It was news to me that Denmark and Japan have such strong cultural links. The two countries established formal diplomatic relations in 1867, beginning a relationship built on a shared appreciation for design, aesthetics and craftsmanship. There is also, as I discovered on a recent trip to Copenhagen, plenty of common ground when it comes to food.
Chef preparing beef tataki, seared to perfection.
I was there to experience Sticks’n’Sushi, the Danish-Japanese restaurant concept coming to Birmingham’s Paradise, and meet co-founder Kim Rahbek Hansen. Founded in Copenhagen more than 30 years ago by Kim and his family, the restaurant draws on their half-Danish, half-Japanese heritage, bringing together carefully prepared sushi and grilled yakitori and kushiyaki skewers.
I have to confess, sushi has never really been my go-to dining experience. I’ve eaten it, usually with the slightly worthy feeling that I was making a healthy choice, but it has never quite become a culinary passion. My rather clumsy attempts at using chopsticks probably gave that away.
This was made slightly more nerve-racking by the fact that I was dining with Kim himself. Watching him explain the precision and care that goes into preparing each piece while I wrestled with a particularly slippery morsel was a useful reminder that there is considerably more art to sushi than simply putting something on rice.
What began as a Copenhagen concept has grown considerably, with 19 locations across the city, ranging from intimate restaurants to rooftop spaces with impressive outdoor areas. The brand also has an established UK presence, including several London restaurants and locations in Manchester, with Birmingham next on the list at Paradise.
The Four Meal Drive, a sushi sharing platter of nigiri and maki rolls for four.
So, what’s the attraction? Well, bland this certainly isn’t.
The menu offers an extensive mix of flavours and textures, with Japanese precision meeting a distinctly social style of dining. Everything feels carefully considered, from the presentation to the way each dish is introduced and explained.
We began with a selection of small dishes, including Tuna Tartare Bites, combining tuna, avocado, sesame, miso, yuzu and spring onion on crispy flatbread; Ebi Bites, tempura shrimp with miso aïoli, chilli, lime and coriander; and Beef Tataki, beef fillet with miso aïoli, spring onion, artichoke chips, shiitake and truffle ponzu. The beef practically melted in the mouth, while the combinations of flavours were a world away from the rather predictable sushi experience I had perhaps unfairly imagined.
The service was excellent, with every dish presented and explained, right down to the branded chopsticks and straws. Nothing felt overly formal, but there was clearly a great deal of attention to detail.
Next came the Sashimi Deluxe, featuring salmon, yellowfin tuna, yellowtail kingfish, lobster daikon roll, hiramasa ceviche and tamago ikura. Designed for sharing, it was a revelation. Fresh, delicate and beautifully presented, it was easily the best sashimi I’ve experienced.
Kim even gave me a masterclass in mixing wasabi with soy sauce and explained how to use the ginger to cleanse the palate between flavours. I suspect I was receiving rather more tuition than the average diner, but it was fascinating to understand how the dishes are intended to be enjoyed.
The Temaki Setto: a DIY sushi experience with wagyu, lobster and trout roe.
Then came a personal highlight: the Temaki Setto.
Temaki means hand roll, and this was essentially DIY sushi, with wagyu tartare, lobster and yuzu, kataifi, cress, soy sesame and sake-tamari marinated trout roe, served with sushi rice and delicate sheets of nori seaweed. You create your own little parcels, wrapping the rice and fillings in the nori. It’s interactive, social and makes a bit of theatre of the meal. It also takes some of the pressure off those still getting to grips with chopsticks, which, in my case, was a welcome development.
The Japanese theme continued with the sake. We were invited to choose individual ceramic sake cups before sampling Masumi, a historic Japanese sake brand produced by the Miyasaka Brewing Company in Nagano Prefecture, whose origins date back to 1662. It was a lovely touch, and the sake paired particularly well with what followed: the sticks.
The Gindara No Miso, black cod with miso, was exceptional, while the Wagyu Yaki showcased Japanese Wagyu beef from the Hiramatsu Farm in Kagoshima Prefecture, Kyushu. We also tried Aka Ebi, shrimp with spicy gochujang and garlic butter, a punchy combination that brought a welcome hit of heat and richness.
This is where the concept really comes together. The freshness and variety of the sushi are complemented by the deeper, smokier flavours of the grilled dishes, creating a meal that offers a pleasing contrast in textures, flavours and cooking styles.
An assortment of desserts, including our favourite Matcha.
And then, of course, there was dessert.
My favourite was the Matcha, a dark chocolate fondant with a matcha core and vanilla ice cream. I sincerely hope that ice cream makes it onto the Birmingham menu. It was quite possibly the most convincing argument I’ve ever experienced for eating dessert after an already substantial meal.
The menu is extensive, so my recommendation would be to ask for advice rather than attempting to navigate it alone. The team are knowledgeable and happy to guide you through the options, whether you are already a sushi expert or, like me, still occasionally wondering which end of the chopstick you’re supposed to hold.
At the end of the meal, we were introduced to one of the family chefs, and I told him that, genuinely, this was the best sushi I had ever eaten.
Sticks’n’Sushi’s new restaurant at Three Chamberlain Square, Paradise Birmingham.
And I meant it.
Sticks’n’Sushi brings together Japanese culinary traditions and Danish influences in a menu that offers plenty of variety, from carefully prepared sushi to freshly grilled skewers. The combination works well, with the quality of the food matched by thoughtful touches that make dining here an experience in its own right.
Birmingham, you are in for a treat!
