Ryokou
Restaurant · Atlanta ·
Omakase tasting menu with creative Japanese dishes and sake pairings
Omakase tasting menu with creative Japanese dishes and sake pairings
"In Adair Park, the all-black bathroom reads as one of the city’s most luxurious experiences: a candlelit room with a heated toilet seat, a beautiful marble sink, matching black toilet paper, and neatly rolled black hand towels—a serene counterpoint to the equally gorgeous dining room." - Lia Picard
"Hidden in Adair Park, this omakase won me over because the meal includes a pasta course: a mushroom capellini with miso and shaved black truffles. The pasta is a nod to Itameshi cuisine and chef Leonard Yu’s Italian restaurant beginnings. Be sure to get the sake pairing — the Kanbara Ancient Treasure is a 12-year-old aged sake with beautiful notes of dark honey, nuts, figs, and toasted sesame oil." - Henna Bakshi
"A hidden gem in Adair Park, this new, casual iteration of omakase is packed with pasta and rare sake pairings, and the experience begins the moment you step through an industrial building’s candlelit black hallway into a cozy, stylish room with dim lights, an exposed-brick wall dotted with ceramic gold-and-white koi, glittery gold placemats, and a warm team behind a 10-seat counter—Gutting already slicing and scorching eel for the first preparation. Midway through, chef Paul Gutting plates a showstopping mushroom capellini with miso and shaved Australian winter black truffles—a couple of rich, delicate mouthfuls that nod to chef-owner Leonard Yu’s early Italian training and Japan’s Itameshi love affair; the woman beside me was brought to tears on the first bite. The two-hour, eight-course omakase ($205) moves through Japan: a “zen garden” opener of grilled eel, horsehair crab, tuna, corn, and scallops; soy-marinated akami zuke tuna nigiri that’s equal parts velvet and salt; refreshing somen in broth with shrimp, clams, and a tiny ice plant that packs a salty punch, the broth diluted with ice flown in from Japan for its mineral content (Yu promises it changes the flavor, though I’d argue Georgia ice might be good enough for us Georgia folk); plus grilled fish and A5 wagyu strip loin. Pacing is punctual without rush, and service on both sides of the counter is flawless, anticipating needs and offering friendly insight. Get the sake pairing: beverage manager TC McNeill matches courses with beautiful junmai daiginjos and koshu—Born “Gold” Muroka Junmai Daiginjo with the opener; Boken “Ringo” Junmai with vibrant green-apple notes for the icy somen; Amabuki “Pink Lady” Gin No Kurenai, made with ancient black rice that pours a gorgeous purple, for the nigiri; and, with a light panna cotta and strawberries, the pièce de résistance, Kanbara “Ancient Treasure” Junmai Genshu Koshu, a 12-year-aged sweet sake layered with dark honey, nuts, figs, and a toasted sesame oil finish so right you could practically pour it over dessert. Even the bathroom wows—heated toilet seat, marble sink, matching black toilet paper, candlelight, and rolled hand towels—and thoughtful touches like quiet chair scoots and preemptive glass clears make this an express, high-level omakase worth seeking out." - Henna Bakshi
"The Adair Park neighborhood is getting a glow-up with new businesses opening in the area in recent weeks. Ryokou is one of them — an omakase restaurant by chef Leonard Yu of Michelin-starred Omakase Table. Ryokou has a tasting menu of eight courses for $195 a person. The small plates include dishes like Aomori gai (a sampling of the best seafood from the city of Aomori in Japan), awabi kimo (steamed, thinly sliced abalone over a rice and abalone liver mixture), nigiri, and smoked wagyu. Wine and sake pairings are also available for an additional fee. Reservations required." - Henna Bakshi
"This new spot in Adair Park (from the team behind Omakase Table in West Midtown) focuses on a modern kappo experience." - juli horsford, jacinta howard