Umami

Great, little spot for dinner. It is a small, crowded restaurant but the food was delicious and decently priced for what we had. You definitely need to have a reservation to get in, but everything was worth it

Love this place. Such a great spot. Very small and only a couple tables I recommend making a reservation. They have a cool room with two tables sunk down into the ground so you sit in like a hole. If you go here in the summer it is super hot inside. The food is good and very authentic. Pairs great with some sake.

This place is da bomb/best!! This place is on 3rd floor. I don't see an elevator. The place is kinda dark.

Umami is a vibe! The artwork, music, and service come together to create an incredible atmosphere. I’ve been there twice for dinner and absolutely loved the takoyaki (fried octopus balls, they were perfectly cooked. The gyudon (beef rice bowl) was just okay, but the rayu cucumbers were delightful and had the perfect crunch! It’s a great spot for a date night, especially with their shareable plates. You should definitely make a reservation before going!

Our favorite restaurant in Pittsburgh! We come here for every special occasion. I always get the gyudon and it's always delicious Pictured is the tnt maki, takoyaki, and a seasonal drink. Our server Emily is great! Always a wonderful experience.

My husband and I went here a couple of weeks ago for dinner and it was amazing! The drinks, food and service was great! Our waitress was very attentive and ended up giving us a free shot of sake at the end of our dinner. Will definitely be going back!

When my friend invited me to a Japanese restaurant, I never expected to find myself in a place with such an atmosphere. Yes, and thanks to the DJ for the playlist he played. If you want to visit a quiet and peaceful place, this is not about that =) A wonderful combination of style and rhythmic music. I can't say anything special about the kitchen. I wasn't surprised, but I didn't go hungry either. Pleasant and helpful staff.

The appetizers came out very obviously microwaved: the pieces of karaage and takoyaki were randomly scalding hot. Nigiri plates only had 6 pieces of sushi but somehow took an hour to come out. It seemed like a well known problem since the waiter warned us that the service for nigiri is incredibly slow. The nigiri was not prepared properly so it was falling apart. The fish was mediocre quality at best. At this price point, I expected at least average service and to not have to wait an hour for 6 pieces of subpar sushi. Even at a much lower price point, this level of service and food is unacceptable. I don't ever leave reviews, but that might have been the worst dining experience I've had in a while. There are good sushi places in Pittsburgh. This place is definitely not one of them.

Super neat experience. The sushi/sashimi options are fresh as heck, and the daily specials are unique and worth the adventure. The ramen and the yaki udon were wonderful staples as a safe bet if you don't know what else to get. Kind of small restaurant, but sitting at the kitchen bar is a super enjoyable experience in my opinion-- kind staff was mindful of a sesame allergy, attentive to detail as well. So worth the stop in such a unique place.

HIDDEN gem in Lawrenceville, serving fresh sushi and Japanese inspired cuisine. but literally, this place is so difficult to find. It is on the corner of the street, on the second or third floor of the building, with no visible signage or directions. The restaurant sign is not in English. Inside, the accessibility is a challenge and all the tables are high tops. Once you find the restaurant, it is lively, decorated well and has an open kitchen concept! They really transport you to a Japanese style Izakaya with bright red lanterns lining the side of the walls and colorful artwork. The food is expensive!! And the quality is great. I ordered raw salmon, fatty tuna and sea bream! I was disappointed to find fish scales in my sashimi, given the high ratings and price of the food. You can order sushi by the piece, sashimi or hand roll! There are fun bbq skewers to order, hot apps, noodles and rice bowls too! The service was okay! Loud, bustling environment. Could not hear the waitress at times, esp when she was explaining the specials. Food took a hot minute to come out. Parking is difficult on a narrow street. Willing to come back for the vibes!! tldr food 3.75/5 service 4/4 ambiance 4/5

I've been back to this place several times since my initial review, and I am sad to say that it's been a slow decline. Each time, the service, food, and experience have been a little less great and at this point, its a mediocre experience at best. I went with a group of friends, most of which had dined there before. We were all unimpressed. We were seated promptly in the hole in the floor. This room seemed a little dingy honestly, and the table in the hole was sized far too small for the concept and our group of 6. It was a constant shuffle to make room for plates and we all felt too far away. Word to the wise as well - this table is not bolted to the floor, so don't lean on it getting up or down unless you want to be wearing all of its contents. Our service was lacking pretty much all the way around. He seemed, shall we say...disconnected. There wasn't any rhyme or reason to how the food and drinks came out and he definitely served food that was clearly not cooked right (burnt and bitter gyoza and a practically raw bacon skewer). Again, none of us were really that impressed. The sashimi was ok, but nothing to return for.

