We finally came back to Umi after almost one year (we had tried to book a few times already but failed due to restrictions or our own scheduling) and we found that it was still a lovely experience with the new Chef Harada. While he was definitely not as talkative as the previous Chef we found that new chef exuded a gentle zen-like humbleness and a genuine hospitality. It was a delight to eat each piece of sushi nigiri and was pleasantly surprised to taste the different quirks of each piece. We especially loved the expertly sliced squid fish, which we watched him score with light precision and when he held up the slice of thinly cut fish, we can see all the knife marks sliced perfectly but the whole piece of squid sheet itself was still intact! The manageress was also a different one then last time but she was bubbly and attentive and not overbearing at many other sushi bars. Overall, we had a great time with the ingredients and service still maintaining its quality and we cannot wait to be back soon! …查看更多
The omakase dinner at UMI on Hollywood Road is the worst omakase experience I ever had for the following reasons : 1. we made the reservation one month in advance but couldn’t get the spot we wanted. The male staff told us that they were only able to confirm reservation the day before, hence couldn’t give us the seats. It however turned out they were only reserving the better spot for a bigger group. 2. They have different menus for dinner, but the staff couldn’t explain the differences properly, as a result we couldn’t get the food we wanted. 3. We liked the dessert (it’s a strawberry mochi, which would literally take one bite to finish!) and asked to buy an extra serve, the staff however told us that there is no time to serve another dessert because others are waiting for the seats and we have to leave. 4. The most ridiculous thing is that there is a 2 hour time limit for an omakase dinner, which cost over 2000 HKD Per Head! And we were not made aware of this when we made the reservation nor when we entered the restaurant, which is completely absurd! When we spend more than 6000HKD for food and sake, we would be expecting top quality food, top tier service with no time limit, which this place has obviously failed to deliver on all measures! ***In conclusion: ordinary food, terrible seating arrangement, abominable services with complete disregard for the comfort of the customers. I will never go to this place again and I would advise you to do the same. You will have a better dinning experience at a conveyor belt sushi. …查看更多
gotta always take advantage of restaurant week for the best foodie deals; so stoked that I got to visit here before we say farewell to chef Kimijima-san and say hello to chef Harada-san, so one last noms and one big hoorah to the ultimate taste of umi!we all know I have the biggest soft spot for this cuisine and this was d e l i c i o u s, actually very simple but simplicity is key by respecting the true flavours of each fish. Couldn’t help but get the additional uni and the seared smokey nigiris were my favourite - strong with unami and that’s why we like it 💯; self care sort of experience and almost like an escape to Japan in itself 🇯🇵 tasting menu plus the supplement uni for additional $188 on top of the $640 restaurant week menu!questionable entrance (took me a hot second) but absolutely beautiful interior with a floral tree hung from the ceiling while I overlook the whole journey from start to finish ✨…查看更多
This sushi restaurant is on Hollywood Road, near Man Mo Temple, where the former Bibo is located. It brought back some memories as Bibo had one of the most creative and art-centric décors in all the restaurants I visited in HK. But today I come here to experience something much more traditional. The entrance has a small plaque showing the restaurant’s name and if not paying attention one can easily walk by without noticing. Going in the waitress and chefs greeted us, and it is the long sushi table made from a large slab of wood which immediately caught our attention. There are some nice touches of art too, including a modern-art painting and a tree with flowers hanging upside down from the roof. There are only four customers on the night, and we are served by Chef Kimijima, who has lived in HK for 22 years, but will be leaving HK at the end of the month to return to Japan. We have the Omakase Experience ($2,088) while I also go for sake pairing ($800). The first course is Truffle Rice, a signature from Chef Kimijima. The white truffle is freshly shaved and intensely fragrant, with the aromas so prominent I can smell from a distance. The rice has also a great texture, of more bite than the shari used for sushi, appropriately seasoned, and mixed