Ukiyo Omakase

A fantastic experience all around. Great food and service. TL;DR, 4.25/5 - food is really excellent, but I think it was pretty expensive for not leaving full. Include the service charge in the base $175/person price and we will be talking. The quality is absolutely there I think this is a significantly better use of your money than going over going to somewhere like Uchi or Sushi Den. This is of course a pretty expensive meal and the service charge of 22% is mandatory up front. So it’s somewhere around $230 per person all in, not $175. Cocktails are also not included, so be prepared to spend north of $250 per person if you want one. I think the cost here is actually fair. It isn’t a bargain. It isn’t disgustingly overpriced (unless I am comparing this price to overseas prices, but that is unfair in my opinion here). The food was great. It’s definitely on the line of Japanese-world fusion so there are a lot of really interesting flavors here with a baseline of Japanese presentation. You get ~15 small dishes throughout the dinning experience and it takes roughly 2-2.5 hours. I did not leave full. Maybe that doesn’t matter to you as this is more of an experience, but to me, that’s partially what keeps it from being a full 5/5 I loved the small, intimate space reminiscent of so many Japanese eateries and bars I’ve been to over there. The chefs were excellent and provided a comfortable space and social experience which really elevated everything.

Amazing experience. The service is top notch. I’ve been there twice and the next time I’ll definitely do the Sake pairing. I’d highly recommend this place for a special anniversary, birthday, etc. Every course was phenomenal. They’re experimental and doing such a fantastic job across the board! I will be back!

Amazing intimate experience. Truly a work of art. Don’t expect a wild amount of sushi however. This is the culmination of varying cultures and cuisines that goes beyond sushi. A gastronomic experience rather than true Japanese omakase sushi. Was definitely not disappointed in anything. It was all immaculate— the service, cleanliness, fun of it. You’re treated with a welcome drink (alcoholic or not) and taken downstairs into the seating area where you will be joined by 11 others. The drink pairing was so unique too! My husband and I went here for my 30th birthday celebration(so did everyone else that night :)) plus the chef and his sous are just fun to banter with too.

Very interesting Laotian and global twist on Japanese omakase. I think this could be a front runner for the next time Michelin guide visits Denver. Overall a very pleasant experience with wonderful dishes and excellent service. A few of critiques for the team: Wine pairing was too slow. I was without drink for several courses and ordered a beer to fill the gaps. The second two tunas had a slight old-fishy taste. My wife felt the dish pacing was too fast but I did not. Otherwise, an excellent meal and experience and would be happy to return and try next season’s menu.

Amazing experience. Definitely pricey but not meant to be a regular occurrence. This is for the BIG special occasions. 20 course meal. Well presented. Jeremiah wasn't there so I missed having someone knowledgeable about the Japanese Scotches. Frederick tried.

This was a fantastic omakase experience from start to finish. If you’re expecting sushi, you’re in the wrong place. You can find that anywhere. This is an intimate gastronomique amongst 12 friends and Chef Paul in a secluded yet inviting atmosphere. This is the only Denver omakase that provides this level of food AND ambiance. The manhattan sake handed to us upon entering was excellent (and yes, you enter through the alley, big deal-if I judged and avoided restaurants by how pretty their front door was I would have passed up some of the best meals I’ve had-I would have been more disappointed if we had to enter through BAO). We greatly enjoyed all of the courses and appreciated each unique flourish that was inspired by Chef Paul’s travels and experiences. I opted for the sake pairing and was not disappointed. I was even surprised to find myself not only enjoying the gazpacho (as I never enjoy gazpacho) but it being one of the most memorable courses of the evening. My other favorite courses were the red snapper, the otoro, the roasted red beets, and the paella. The staff was very friendly and attentive. The drinks were very good, if you like gin we’d recommend the basan and the million dollar. We were very happy with the quality of the ingredients and how different each course was from the one before it. This 20 course journey exceeded our expectations, was a more than reasonable price point, and we would definitely recommend. My only critiques would be that the rice in the paella was a little overdone and a couple of the course presentations were a little rushed.

I have been twice now; once for the winter menu and again for summer. The people who don’t like it don’t understand the concept. This is Japanese *inspired* based on the chef’s travels and Laotian heritage. Do not come in expecting sushi; this is not Uchi. This is a true foodie experience and if you aren’t there to eat then you will not have a good time. Ukiyo is a one of a kind experience for all the senses and I can’t wait to try next season’s menu.

Wonderful food, service, atmosphere and experience! I loved that it was a small, intimate group setting where you get to see the chef in action. The food was a fun fusion of Japanese, Laos, Thai, Jamaican, and Italian to name a few. Cocktails were amazing and service was exceptional. I highly recommend!