This is our second time coming here. I love the sake they have(rice aroma. Is soooo good). The grilled whole fish is very delicious, and it is our must-order every time. We also enjoyed the environment, such a neat place to enjoy the Friday evening. The restaurant is pretty packed but it did not take long for our orders to come. Will come back again.

We had a fantastic dinner and it was more than I had hoped! We tired something off each section of the menu except the sushi! We had to leave something to come back for. The udon was one of the best things I've ever tasted!

One of my favorite restaurants in Pittsburgh! Been here several times and have left very full and happy every single time. Ambiance (especially at night, when they turn the red lights on) makes it feel like a trendy Japanese bar, and they always play great music. Service is exceptional -- servers are always very friendly and knowledgeable about the menu. They change up the menu pretty often to honor what's seasonal, so it's never a bad time to go back. My go-tos are any of the skewers and handrolls. The skewers are a must try -- the meat is always very flavorful and juicy. Their sushi is always fresh. Their cocktails are also fantastic (the ones I've tried are on the sweeter side, which is ideal for me because I love my drinks sweeter) and have very unique Japanese-inspired flavors. Definitely recommend making a reservation for this place because it gets really packed!

I'm not very familiar with Japanese cuisine, so I came here with the hopes of stepping out of my comfort zone- and I did! We started with the pork belly robatayaki, which was yummy. I really enjoyed the meat but I'm not used to just getting a skewer of meat with nothing else to balance flavors. I'd still get it again though. We also had the takoyaki, which are fried balls with octopus in the center. Those were fantastic! I would definitely recommend trying those. Finally, for my meal, I ordered the Tonkotsu Ramen. This was jam-packed with flavor. They also had two special rolls the last time I went with chu-toro, spicy salmon, and jalapeño. They were actually insane. This restaurant really knows it's sashimi and nigiri. I love the hamachi hand roll and nigiri as well which easily rivals any in the city.

This place is worth the hype!! We tried to go and the wait was long so we made reservations for the next weekend and it was phenomenal. The vibe and environment was super fun kind of like a speakeasy restaurant bar. If you're a martini fan, The umami martini was YUM I loved it. All the food was so good we can't wait to go back. The skewers are a good app. Definitely try the chawanmushi as an app to share. The udon noodles were really tasty and a good portion too!!

Loved this place! The sushi is really fresh and so amazing. Ordering is pretty much a La carte (nigiri, sashimi, hand rolls). I tried the spicy scallop hand roll, yellowtail hand roll, salmon nigiri, and pork belly skewer. Everything was so delicious! The service was great and it the ambiance was nice inside! They had a dj playing. There was a also a small room where the tables are low to the ground and you sit on the floor (which is where we were seated) and it made for a great experience.

We went during our girl's weekend to Pittsburgh aka "the Paris of the Appalachia". Our server Phillip was delightful. Our favorites were the Hamachi Kama (yellow tuna "cheek" special), karaage (fried chicken), and okonomiyaki (savory pancake). Drinks were delicious. It felt like we were entering a speakeasy. There is not a sign that we could find. Memorable time!!!

Wanted to love Umami, but I'll settle for having liked it! Visited recently (my first time!) for a good friend's birthday with a group of six, and we were seated in the side room with two sunken wooden tables, with the seats being floor-level. This was very cool in theory, but in practice, it's not incredibly accessible and the tables are SO small. As a mid-to-plus-size woman, it's worth noting that I wasn't incredibly comfortable in that seating style - do with that information what you will, and that may not be a problem for all patrons. Our server was quick to take our drink and food orders within minutes of us being seated. With the size of the tables, food plates were whisked away at a pace that did not necessarily encourage a relaxed enjoyment of the meal. That being said - the food was really great! The prices are reasonable, and the flavors are really good. The biggest detractors to me were the pace set by the server and and certain meals being served before others, as well as the volume of the dining room once another party sat at the second sunken table. I think I'd like to return and sit at the bar, and I wonder if that might be a better overall experience. Hopefully I can try again in the future!