with also truffle oil to further enhance the flavours. No wonder this is the signature, featuring in the beginning of the course. In the sake pairing, there are a total of four different sakes served. The first one is Kiritto 45 from Michisakari, a super dry sake that revolutionized the Japanese sake industry in the 1970s when the sweeter version was at its peak of popularity. Its dry nature I found pairing well with the more delicate-flavoured sashimi.The second course is Zuwa-gani, or Snow Crab. Presented as a neat cube, the snow crab meat is prepared with dashi gelatin, adding some caviar on top. The wonderful umami notes from the dashi, the delicate sweetness from the crab meat, and the touch of savoury from the caviar, combine to make this a nice feast in flavours. The third course is Bonito, or Skipjack Tuna. Instead of smoking, the chef has served it raw. Originally worrying that the flesh will have too much strong smell it is surprisingly pleasant through the clever use of chives and myoga. There are also some baby sorrel leaves underneath, and its sour and lemony taste also helps to cleanse the palate from the bonito. Another example of the thoughtfulness of the chef. The fourth course is Tako, or Octopus. Seeing the chef takes out the tentacles from the bowl and cutting a few pieces already started my mouth watering. The octopus is very tender, with umami flavours from the braising sauce bursting out on each bite. Pairing with a bit of yuzu kosho and wasabi, plus some yuzu peels on top, help to freshen and increase the complexity of flavours even further. The fifth course is Awabi, or Abalone. Again, seeing the chef in action is part of the enjoyment. While many would think there is no technique in cutting the abalone, on closer look the chef has deliberately twisted the wrist during the process to create a wavy surface on the cut. Whether it is this or other reason I am not sure, but the abalone is certainly very tender and without any rubbery texture. Paired with the paste made from the liver adds to the wonders in its taste. Transitioning to the sushi, the second sake is served. The Kokuryu Daiginjo has richer fruity notes and heavier body, which makes it suitable to pair with the sushi. The first sushi is Hirame, or Flounder. The chef has added half a shiso leaf in the sushi, and one can see through the translucent flesh to the green underneath. The delicate taste of the flounder has been supplemented with a bit of yuzu kosho to good effect. One thing to note is that Chef Kimijima kneads a smaller shari than most other sushi restaurants, which I believe is the more traditional style. The second sushi is Akamutsu, or Rosy Seabass. The chef has lightly torched this prized deepwater fish, to release its fragrant fish oil. On the bite the rich fatty texture is very pleasant, smooth and fulfilling. Another great piece. The third sushi is Kanpachi, or Greater Amberjack. With a decent amount of fat, the fish has a firm texture, but a milder sweet taste. The most amazing thing however is how the chef has up-leveled the flavours through a bit of sesame, which are intense in its note but has good harmony with the greater amberjack. The fourth sushi is Hotategai, or Scallop. The large scallop is first cut in half, and then further butterfly-sliced to spread longer. Using a piece of shiso leaf underneath again, the chef uses sea salt and some yuzu shavings to season the scallop, to bring forward the sweetness. The fifth sushi is Ishigakigai, or Bering Sea Cockle. The crunchy texture of the cockle and the sweet, umami taste is wonderful, and while the chef did not smash the cockle to make it stand like other sushi chefs, he touches the tip and the muscle contracts, showing its freshness also. Before going to the second part of the sushi another sake is served to pair. The Junmai Daiginjo from Kudokijozu has a fresh taste, sweeter than the last one with a very well-balanced palate. Personally my favourite sake on the night. The sixth sushi is Kuruma-ebi, or Japanese Tiger Prawn. After poaching the chef allows the prawn to cool down a bit before removing the shell and head, taking away the brown meat to make into a paste. Using it to enhance the flavours, he put that as fillings inside the sushi. The firm texture of the prawn meat, its natural sweetness and the umami coming from the soy sauce created a perfect combination. Really good. The seventh sushi is Anago, or Sea Eel. A bit different than the other sushiya making the sea eel so soft like dissolving in the mouth, here it has a much firmer texture, and while it is nicely grilled and the taste is nothing inferior comparatively, I would still prefer the softer style. Coming to the end of the sushi is the trio of tuna, which