Itamae AO
Japanese restaurant · Miami
3225 NE 1st Ave, Miami, FL 33137
Highlights
Nikkei fusion cuisine with unique ceviches and tiraditos
Nikkei fusion cuisine with unique ceviches and tiraditos
"Itamae AO is technically an omakase. But don’t come here expecting a traditional sushi omakase. The Nikkei dishes on Itamae AO’s eight-course tasting menu are entirely unique (and not sushi). They pull at your cheeks and amygdala with tangy leche de tigres made with things like habanero, jackfruit, or ash. Slivers of squid are coiled into springs, spiny lobster is minced into tartare, and octopus terrine envelopes an olive and anchovy tapenade. If you remember the previous iteration of Itamae in the Design District, consider this an evolution. The terrazzo counter is still present, but it’s now the stage for the most unique tasting menu in Miami right now." - ryan pfeffer, virginia otazo, mariana trabanino
"A Miami restaurant whose chef won the James Beard Award for Best Chef in the southern region; the chef, a Peruvian American of Chinese descent, used the moment to reflect on finding identity in kitchens and the collaborative, multicultural nature of restaurant work." - ByPervaiz Shallwani
"A tasting-menu–centric Nikkei concept operating as a restaurant-within-a-restaurant in Miami; its chef Nando Chang won the James Beard Award for Best Chef: South and used his acceptance speech to celebrate immigrant contributions to American cuisine, underscoring both the kitchen's refined tasting-menu focus and its cultural significance." - Missy Frederick
"Itamae AO isn’t your standard omakase. Of the entire eight-course meal, only one nigiri appears. The rest are Nikkei-influenced dishes featuring sea creatures like kanpachi, swordfish, and razor clams—all paired with punchy flavors that tickle the tip of your nose while your ears vibrate from Tyler, The Creator basslines. Even though the flavors are inspired by Peruvian cuisine, you won’t find these dishes anywhere in Lima. You won’t find them in New York or Chicago either. Their leche de tigres are made with local produce like jackfruit. And the peerless flavors on display have evolved in Miami, from a small stand in a food hall to the Itamae AO of today." - virginia otazo, ryan pfeffer
"Miami has plenty of tasting menus and omakase options, but Itamae AO (which shares a space with its sister restaurant Maty’s) is unlike any of them. Most of the eight courses look something like this: a delicate piece of seafood is accentuated by a sauce or leche de tigre that consists of several words you didn’t see coming. The highlights of the meal are usually some sort of riff on a tiradito that might be spicy, tart, and sweet all at once. We’ve only come close to experiencing food like this at the previous version of Itamae, a Design District restaurant that set Miami’s standard of ceviche unrealistically high. The reasons to visit this version of Itamae are mostly the same: because no one else makes food like this." - mariana trabanino, ryan pfeffer, virginia otazo