Savory, Fresh, Fun, and Delicious Japanese Dishes I like to come her during what is perhaps, the most authentically delicious happy hour in the city. If I'm having sushi, then it's yellow fin, along with any other types, and I've had enough sushi to tell how fresh it is or not. All of the sushi I've had at Umami sports freshness. The dumplings, skewers, and other apps always feel perfectly prepared, and hit the spot for a good snack. I'd recommend getting a reservation for anything in the evening, and definitely for dinner on the weekend, as they're usually packed on weekend evenings, very packed because the food is so good. One of the entertaining things about the restaurant is that the food is brought as it's made, which makes it fun to order a number of things. The sake selection is good, and they also have a full bar, so it's possible to get what I like, and to try new things. I suggest getting a bunch of things, but definitely the yellow fin and enjoy the low-lit New York-esque, cool part of East Village atmosphere that feel's like your in a very cool film where the main characters are doing everything right, to have an amazing night after superb food and cool vibes.

Best ambience in the city! Very good choices of food to pick from! You'll love it like I do!

Came in to Umami totally spur of the moment on a Saturday night with 3 friends. The hopes of getting a table looked grim until the host so kindly offered us an hour long time slot at a high top table. I sipped on the umeshu mezcal white negroni cocktail which consisted of the perfect blend of sake and mezcal. For my meal, I was tempted to order a bunch of different a la cart dishes, but felt super indecisive and ultimately settled on the shoyu ramen. Although brief, my overall dining experience was extremely satisfying.

My husband and I wen5here for dinner this weekend and we were blown away! It's a small restaurant with a nice sized bar and has a dark and hip Asian vibe. When we arrived, our table wasn't yet ready, but the host promptly took our cocktail order while we waited at the bar. We ended up eating at the sushi bar, which was fun to watch them make everything. We had a mezcal cucumber cocktail which was delicious. For dinner, we shared the pancake, beef and pork belly robatayaki, and Grand Chiriashi (which is an amazing selection of raw fish over rice). It was delicious. The service was fast and excellent. We will definitely come back. It was an all around fantastic experience!

Upon a recommendation from a bartender at another restaurant, we snagged a last minute reservation as my son wanted sushi. Everything was absolutely delicious. We ordered: - chicken karaage - tempura plate - perfectly battered, airy crisp - agedashi tofu - robatayaki: wagyu beef, chicken thigh, chicken skin - whole flying squid (must get) - sashimi plate - handrolls - otoro, madai, hamachi, hotate nigiri - gyudon- beef rice bowl - taiyaki- waffles with red bean and coconut ube (loved the tart yuzu curd) We'll be back!

Great service, great food, awesome staff. Ambiance is ok; they sat us in a dark corner with music so loud we couldn't hear or speak to one another (couldn't even hear the waitress) Young vibe, swanky and hip. Hard to get in so make a reservation in advance. Collegial crowd. Request sunken room for quiet space? Food makes up for short falls in accessibility.

Umami is hidden in a little corner and located upstairs. It has a nice ambiance with dim lighting and orange neon lights surrounding the windows and nice beats playing. The decor was also very nice. The place is very small but provides a variety of Japanese foods from sashimi and nigiri to roboyak and gyudon. I got the nigiri plate which came with 6 pieces. All the seafood in the nigiri plate was fresh, and the fish melted on my mouth. My only complaint is that they added a tamago nigiri, which only left us with only 5 pieces with fish/seafood on them. I also got some robatayaki, which all came with only one skewer. I got the prime strip steak, chicken skin, and king trumpet mushroom. The prime steak was a little more cooked than I liked, but it was still good and came with three cubes on a stick. The chicken skin came with two on one stick and was crispy. It went well with the the king trumpet mushroom, which came with four pieces on a stick. I also ordered a drink, the Creme on Chrome. The drink was okay, not too sweet and had a coconut taste. I tried the gyudon, which was pretty good. It had a lot of meat and an egg on top, and when mixed, it provided a creamy texture to the dish. The host was super nice, but our server forgot us halfway through. We also ordered two extra prime strop steak robatayaki, but it did not go through. Overall, I really like the ambiance of the restaurant, and I think it is one of my favorite restaurants in Pittsburgh.