comes from Oma in Aomori, with the Akami Zuke, or Lean Tuna, first being served. Marinated in soy sauce, the tuna is a bit too salty for me unfortunately. But the soft and smooth texture of the tuna, as well as the pinch of fragrant sesame on top, helps to rescue some marks.The last two pieces, Chu-toro and O-toro, or Medium Fatty Tuna and Fatty Tuna, are served together. Both are very good, without any tendon and chewiness, and the burst of fish oil on the bite is a great experience that makes people around the world crave for this. Coming towards the end, I am surprised to see there is a last sake to pair. The Daiginjo from Isojiman has a floral note, with a clean and clear taste, which helps to remove the flavours in the mouth to a good effect. We have made the request to add caviar ($288 supplement) to the Uni Maki, or Sea Urchin Handroll. After checking with us on the amount of rice needed, the chef has scooped in a generous portion of the expensive caviar, and an abundance of the nice sea urchin, to make the handroll. If you worry about still being hungry because of the small amount of shari on each sushi, finishing this maki will most likely make you full. The Tamago, or Egg, wraps it up, with a fluffy interior and a deep-coloured, firmer surface. The rich umami flavours are fantastic, apparently coming from the great broth mixed with the egg. It is so good that I am tempted to request the chef to give me another piece.The Miso Soup has a large clam, and the hot soup has a comforting effect to the stomach, also not overly salty. The dessert includes a Homemade Daifuku, a round mochi wrapping a Kyoho Grape, as well as Matcha Chocolate. Both are very good, and I can tell the chef has paid a great deal of attention on this, while many would simply take the easy way of offering fruit in my experience. These can be sold on its own in a Japanese confectionary shop to illustrate how good they are.The service is good, but ideally I want to understand more the ingredients and the food for even better enjoyment. I guess if the chef may not be exactly very comfortable doing that using English, the waitress perhaps can support more in that respect. The bill is $6,204 and frankly is a bit on the high end, but to see how Chef Kimijima continues to uphold some of the traditional elements in his cuisine has a value on its own.…查看更多
Though more and more omakase restaurants open in town, many are just mediocre but I’m glad this place is an exception. We came here for dinner on a friend’s birthday. Their omakase dinner is at $1888/person including 3 starters, 11 nigiris, maki, soup and dessert. Only down thing is that I wish they serve more sashimi. But overall the quality was good and decent which is more important..Starters:🥂Hotaru Ika 螢光魷魚🥂Iwate Oyster 岩手縣生蠔🥂Steamed Abalone with liver sauce and wasabi.Nigiris:🥂Karei 左口魚 Forgot to take a proper picture of the first nigiri. The chef added lemon juice, yuzu and rock salt to balance the sourness and saltiness that brought out the flavour of the fish even more..🥂Kimedai 金目鯛I’d prefer having it without the plum sauce on top, as it made it too sour and salty.🥂Hotategai 帆立貝Added some takesumi-jio to elevate the flavour, it’s very sweet and fresh.🥂Akamutsu 赤睦魚A very fatty fish with a nice progression of flavours and paired well with the peppercorns on top.🥂Silver Cod Fish 銀雪魚Silver cod fish is often served in teppanyaki instead of omakase. Topped with the stem of wasabi, the mild wasabi flavour infused into the entire fish and gave a prolonged aftertaste.🥂Akami 赤身Perilla leaves usually taste very strong but this intensified both the aromas and flavours. 🥂Chutoro 超拖羅This is always my favourite cut of the tuna fish. It’s fatty but not so oily with a well balanced flavour. 🥂Anago 穴子With a nice grilled smell, the skin was a bit crispy that gave a nice crunch but the fish texture was still very soft.🥂Otoro 大拖羅It’s not heavy at all as some lemon juice was added to make the otoro less fatty.🥂Buri 鰤魚腩The fish is delicate and complimented by the shichimi and the radish puree on top.🥂Botan Shrimp 牡丹蝦Such a bomb of flavours after adding the shrimp roe paste from its head that enhanced the sweetness even more.🥂Hokkaido Bafun Uni🥂Truffle Rice with UniNothing is complete without uni. Creamy, rich and buttery as expected, I’m glad I could enjoy this for two dishes.🥂Seafood SoupA rich seafood soup to warm our stomach. The clam was big and not rubbery..🥂Melons and Homemade Matcha ChocolateAs we celebrated my friend’s birthday, the chef prepared a candle for that. It was a sweet gesture that the staff was very helpful on helping us to take pictures..Overall the quality was decent but I’d expect more uniqueness of ingredients. .Dinner Omakase: $1888/person.Overall rating: 8/10..…查看更多
