8th September 2026 – (Hong Kong) Japan’s value sushi chain Sushi Zanmai — Tsukiji Kiyomura Sushi Zanmai — appears set for its first Hong Kong outlet, after hoarding went up on a busy Tsim Sha Tsui stretch near an MTR exit bearing the brand mark, a laughing president cut-out and the words “Sushi Zanmai from Japan, first time in Hong Kong”.
The tip came from Masa, the Japanese operator of izakaya Sakaba Masaka, who posted site photos on Threads with a delighted “Sushi Zanmai has come”. Netizens quickly identified the boarded unit on Kimberley Road, steps from the underground, a high-footfall spot. Fellow Japanese residents and local sushi fans flooded the thread with disbelief and “Where is it?” excitement.
Parent company Kiyomura began with bento in 1985 and opened the first Sushi Zanmai flagship at Tokyo’s Tsukiji in 2001, among Japan’s early 24-hour, year-round sushi shops for travellers seeking late supper or breakfast. Menus run to more than a hundred sushi and Japanese dishes at approachable prices. Outside each shop stands a life-size cut-out of president Kiyoshi Kimura, arms wide and grinning — the chain’s trademark. By March 2026 it had 44 restaurants nationwide, with group arms in seafood sourcing, food manufacturing and overseas import wholesale.
Kimura, nicknamed the Tuna King, cemented the brand’s lore at Toyosu Market’s New Year auction by bidding more than 510 million yen — about HK$25 million — for a 243-kilogram “Japan’s No. 1” bluefin caught off Oma in Aomori Prefecture. The strike set a post-1999 record at about 2.1 million yen a kilogram. That afternoon the flagship staged a tuna-breaking show and sold the fish at everyday prices — lean akami at 398 yen, medium chutoro at 498 yen and fatty otoro at 598 yen — while other branches also received portions. Kimura said the bidding ran higher than expected but he wanted people to taste a lucky fish, regain energy and help lift the mood of the times.
Whether Hong Kong gets round-the-clock service, and when the Kimberley Road shop opens, is still unknown; inquiries to Kiyomura about the debut date and trading details had drawn no reply by the time of the original report. What is clear is that another Japanese conveyor-belt heavyweight — rivalled in reputation by Sushiro and Hama Sushi — is planting a flag in tourist-heavy Tsim Sha Tsui.