So you'll have to excuse me, I don't remember the name of the dishes or drinks we tried but I enjoyed most of them while others were too salty etc (will hold harmless since I forget). I've been wanting to try here for years but always forget to reserve and you absolutely need to, space is so limited (and crammed in my opinion). It has a few floors to the place and has nice dim lighting and fun, casual atmosphere, I also love the decor! Please refer to my photos to speak for most of my review. I do want to note that their menu changes, including the drinks, so the drinks I seen on here ahead of time were long gone such as the pop rocks one etc. It is a lively place and sorta mid-age crowd which is cool. I do feel some of the items are overpriced and not met for their worth while others are. It is costly but worth a visit for special occasions. As far as "authentic" I feel maybe close as you'll get to what I had in Japan, in the area anyway, but I wouldn't say perfect. I think it's a nice place but the hype/return isn't matching entirely to what I expected.

Attentive staff, live DJ, great food. Walked in and it was bit warm on a spring evening, but temperature quickly changed to cooler/more comfortable. Noise increases as more people filtered in on a Thursday night around 7.

Umami is hands down one of the freshest sushi spots along with some great street food as well as other items that always are top notch. Service has always been great and I LOVE the ambiance with the red tone always glowing!

One of my favorite restaurants in Pittsburgh. The ambiance and decor is fantastic. Food is well priced, well portioned, and delicious. I particularly enjoyed the Yakitori, Ramen, and Karaage. They have great drinks as well. You cannot go wrong with Umami and if you are between two different restaurants for a night out, choose Umami.

Every bite I had at Umami was delicious, from the takoyaki to the chirashi, we were so thrilled with everything we ordered. It was all so well prepared and the restaurant's dark and cool atmosphere just adds to the overall experience. I hope for the opportunity to go back soon!

So, I can't believe we have never been to Umami before... we've wanted to, but it's been so popular for years, we never were able to remember to reserve far in advance. When a restaurant is THAT popular years after it opens, it raises my interest even more... thankfully, my wife made a reservation for us 2 months ago, and I'm happy to report that the hype is fully merited! So, our server was a very personable young lady who treated us and the kids with the utmost care and hospitality throughout our dinner - she knew the menu top to bottom, and took our order by memory - ZERO errors, and she kept the pace of the meal in perfect time, despite the establishment being fully reserved. The music volume was perfect, although the mix of rap was something I was not expecting, but it was a cool detail for the urban setting and complimented the glow of the neon and lights from the kitchen. Personally, I would have loved to hear the XX, Digable Planets, and Guru Jazzmatazz thrown into the mix, but overall, it was super chill vibe... OK, you're not reading this for the music details, are you? Here's what we ordered: Apps - Tuna tatami - Sushi roll "special" - tuna and salmon - Pork gyoza Robata - Smoked tofu x 2 - Chicken thigh yakitori x 2 - Steak x 2 Sushi - Nigiri plate - Sashimi plate All of it was delicious, and served beautifully arranged and at the proper temperature. I will say that the surprise of the evening was the gyoza. This gyoza is simply the absolute best gyoza or dumpling I've EVER had anywhere. Seriously! It was mind blowing. The steak robatayaki were just OK, but the chicken thighs took me back to my trip to Japan and a quaint yakitori place I loved... The sushi / sashimi plate was super delicious. The high quality of the proteins is a reason to make this place a destination not to be missed. The sea bream, Hokkaido scallop, lean tuna, and ikura were spectacular. I love that they served it with shiso and daikon garnishes. Desserts are worth the calorie count, and drinks were on point. Overall, we all felt that Umami is one of our favorites in town, and will be back soon!!!! Kanpai!