This place is next level. The menu is wildly inventive, with every dish bringing something unexpected in the best way. The staff? Incredibly warm, attentive, and truly well-versed. Every detail was spot on--highly recommend!

As much of a cool experience this was, I do have to knock a star down just for my personal opinion on whether the price was worth it or not. Let's start with the positives. Definitely a very cool vibe!! The space is small and intimate, you certainly can chat with strangers in the same group if you're into that! I myself am more of an introvert, so my boyfriend and I kept to ourselves. Next, the service is great, as expected! They're attentive to your needs. We got a free small drink when we first arrived - they had an alcoholic and a non alcoholic option, which worked out great for me. At the end of the meal, they gave us another complimentary drink, because we were there celebrating my birthday! Very sweet. We also noticed that someone in the group had a dietary restriction, and they tried their best to accommodate her - which I can imagine is tricky when there is a set menu. Now for where I took off a star. I think it really just comes down to I wasn't as impressed as I thought I would be, given the long reservation list and pricing. I mean, it was definitely a cool experience and I enjoyed my meal. But I don't know that I found the food more mind blowing than other local sushi/asian spots. That's my only gripe - but definitely worth it if you're curious and want it for the exclusive feel of an experience!

Multi-course omakase that you don't want to miss! 12 seat chefs counter gets you up close and personal with all the courses. Tons of variety in dishes, and a a wide selection of sake and drinks. Very small and intimate. Absolutely loved this experience and highly recommend!

We made reservations months in advance for an elevated omakase experience in the heart of Denver. Parking is tough, but there's valet available for the other restaurants on Latimer Square (Ukiyo unfortunately does not validate though.) Through an entrance in an alley full of dumpsters, you emerge into an upscale intimate basement space and are warmly greeted with a welcome drink. The chef is from Laos, and the dishes are inspired by his travels all over the world, with strong Mediterranean influences, which were a fun fusion of flavors, as well as southeast Asian techniques and warm childhood memories. Highlights for me were the detailed presentation, creative dishes, incorporation of Lao condimentsn into nigiri, and flavor fusion of olives with chicken and later squid. My only note is that the cook of the sushi rice was a bit coarse for my preference, and the harder texture took away from the buttery experience of the otoro, but it worked really well with the chutoro, which was actually preferable in this context. The best part was watching the bone marrow preparation for the A5 waygu nigiri, and then tasting it! So rich and delicious. A flavor journey with thoughful interludes. The beverage program was also top notch! I was impressed with my tengu cocktail, which was strawberry gin, mizunara, and strawberry sake. The Hungarian dessert wine was also delightful. I would go back to try future menus, and they mentioned there are tuna nights coming up which sounds intriguing!

Got reservations like 2 months in advance. That's what you have to do if you want to eat here. I'm glad I did this once, but not sure I would do it again. It was mostly a great experience with really good food. Chef clearly understands what he's cooking, and he isn't just doing fancy things for no reason. Finding the place and entering had left much to be desired. Alley way with a bunch of dumpsters. Immediately I was thinking that this alone would eliminate a star from my experience. When we entered, everything was super nice. We were welcomed with option of adult or non-alcoholic cocktail. Both were very delicious and impressive. Their bartender is such an expert at mixing drinks and has a good knowledge of sake and japanese whiskey. We were seated in an intimate room that only seats about 10 people surrounding an area where the chefs are preparing each dish. The table settings were simple and nice. Waters are consistently refilled. First dish was a cucumber starter. A light, refreshing course that introduces you to the experience. A nice start. Next was chawanmushi. The cold temperature of the dish muted the flavors, even the ikura was hard to taste. The dashi sauce was tasty, and the most flavorful component. Wish it were served warmer. The wagyu was nice, I wonder how it would have been seared. The clear cracker was super fun, novel, and beautiful. The pouch wasn't the prettiest, but it didn't need to be. So mysterious and fun. The mushrooms inside were treated with butter and tarragon. Love mushrooms and there were 3 kinds. Don't remember what the mushrooms were, but at least 1 was enoki, and none were button. Oysters were clean and nice, one with quail egg on top with japanese flavors, and the other with southeast Asian flavors. Cucumber roll with some sort of treated plum that added sweetness and tartness. Palate cleanser. Seaweed was quite chewy, in not a pleasant way. Hokkaido scallop barbecued with coal. Latin style sauce and foam on top. Honestly, I did not like this because I felt like the scallop was a little ruined. I usually eat these scallops raw or lightly seared, and it's so much better. This one lacked the creamy texture that I love, and the flavor was just sort of smokey. Hirame with latin-style sauce and dried chili threads. Delicious dish, but I got a pin bone in my piece. Quite disappointing, but I looked past it. It happens, but when you pay this much for a meal, it shouldn't happen. Tuna nigiri, featuring akami, chutoro, and otoro. Fish was not highest quality. It was high quality, but not highest. Again, for the price of the meal, I was not impressed. Toppings were fun and original. Negihama handroll was done well. Pure comfort and delicious. Escolar was smoked with mesquite and very tasting with pea tendrils and other ingredients that made it a composed bite with complex flavors and textures. One of the highlights. Yuzu sherbert was simple, and perfect way to transition the tasting to another theme. Jamaican jerk chicken with scotch bonnet glaze was perfection. Juicy chicken, perfect seasoning, and you can taste the allspice and scotch bonnet. One of the best dishes of the night. Tom kha with lobster and truffle ravioli. Didn't care for the truffle ravioli, but the Tom kha and lobster was THE best thing I had of the night. Am I still at an omakase at a placed called ukiyo? It's delicious nonetheless. Lao new years basket was fun and tasty. An homage to chef's heritage. Tasty for sure. Dessert was perfect way to round out the experience. Who doesn't love cotton candy? The chocolate pretzel was basic and delicious. The matching tiramisu was on another level. Substantial, perfect amount of matcha flavor, luscious, and just darn good overall. The highlights were very high. The lows were still decent. I would say this was like 50% japanese omakase and 50% really well done global cuisine tasting. For sure worth trying at least once. The people working there were the best kind of people.

