Umi - Review - Buckhead - Atlanta - The Infatuation

"This sleek and stylish Buckhead sushi hotspot has been around for nearly a decade but still keeps a rotating cast of celebrity appearances like The Tonight Show. And if the duck leg confit is good enough for Reese Witherspoon, it’s good enough for us. While celebs pack the place, the sushi is what’s packing our plates. The non-traditional options like the damn-near-perfect surf and turf roll with wagyu beef and the juicy foie gras roll are the top contenders. With chic decor (including a series of hanging wire golden orbs that could be an installation piece at the High) that matches the A-list food and crowd, Umi holds true as a top sushi staple in the city. RESERVE A TABLE WITH RESERVE A TABLE Food Rundown Tuna Carpaccio These slices of bluefin tuna, onion, and avocado are so thin they’ll really test your fine motor skills. But battle through this difficulty because the reward is a gloriously fresh and tangy bite that solidifies this as one of their best appetizers. Yellowtail Jalapeño There’s an order of this appetizer on every table, and you should put one on yours, too. The thin slices of mild yellowtail are glitzed up with a slice of spicy jalapeño pepper, cilantro, and a slightly salty ponzu sauce. Spicy Tuna Crispy Rice If you can only get one app, this is the one. These small, crispy rice rectangles are more filling and pack a big punch with a fresh, flavorful tuna tartare on top. Agedashi Tofu We would love this dish if the tofu cubes were a little smaller so that the crisp, salty exterior would be in every bite. Black Cod Misoyaki We strongly suspect we’d love almost any food if it was prepared using the misoyaki technique, but it works perfectly with the flaky cod that doesn’t even need to be chewed. It’s buttery and has a sweet glazed exterior that we’ll be trying to replicate in our own kitchen for months. Lobster Toban-Yaki We hope you like your lobster perfect. With this dish, a miniature, sizzling grill placed on your table cooks bite-sized chunks of lobster with a brown butter sauce. Kamikaze Roll Tuna, rice, and a dab of hot sauce all add up to make one of our favorite rolls. Surf & Turf Roll Yeah, there’s very good shrimp tempura with zesty yuzukosho sauce on the plate. But the star is the perfectly seared strips of wagyu on top. photo credit: Angie Mosier photo credit: Douglas Stratton photo credit: Angie Mosier Pause Unmute" - Juli Horsford