The cutest hidden gem tucked away on a side street in Lawrence with low beautiful low lighting. It gives cool, calm vibes with a romantic feel and plays the best music on any given night! I sat at the bar and was greeted by the greatest bartender I cannot recall his name but he had braids in his and was super helpful in guiding our cocktails for the night and even helped with transitioning over to wine before the night ended. The food was great just appetizers this particular evening but will be back to sample more off this fabulous menu.

Food was good, restaurant had nice vibes. Super cool to find an izakaya style restaurant in Pittsburgh. The whole restaurant is red lighting which hurt my eyes for a bit, but you adjust. They also had live music when I went from a dj. Fish quality was good and the hot appetizers were tasty. All our food came out super quick and it is meant for sharing!

Wow, where to start? This place is beyond fantastic. Always fresh, wonderful flavors in everything they do. Let's start with food: I highly suggest Robatayaki (skewers cooked on the grill) of any kind. My favorites are bacon wrapped quail egg, chicken skin, wagyu beef, and mushrooms. Next, any of the Yatai (food cart type appetizers and entrees) are a great choice. My favorites are pork gyoza, chawanmushi (incredible seasonal savory egg custard), tuna tataki, and shio ramen with pork short ribs. Last but not least, sushi. My favorites: bara chirashi (you get deconstructed sushi with lots of variety!), any of the nigiri, sashimi, or temaki hand rolls (imagine seaweed ice cream cone filled with sushi), and the spicy magura (tuna) onigiri (imagine a sushi meatball with rice outside and spicy tuna inside). Next up - cocktails: They never disappoint with a tiki-esque vibe but with asian ingredients like lychee, thai basil, edamame, saki, soju, and many more. Always as beautiful as they are tasty! if you're not feeling a cocktail, they have some Asian and local beers as well as plenty of wine and sake. Finally - ambiance: this place does NOT feel like you're in Pittsburgh. It's definitely a great vibe with a unique set up. Open sushi station so you can watch your food being made. Also a really cool private zashiki room where you can sit on the floor and eat in traditional style. As with any place, there are downsides. Parking is a bear in Lawrenceville. There are no lots anywhere close so it's every person for themselves. Also, it's up 2 steep flights of stairs. Watch how much you drink or you'll be playing slinky tumbling down the stairs after you're done. With that, be aware that the bathroom is on the 1st floor (restaurant on 2nd) so you'll want to plan bathroom breaks. Overall, one of my favorite places in Pittsburgh and I'm shocked after 50+ visits this is my first review!

I am actually a little bit disappointed by my latest experience here. I brought eight people total (most of whom were visiting from out of town) and while it was cool that we got the separate room to the left of the host stand, our experience was overall good, but not excellent. For almost $100 a person I expected all of the food to be amazing and for the experience to be top-notch. Our server explained to us the specials but didn't tell us that three small pieces of blue fin would be $45. We could have asked, but none of us expected it to be that much given the quality. It was just alright - nothing special, a bit plain tasting and definitely not worth the price. The udon noodles with crab (another special) were really not up to par. I think I took two bites and told my server it wasn't for me and she said "that happens" and took the bowl away. There was no conversation about it which was a bit frustrating. The broth was bland, the crab had no flavor and the only part of the soup I enjoyed was the smoked carrots. I've never felt I wasted money at Umami before but with these two dishes I did. I had a highball drink which wasn't my favorite but they are now serving Maggie's rum drinks which I ended up getting instead and it was delicious. We had some other food that was great - the fried octopus balls and rice bowls were delicious and I loved the skewers. The two desserts were yummy. We were there for birthdays and they were good sizes for people to each get a bite or two. The private room was a huge plus for our group but as we were 8, we had to sit at two separate tables which wouldn't have been ideal for some parties. I'm not sure I'd come back with a big group on a holiday weekend. I think this place is great for happy hour or when you already know what you like and are comfortable paying those prices, but not for entertaining guests from out of town when the price is so high for a hit or miss experience.

