodate about 10 people.
Also on my mini tour, I found out that the paintings in the hallway/​entryway were commissioned and the main dining room had hand painted ceiling tiles with a print of fish, all of which they serve. Neat facts!
Dinner began with a trio presentation made up of spinach and dashi, octopus and white radish, and lotus root and carrot.
The second plate had lotus root, a sliver of radish with pompano fish, and fried shrimp head.
The next course was a series of nigiri beginning with steelhead salmon which offered a smooth and cool flavor followed by a carefully torched king salmon that had a spicy kick. Black bluefish which comes from deep in the ocean was served next with a lemony flavored golden snapper behind it.
Ogawa San asked if I like sea urchin and salmon roe, which I appreciate, because last time at Sushi Capitol, my sister and I didn’t care for either. It was our first time trying either, and I’m a little adverse to the appearance of both, but I decided to try again and was glad I did this time. Both were good, and in between, I finished the miso soup with spinach and lotus root. (Side note: Both Sushi Capitol and Sushi Ogawa serve the freshest fish I’ve ever tried. Only at these places am I willing to be adventurous and try things I haven’t tried elsewhere. I talked to both chefs about the cheek appetizer and everyone agreed that’s amazing. I hope that’s offered here next time!)
Then he took away one plate and presented me with another one. On this next round, I tried tuna, toro, a glass fish which was kind of fishy in taste to me, Japanese scallop with another smooth and clean taste, pink shrimp, yellowtail, a gently torched sea eel, and abalone, which I found to be chewy but good. (Ogawa San made sure to point out each fish as I was eating in terms of its origin and texture.) The red snapper was also torched because, as Ogawa San pointed out, the skin is chewy, and when it’s torched, it’s softer. The red snapper also had a lemony and salt and pepper flavor to it. Some of the other nigiri had soy sauce, wasabi, and other combinations of flavors.
I also received what I think is a hosomaki with tuna and crab and avocado. Ogawa San asked which I preferred, and I said both were fine, either or, so it was nice, I got to try both.
The second to last fish I didn’t quite catch but I think he said it’s a seema achi (sp?) from Japan with the last being a Japanese red snapper with a sake and dried plum sauce and seaweed on top.
Finally, I was served persimmon chunks and green tea ice cream for dessert after being asked if I was full. I thought that was nice. I felt like the whole evening they were trying to make sure I was happy and got a full range of the sea, which was definitely the outcome!
Everyone was really nice. A couple of times I was offered green tea and only at the end did I have a cup. It was a nice finish and the cup was the perfect size for cradling. If I didn’t feel like I was holding them up, I would have sipped it slower.
Since word of mouth is how they seem like they’ll be getting business, I highly recommend checking it out. Right now they’re open for dinner Monday — Saturday.