I turn to the stranger sitting next to me. “You ever been to one of these?” I ask him. The guy is grinning and looking around like he can’t believe he’s here. “No, first time,” he says, settling into his bar-height chair. “You?” It’s mine, too, I tell him.
This is 1033 Omakase, the hardest – and possibly most sought-after – reservation in town. Why? For one thing, its format, an intimate 14-course chef-selected Japanese dining experience limited to 10 people. Second, it’s really good. Like, believe-the-hype good.
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
The only way to get in is through the booking platform Resy, where a month’s worth of reservation slots open up at a time. These, of course, fill immediately; in early September, 1033 was booked through November. It took me close to six months of missing every time the announcement went out on Instagram that reservations were open to realize that the only way I’d ever get it is to randomly check for last-minute openings, which do happen. That’s how I got in, and now I can’t wait to go back.
The setting only adds to the sense of wonder and anticipation I see painted on the faces of the diners around me: dark except for strategic lighting, the brightest of it illuminating the chefs behind the square-shaped counter like they’re performing in a show. Diners are seated on two sides of the counter, split into groups of five.
The chef facing my side of the counter wears a newsboy cap and a blue chef’s smock. His forearm tattoos peek through the gap of his shirt sleeve and his work glove. He keeps his head bent over his tidy, methodical workstation, and I recognize him as Worawit “Chef Ray” Boonyapituksakul, one of the owners. He and partner Cherry Phetleung opened the brick-and-mortar in December 2024, after months of pop-ups at Twisted Path Distillery and other locations.
Fourteen courses sounds daunting, but it’s not in an omakase. Here they’re small and the majority feature sashimi (raw fish). The menu is not shared ahead of time – just opening yourself up to anything is the fun part. Or one of them.
Watching the chefs (chef Ray has an assistant) shape sushi rice into perfect mounds, delicately shave black truffles over tuna tartare, grill tiny filets of wagyu beef, and build little bowls of cold creamy sea urchin, roe and rice is as fundamental as the multisensory experience of eating every morsel of what is deftly placed in front of you. Somehow, too, I can’t think of a better soundtrack for this than the ’90s rap they’re playing (Tupac, Biggie, etc.).
A server challenged me to name my favorite dish; I couldn’t name just one. The meal started light and fresh, with a cold, colorful sunomono salad, followed by buttery, firm hamachi (yellowtail) nigiri (bite-size sushi rice topped with raw fish). From there, each course became richer and more complex. The final one – sweet, saucy barbecue eel nigiri – was indeed an ending, a dessert like no other dessert. There was something almost bonding about it, though I never spoke to any other diner besides my grinning neighbor. We shared something really exceptional.
This fall, chef Ray told me by email that he intends to bring in more seasonal delicacies such as Hokkaido uni (an especially fine sea urchin) and threeline grunt (a prized fatty whitefish). And no, there are no plans to open the experience to larger groups. I suggest you start stalking 1033 Omakase’s Resy. The cat’s even farther out of the bag.
Hours: Tues time slots: 5:30 p.m., 6:45 p.m. and 8 p.m. Wed-Sat time slots: 5 p.m., 6:30 p.m., 8 p.m.
Prices: Supreme: 14 courses, $129. Classic (the only option available on Tuesdays): 10 courses, $79
Reservations: Required
Service: Attentive, welcoming, professional
1033 Omakase & Sake Bar
1033 S. First St.
414-617-3831