It's ok... kinda trendy, and a cool vibe. It's a good place to go on a date, or hang out with friends. In terms of the food it's solid but not amazing. Service is kind of slow bc they're usually pretty busy.

This was my second time going to Umami. The first time I had an amazing experience -- the ambiance is dark and cool, drinks were great, food was great. This time was unfortunately a let down. Our server was super nice, but the food fell short. I ordered the Cream on Chrome cocktail. Very unusual for me to order a cocktail that is sweet, but this one was so unique and delicious. The star of the night for food was the spicy cucumbers. The pork belly skewers were fine, and a little dry. The sashimi plate was so sparse it was almost laughable (picture has the sashimi plate plus a bunch of extras we ordered), and the fish wasn't overly fresh. I didn't love the hand roll either. This was way too expensive for the quality and quantity of the food. I'm disappointed after having a lovely first experience.

Wow, everything tasted great. And I was able to accommodate vegetarian in the group well the rest of us really enjoyed the pork and chicken and beef and seafood options.

Went back for my friends' birthday and ordered the OKONOMIYAKI and TAKOYAKI. We were excited because we knew we liked those when we were in Japan. But we were disappointed because both were extremely salty. We also had a cake since it was our friend's birthday but they didn't communicate with us about their cake cutting policy until much later. It was a very confusing and uncomfortable situation with how the one staff interacted with us about that. Thankfully later our server clearly communicated with us about the policy. But this was much later and was so uncomfortable in the couple minutes between that. Last time I came, we ordered the KARAAGE and it was also very salty. But we also ordered sushi and that helped clear our palate. The CHIRASHI BOWL was pretty good but was not very noteworthy. For my friend's birthday, we were seated in the side room because we had a large party. The interior felt kinda disorienting because of the dim lighting contrasted with the bright neon light and loud music. Another note about the interior, it is a very inaccessible space. Not just with the disorienting environment, but also all the stairs, no elevator, narrow spaces, and only high tables. tldr; Food 3.5/5 Service 3.5/5 Interior 3/5

Super cool spot. It's sort of hidden which makes it fun. Drinks were delicious, food was yummy, service was a little slow (no one was over friendly). I enjoyed the DJ spinning some tunes.

Everything was great besides the hair in the food Atmosphere was good service was pretty good a shame we spent some kind of money to not eat the food bc there's hair in it

food - most things were really good robatayaki - all of them were really good. the pork belly was literally melt in your mouth. the prime strip steak was cooked perfectly and had good flavor. the chicken skin was unexpectedly good -- sweet and crunchy. the whole squid was pretty standard, cooked well, and drizzled with unagi sauce. takoyaki - this was sooo good. it was cooked so that the outside was perfectly crisp and the inside wasn't dry or hard. the flavor was also there. highly recommend yaki udon - really good and I liked how you could actually taste the mushroom in the dish. stay away though if you don't like mushroom hamachi collarbone thing - this was one of their specials or something it wasn't on the menu. it was alright, was a bit too dry but the flavor was kinda there drinks - there were good ones and bad ones cream on chrome - I really liked it, it was coconutty and I usually don't like coconut but somehow liked this one. this one is kinda like a slushy so it was hard to drink thru the straw. overall not too strong mermaid tears - someone said it tastes like gatorade, I kinda agree. slightly stronger than the cream on chrome but still good and really pretty better than the parlors - this one was really good, definitely had lychee flavor in it. I also liked eating the drink-infused lychee at the end. probably just as strong as mermaid tears. this was probably my favorite one suntory x red bull highball - this was really strong we had to dilute it with more red bull hahaha... umeshu nezcal white negroni - strong tequila taste which I don't like, but the umeshu flavor was definitely there. pretty strong but not as strong as the highball. price - a bit pricey, our our bill for 4 people came up to be $350 (granted each of us got 2 rounds of drinks). I think the price makes sense though for the ambiance and quality of the food and restaurant ambiance - the whole restaurant is so red it makes it kinda hard to see anything. but other than that it has good vibes service - really good, our waitress was super nice and made conversation with us. she also knew the menu really well and explained everything in a really nice sounding way which was very impressive!

