Best Omakase Sushi Tasting in East Orlando? New Soupakase Experience at Soupa Saiyan 3

Marshall Phanthachit and Joy Nguyen recently opened Soupa Saiyan 3 in East Orlando, the third Japanese anime-themed noodle soup restaurant for the family – taking over the space once occupied by Taco Bus at University Blvd and Rouse, just outside of UCF.

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This location has something a little different from the first two restaurants – a sushi menu and one-hour “Soupakase” casual omakase sushi chef’s tasting experience in the evenings on Wednesdays through Sundays.

The Soupakase experience features an innovative and specially curated 12 course sushi tasting which includes pieces by pieces nigiri, handroll, and soup.

This omakase experience may also be the most affordable experience in the city – at just $65 per person, with up to 6 seats for each seating for now. Tickets are available at https://www.exploretock.com/soupa

The Soupakase is led by Chef David Tsan, who David Tsan who began his career at Bento in downtown Orlando before working his way through Epcot Japan, Four Seasons at Walt Disney World, Morimoto Asia, Susuru, Kabooki, and most recently illume at JW Marriott Bonnet Creek.

Being a native of Taiwan, growing up Chef Tsan could find Japanese food around the everywhere – “I remember walking late on the street, I could always smell grilled samna (saury) fish or the smell of ramen, eating steamed chawanmushi and sukiyaki donburi or going to the fish market and eating sashimi,” Chef Tsan said. “Japanese cuisine is a part of me – the comfort food that always reminds me of my childhood.” – Chef David Tsan, Soupakase at Soupa Saiyan 3

Chef Tsan’s first kitchen job ever was at Bento as a dishwasher, where he learned humility and continual self-improvement.

Over the years, he continued honing his skills – at Epcot, Chef Tsan built his foundation in Japanese cuisine on a large, fast paced scale, while at Four Seasons he learned from great minds and ideas to build his technique as well as seasonality and buying power of resources and best products.

At Morimoto Asia, he gained his stride, working under chefs there who really pushed him to understand the meaning of “cook” and taught him to teach others instead of watching others struggle. He learned to keep his technique in the back pocket and learned the mentality of a true chef – valuing precision and creativity. His time at Kabooki taught him to push the boundary and invention.

Today, chef Tsan loves being a chef because he needs to have “eyes of a photographer, mind of an architect, tongue of a chef, hands of an artist, legs of an athlete, passion of an astronaut, finesse of a businessman, and speech of a motivation speaker.”

“I believe in technique and serving what is the best and to express my intent and will – and I want to bring my unique blend . 80% is preparation, 20% showmanship – food should be fun, and this is the start of something new.”