This is our second time visiting Ukiyo. The first time we loved every second of it. The chef and staff were very engaged, the dishes were fantastic, and the matcha tiramisu was to die for. The second time recently was lackluster and several of the dishes seemed rushed or as if they weren't planned well. They're changing the menu next year and we hope it's just as good as the first one!

The chef and hostess were both amazing, the food was delicious, but the bartender came off a bit snooty. However, when I'm spending 300+ for dinner then I am going to enjoy myself. I will chat and laugh with my friends and the other diners and if the bartender has that much of an issue with that then he might want to rethink his professional line of work. Perhaps he's just not a people person, but by far of all the high end whiskey bars we've been too he was the most haughty bartender I have ever experienced. He was knowledgeable and I would still return despite his attitude.

A new Omakasa place in Denver, Colorado! The staff is so friendly and so nice. They are very welcoming Service is just wonderful. The chef created an 18 course Omakasa meal, including appetizers, entrées, and a dessert. Each dish has been carefully thought out and provided a unique experience. The chef stated that it took a year for him to create the menu. A new menu will be out in July so it's not a one stop shop. The food is so delicious and the ingredients are very fresh and everything just melts in your mouth! It's a must try if you're looking for new dishes to try in Denver. You have to book in advance because it's only a 12 seater restaurant and they have two times each night. Reserve online on their website. The ambience is very clean and chic Japanese style. They have a variety of Japanese alcohol to pair with each meal. Huge plus is there is a bidet in the bathroom - if you're there you must check out the bathroom hahah It's downstairs the bao brewhouse restaurant .

First of all, the food was absolutely amazing. Some of the best bites I've had. The progression of tuna nigiri was remarkable. The chefs and bar tenders were knowledgeable and fantastic with explaining everything. Such a memorable and amazing dinner!

Hate to give this a 4 star because the experience, food, and people were amazing but have to be realistic when paying this price. Lots of flavors you have never experienced. The hostess, bar server, and chefs were all amazing and knowledgeable. I will post some of my favorite courses, which again were AMAZING. #1 knock is when you walk in Bao Brewhouse is very loud which was a shock. I think putting a door or some type of barrier would be awesome. #2 would just be the alcohol pricing is way over the top. I have drank a good amount of quality sake from bottles for $40-80 at quality places. Here you will be paying $120-$220 and $35-50 for a 5oz pour of the good options. Having a slightly wider range of pricing would be another big upgrade. #3 would be the third nigiri piece was very fishy and didn't taste fresh like every other course. Again amazing experience and I think the food is definitely worth it but I would drink up more before next time!

An amazing night. This isn't just a tasting menu this is an experience. A very personalized omakase experience treating you with favors from all over the world. My favorite was the Caribbean jerk and the tuna sashimi trio. The bonsai tree dessert was amazing as well. Every dish is curated in front of you adding to the experience.