Great restaurant, amazing service, and a fun view of the kitchen. Always recommend getting the taiyaki!

Came here for dinner for 3 without reservation and was seated by the bar. We ordered the sashimi plate, nigiri plate, unagi don, and the savory pancake. This place is overpriced for the food being ok. Service was excellent though.

Great sushi, fun vibe, terrific service. Hidden gem that was a great start to a night out.

Fun trendy spot in the Lawrenceville neighborhood. There are so many new hot spots in this area from when I last lived here. This one I would highly recommend making reservations because it's smaller and popular. You would not know it was there if you were not aware of it. There is no sign outside and you have to walk up two flights of stairs to get there. The decor in the hallway is fun. When you walk up the steps you see two bars. One with drinks and a raw bar. Those are first come first serve. We decided to take a chance on a Friday night without reservations and try and get a spot. We were able to get a spot at the bar in a good area around 6:30pm. They have a DJ starting at 8! The person hosting in the front was a very great host with customer service. Since my sister said I was visiting he was helpful with suggesting menu items and giving advice of other spots. Very personable. I got the octopus bites and some of the skewers. Once was Brussels and the other was shrimp. All the food was delicious but my favorite was the drink. I ordered 3 of the same drink. I thought it was so good! It was the only drink with tequila in it and it was spicy and tart. My only issue there was the specials were read to other customers by the bartender but we did not get read the specials. So I would have ordered one of the specials if I knew about them.

Everything was good here, cool music good drinks, nice atmosphere, prices were a little steep for the nigiri plate & sashimi plate. Ordered both & came out on one plate not a whole lot but understand it's high grade sushi. We also got the prime rib steak, shoyu ramen, and a few other things, left hungry but was very good none the less

Went here for a date night. Low lighting for ambience is super fun and the sushi is all really good. The waiters/waitresses are very friendly and attentive. On a cute little side street so it was harder to find than I thought it would be but we got there haha.

Wonderful spot for a birthday celebration, great food, exceptional service, loved the music. Emily took great care in explaining all the dishes. Thank you Derrick

We loved our dinner at Umami!!! The ambience was really cool - fun music and lighting, floor seating, DJ - everything was very hip. And the food was 10/10. Would recommend any of the skewers and sushi

Hands down my favorite restaurant in all of Pittsburgh. Atmosphere, food, and music all on point. Top that off with extremely friendly staff and you've struck gold. I Love Umami.

Impeccable performance of asian delectables. There are 2 restaurants that compete at this level and Umami is one of them. *Incredible sake menu: Snow Angel, The Gentleman, Moon Ring are excellent selections. *Robotayaki selection: best in show Quail Egg wrapped in Bacon. *Whole Branzino took the Main The scene: Hip Hop spins on the 1's & 2's, #femaleDJ NYC vibe, Is Brooklyn in the house? Kind of feels, if you know.... Get a reservation, we were lucky enough to get in without one.

We loved umami! Made a reservation for Matt's birthday months in advance, we were so glad to find Umami for sushi and other favorites. We started off with a few apps or Yatai: goyoza, takoyaki, and zaru soba noodles. These were all easily shareable and were super tasty. My favorite was the takoyaki, crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. Matt is still talking about the soba noodles. I had never tried soba noodles before and they were a great surprise. The Italian in me wanted to twirl the noodles but I eventually got the hang of it to pick them up with my chopsticks. Our "main" course, we shared the Bara Chiriashi, a wonderful bowl chock full of raw fish. It would be a full meal for someone on their own, but I'm glad we shared it. Then came the sashimi plate. I wish we didn't share this because I wanted it all to myself! All the fish was clean, tasty and beautifully plated. Our last "main" was the TNT roll. Our server said that this changes daily. I can't remember what the filling was for it on the day we went; but it was delicious. Crisp and warm it was a nice contrast from the cool fish we had been enjoying. I'd also like to add that the food came out so perfectly we never had 2 things on the table. It was a a clean transition from dish to dish without feeling rushed or claustrophobic on the already small table. We finished off our dinner with their 2 desserts because it was Matt's birthday! Gotta have dessert. They have a taiyaki, a warm fish waffle (no fish, just fish shaped) with a creamy filling. It came with a creamy fruity ice cream with yuzu. Matt got the purin, a Japanese style flan. I really liked Matt's, the flan was light and delicious. We will definitely be back here, everything is as amazing and delicious really enjoyed the experience. I can't remember the servers name, but he was really great, making sure that our meal flowed perfectly, and we always had beverages. Go here! Enjoy the food. Happy Eating!

