IKI - Authentic Japanese

Behind a white noren marked with a single red character on Rue Sidi Ghanem, IKI brings a sushi counter to the city's design and workshop district. Outside are warehouses and furniture showrooms; inside, the pace drops. The character reads iki, a Japanese aesthetic of elegance, simplicity and thoughtful hospitality, and the room follows it: pale handcrafted wood and red lacquer trays, high plain walls, lattice screens that soften the light, dark veined stone underfoot. Chef Shoki Yokoyama, from Osaka and cooking in Morocco since 2021, opened here in March 2026. At the counter each piece is shaped in front of the guest and meant to be eaten the moment it is set down, with hands or chopsticks, both equally correct, and a slice of pickled ginger in between. Lunch is a set, the way Japan eats at midday: a main dish with a small appetiser, miso soup, dessert and tea, or omakase nigiri by three or five pieces. In the evening the menu turns à la carte, from sashimi and nigiri to maki and warm dishes, while the full omakase, eleven courses from appetiser to dessert, has to be booked six hours ahead. A private tatami room, with a low table and floor cushions, can be booked for a small group, and service follows omotenashi, the habit of anticipating what a guest needs before it is asked. The drinks list is entirely alcohol-free, and green tea and cold water arrive unasked, as in traditional sushi restaurants.