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Shrimp & crab (ebi / kani)

Crustaceans, from sweet raw amaebi to butterflied cooked prawn to real crab — and the surimi that so often stands in for it.

甘海老 amaebi

Amaebi

Amaebi is raw 'sweet shrimp' — served uncooked for a soft, slippery, almost creamy texture and a pronounced sweetness. The heads are often grilled and served alongside.

海老 ebi

Ebi

Ebi is the butterflied, cooked shrimp draped over nigiri — sweet, firm and snappy, and one of the most beginner-friendly things on the menu.

蟹 kani

Kani

Kani is real crab — snow crab (zuwaigani) or king crab (tarabagani) — sweet, delicate and a world apart from the imitation 'krab' in most rolls.

蝦蛄 shako

Shako

Shako is mantis shrimp — always boiled, with soft faintly sweet flesh and a flavor all its own. A vanishing Tokyo Bay classic, and not actually a shrimp.