that he’s still going is quite insane!
Gelb doc notwithstanding, Jiro does have a notable legacy and place within sushi history. most western media doesn’t report much on the restaurant besides the Netflix documentary, the cost and pace of the meal, and his age.
some background - of the Edo sanzushi (the three great Edo period sushi restaurants in history), Yohei is perhaps the most well known and prolific, the progenitor of what we think of most Edo sushi today. Kenuki, while still going, isn’t the same style, but rather bamboo-wrapped. Matsuga has a successor, but it’s not as prolific, they didn’t serve only nigirizushi, and Matsuga was curtailed by the tempo reforms.
Yohei is one of the three great founding restaurants of Edomae sushi, along with Senju Miyako (1848) and Futaba (1877). under Yohei, notably there’s Yoshino and Kizushi. Yoshino is where Jiro trained. it’s also one of the historical “big 3 of Ginza.” it’s credited as the first to serve toro sushi. Jiro is credited as the first to serve katsuo smoked over burning hay, among other developments. Jiro of course now has his own alums and alums’ alums. of the line of Yoshino, Sukiyabashi Jiro is probably the most prolific.