This restaurant has been on my wishlist for a while, and my girlfriend had decided to book this restaurant for my birthday celebration.After knowing we'll be visiting, I immediately checked out the reviews, and saw the point about ensuring to arrive at exactly the booked time. Arriving too late will (understandably and very rightly so) be given an attitude by the staffs, but knowing that arriving too early (10 mins + before booking time) will also cause you to receive the same treatment, was a bit surprising. Either way, this didn't bother me as I'm usually a punctual person. The reviews I've read should have been a good warning to the service we'd be receiving, which in hindsight was an obvious signal. Anyway, we arrived exactly on time and was seated without much trouble by middle aged woman, who seemed quite sincere at first. We were offered an electronic menu to review the menu, which included 2 omakase menu's, and the drinks menu. We opted for the more expensive omakase "Matsu" plan. When asked if we would like to have any drinks, we politely said we'll have tea for now and will choose our beverage later. This was the turning point of our experience. It felt that because we decided not to order a beverage (at the time), we were treated differently to other customers.The most obvious sign was when other customers were given paper mask holders, we enquired if we could both get some as well, the middle aged woman did apologise for not providing any to us, but gave us transparent plastic wallets, which I didn't actually think were mask holders as we had to fold our masks to fit them in. This immediately affected our experience as the change of the middle aged woman's attitude was very sudden. Despite this, the younger waitress continued with great service, and the omakase chefs were experienced and professional.In the middle of the meal, we decided to finally order our beverage, a half bottle of sake and a plum wine liquor. Only when drinks were ordered, did the attitude of the middle aged woman start to become more acceptable.Food quality was very decent and fresh. However for the price of the Matsu menu (HKD1488 / person), I was a bit disappointed with the varieties we had. I had expected more varieties and portion to the overall menu.To round off the experience, since there was a birthday request, our dessert had a candle and the chef offered to help us take a photo. The dessert was no different to the other customers' desserts.The decoration and atmosphere of the dining is quite well arranged.In summary, the food was good, but not worth the price. For the same price, I've had better variety and quality omakase. The service is very dependent and subjective on the waitress which was a big turn-off for me. Mainly because of the service, one visit was sufficient and there probably will not be a second. …查看更多
一年一度平安夜,朋友早早預訂左omakase 帶我去食。聽佢講呢度好難book,而且要俾full deposit 架!入到去店鋪唔係好大,但俾人簡潔乾淨既感覺,位置只有10個Bar 枱位。聖誕特別套餐有$1888同$2488兩款,我地食既係$2488 set🤶🎅 我地食既set 由餐飯老闆君島先生為我地製作😊😊😊一片期待中,師傅就開始整啦!👏🏻 樣樣都好好好好食,以下我會重點寫下我覺得特別好味既😋😋😋😋🔸Truffle Rice (トリュフライス)▪️第一道菜就用白松露打開我地既味蕾❤️佢之後嘅菜式極之期待🔸Seared Kinki (きんきの炙り)🔸Japanese Oyster with Caviar and Japanese Lobster (日本牡蠣と伊勢海老)▪️隻蠔好大隻,龍蝦刺身極之新鮮👍🏻👍🏻🔸Three Kinds of Sea Urchin (雲丹3種盛り合わせ) ▪️呢個係其中一道兩個set 有分別既菜式,我只能話絕對值得比!3款海膽先食中間點鹽既,哇一擺落口,海膽嘅鮮甜係口中散發開嚟,海鹽增添左佢嘅甜味❤️❤️另外兩款海膽都好好味!🔸Steamed Abalone (鮑)▪️大大個蒸鮑魚,配埋鮑魚肝醬同Wasabi食👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻超級正呀🥰🥰然後就到一系列既壽司啦,當中赤背, 獅魚同中拖羅我就覺得特別好食👍🏻👍🏻🔸Sushi(鮨) Flounder (平目)🔸Filefish (カワハギ) Blackthroat 🔸Seaperch(赤睦)🔸Anago (穴子) 🔸Kuruma Prawn (車海老)🔸Akagai (赤貝)🔸Buri (鰤) 🔸Lean Tuna (赤身) 🔸Chutoro(中トロ) 🔸Otoro(大トロ)🔸Maki(手巻)Sea Urchin & Caviar Hand Roll (雲丹とキャビアの手巻き)▪️好味,師傅包既時候會問你需要既飯量,海膽加埋魚子醬,果種鮮味真係難以形容🔸Soup (汁) Ise Ebi Lobster Miso Soup (伊勢海老汁)🔸Dessert (デザート)甜品有栗子羊羹同埋抹茶蛋捲😍😍點解甜品都可以咁好味😆😆個栗子羊羹係我食過最好味既👍🏻👍🏻 食完已經心掛掛好想再去第二次😋😋😋大師傅同師傅仔都非常健談,不時都會同我哋傾吓計,着住和服嘅侍應們招呼亦非常周到👍🏻👍🏻成餐飯都食得好開心⭐️⭐️…查看更多
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yap123
Chef should commit hara-kiri, shamelessly serving stale ingredients that even much lesser restaurants would have discarded. Hand rolls made with wet nori sheets is most unbecoming of a sushi chef of any standing. Hurrying customers by serving courses
Came here a few months after our first visit and our meal was as sublime as ever. We sat in front of Araki-san this time and he was extremely thoughtful and amusing, adding to our great experience. The seasonal starters were very unique and seasonal including the monkfish liver, which is one of our favourites. Each piece of nigiri was also delicately seasoned, sliced so that the texture was just right, with each piece of sushi being perfectly balanced and the succession of flavours complementing beautifully. …查看更多