Loved it.... These words are too simple to describe my dining experience at Umami. I made a reservation for 2 for a Thursday evening. My friend has been to this spot before, so she had some recommendations from the menu. Although, I wasn't particular hungry like her, I was up to trying as many dishes as possible. We both got the cocktail of the day, which was refreshing and light. Later I went for another drink with mezcal in it. We first ordered the TNT Maki sushi and Uni. I liked the maki roll and felt the Uni was ok. We also got the egg custard, which was ok too. The octopus balls are really the ones that stood out for me, closely followed by the pancake. I finished my meal with butterscotch creme brûlée and my friend got their 'classic' red bean dessert. The service was prompt and the ambience was good. I definitely recommend to check out this resto if you like Japanese cuisine.

I had high expectations for Umami, the "U" stop on our Pittsburgh restaurant alphabet tour. Those weren't quite met, but I can't in good conscience rate this place lower than a 4. Up the stairs on a side street off of Butler in Lawrenceville you'll find Umami, a Japanese pub dedicated to Umami flavors. Umami is one of the five basic tastes (sweet, bitter, salty, and sour being the other four). It can be best described with a loose translation to "a pleasant savory taste" in English. It reminded me of a speakeasy the way most doors were unmarked or subtly pointed to the restaurant. The music was vibrant and loud, contrasting the dull lighting. It was someplace I enjoyed being. Book online a week or two in advance as spots fill up quickly. Let's get to the food. The menu is broken into a couple categories "Yatai" (think appetizers or street food), "Robata" (a single skewer of 3-4 meats), and sushi. This place is great for picking a couple small plates and sharing amongst friends or your date. I recommend getting anything that you have never heard of! You'll be pleasantly surprised. For us it was the Okonomiyaki. We also wanted to try a few of the Robata and topped it off with the Shio Ramen as sort of the main dish. Okonomiyaki 4.1/5 - a pancake type of street food filled with various veggies and the likes. Topped with a couple sauces, you get a great variety of textures from crisp to creamy to chewy and flavors from sweet to savory to bitter. A true definition of umami and a sensation on the palate. Robata 3.8/5 - we opted for the bacon wrapped quail egg, wagyu beef, and pork belly. These are priced around $3-4 each which seems a little steep for how good they were. The wagyu did not feel tender enough to be wagyu, I'm skeptical it was. It was seasoned well though. The bacon wrapped quail egg was unique, with a creamy center of the yolk, but the bacon overwhelmed it. The pork belly was mostly fat so how could it have been bad? I felt these pieces were under seasoned. Ramen 3.2/5 - the biggest let down. I was truly looking forward to a delicious and beautiful ramen dish prepared here, but it failed to meet expectations. There was a burnt taste in every bite that I believe was incorporated into the broth that I could not get past. Maybe it was supposed to be like that, but it was so distracting that I couldn't enjoy the other aspects of it. I've had better 30 minute eggs and the pork belly was bland again. That all being said, this place has so much to offer and I can't underrate it because of one dish that I personally did not like. If I was invited to here again I would look forward to going but with so many great places to explore in the area, it would likely be a while until I went back on our own again.

fresh seafood and pretty good cocktails. it's a bit pricey but worth it if you want to get good japanese food in pittsburgh.

My girlfriend and I came for dinner on a Friday night. I've heard such good things from so many people so we decided to make a reservation and finally check it out. We both love Japanese food but with me being vegan that sometimes makes it tough. The menu clearly had vegan options labeled which made it easy for me to order. We both got ramen and appetizers and everything we had was amazing! The ramen was seriously delicious and the vegan onigiri that I had reminded me of a place I used to go when I lived in New York City. We really loved the food and the ambiance of Umami. You have to check it out!