This place opened in April and there was so much hype about it. They only do two dinner times a night, for I believe 5 nights a week with only 12 guests. Getting a Reservation here seemed impossible, but when I was finally able to book one- I had to book two months in advance. When the night finally came I completely spaced on it. So first of the entry way seems a little sketch and kinda hard to find- it's in the ally behind Bao Brewhouse. It's basically the basement of the Bao House. But once you find the black door, you know your at the right place. You are greeted by the host, Vanessa with either a non alcoholic drink or a manhattan sake, which was smooth and light. When we went downstairs to our seats, we were surprised with how cute and intimate the place was. The service was amazing! They were on top of our drinks and clearing our plates. The bartender, Jeremiah was attentive and really wanted to make sure I enjoyed my drink! The chef, Paul is Laos- a lot of the entrees was Laotian inspired infused dishes. They were amazing at explaining everything and giving some history on what inspired the dish. When we first started I was taken back because I thought it was suppose to be omakase sushi but it was a nice 20 course meal to have both hot, cold and raw dishes. I do wish that they had the menu written down for us to refer back to A good variety. But the sushi is probably my favorite bites. Everything was delicious, it either melted in your mouth or was just the perfect bite. The soup wasn't for me- something about a cold soup and not knowing exactly what I was biting into threw me off. My least favorite dishes was the fish, because it was overpowered by fish sauce, the paella with the black ink squid seemed more like a stuffing. The calamari in the paella was too salty. I do like that they change the menu with the season. This was a great experience but it was not worth the price in my opinion- too high.

Went and had a good time. I believe the price is fair, which seems to be issue in many reviews. The atmosphere, interaction and team were all great, my only reason for four stars and not five is the food was not as good as the rest of the experience. In my opinion, at an omakase dinner, the food should lead the way and everything else after that. Food 3.5 everything else 5

We had an amazing meal for my husbands birthday at Ukiyo. The space is intimate and beautiful. The food & drinks were all exceptional. Each course better than the next. The standout for me was the Wagyu A5 roll with bone marrow. We will be back!

This is more than a meal, it's an entire experience and it is so so worth the money. The space is hard to find from the alley, but once you're inside you are greeted by the host who offers wine before escorting you to your seat. The space only seats 12 and everyone sits at the bar. The serving experience is unique; the chef and his assistants prep the food in a cafeteria style manner and there is almost no downtime between courses. To serve 18 courses in 2 hours requires planning and they have it down to a science. It's expensive yes, but it is also ALOT of food! You will be stuffed after this much food! The food itself is also unique and not found anywhere else. I love that the chef had a personal connection to each course and shared so much of his life and experiences with us while we ate. 10/10 experience, can't wait to come back!!

Ukiyo Omakase is tucked away in an alley. It's a little hidden spot but holy hell the Omakase experience here is top-notch and ridiculously good. No menu, they already have all the courses planned out and it's quite the variety. The chef's attention to detail shows in every dish. They served some of the most unique dishes I've ever tasted. Genuine hospitality from the entire staff. The chef took time to chat with and was super personable just adding to the experience. For a genuine unique Omakase experience unlike one you've had before, this is definitely the spot. Its literally a hidden gem worth discovering. Five stars! We will be back soon.

Took my wife here to celebrate her 25th birthday. Such a special dining experience. One of the few 5/5 meals I can report the pleasure of being part of. Absolutely worth the price of admission. The air of exclusivity (they only seat 12 per meal) adds to the ambiance - it wasn't being noise polluted by hundreds of other patrons, the music was nice, and the staff were extremely knowledgable, friendly, and hospitable. We were treated to an 18 course meal, and every single item on their ever-evolving menu was a memorable one. Each course paired and contrasted well with the rest. The menu was timed and delivered in a narrative fashion - there was a cadence, and intentionality behind everything they did. From the complimentary drink upon entering, and descending into the hidden room, to the A5 wagyu plus A5 toro dish, that I'm still daydreaming about. Chef Jose was especially wonderful - we struck up a conversation about Ratatouille, and have become friends outside the kitchen. Cannot wait to return!

Ok, I'll first start by saying that this isn't the first place I've been to that styles itself with this sort of service. I'm comparing it to Sushi by Scratch in LA. While it's a tough act to follow, there is a strong basis for comparison. The meal started off well enough. There are a few courses before you begin the nigiri bites. The nigiri bites were good but not very creative or unique fish selections. The main fish course was ok. The final course before desert was a crispy rice dish with tube calamari and olives that was honestly just not good at all. Perhaps, their patrons are simply too polite to be honest with them about this. At this point in the meal, we paid and left rather than stay for desert. It was easier to pretend we had to leave suddenly than explain why we didn't like the food. I'm sorry and I understand that reviews such as this aren't great but it's an honest review. If it causes a course correction, then great. I wouldn't bother going back personally though.

Food was amazing, the staff was attentive and super nice. Full experience was top notch! I will be back with friends

Chef Paul has really brought the beginning of something new to Denver. As a CO native, our food scene has always been sad, but places like this give me hope! Presentation was top notch, 18 courses at a perfect pacing, service was almost Michelin star. Cozy place and even the bathroom was impressive. Menu is heavily seafood reliant, a bold choice for a landlocked state, but you can taste all the work and creativity put into this food. I know this place will be a hot ticket for years to come :)