Drew K.
Yelp
We ate at Ume recently along with another couple for dinner. I had been excited to finally check out the new (to me) MF Sushi concept in town.
The restaurant is a beautiful representation of Japanese minimalism. The space is not cluttered, and instead of filling the walls with distractions, they focused on intricate details and sourcing top level materials such as the Hinoki wood flown in from Japan. Even though the space is fairly spartan, it feels warm and inviting, perfect for an intimate date night or dinner out with close friends. Seating options include booth tables, floor tables, and a long high top sushi bar sitting right in front of the action. It's not a huge space, so definitely make reservations ahead of time.
Our 4 top were no strangers to sushi, and ordered a heavy portion of the menu ranging from appetizers, cooked offerings, dozens of nigiri, chef samplers, soups, sashimi, and rolls. I'm a stickler for rice consistency and temp, and Ume for the most part hit the mark. The nigiri was well formed and there were so many fantastic bites of food just melting away in your mouth. Id' like to come back and sit at the sushi bar to really focus on the prep, presentation, and enjoyment of each nigiri bite.
Service unfortunately was another story. Perhaps it was just an off night, but they couldn't quite get things straight with us. We had food orders forgotten, then delivered late with frantic apologies once realized. I had two separate drink orders that I had to make a point to ask about before they were fulfilled. When a round of food came out that included specific nigiri one couple ordered while the other couple ordered another type of nigiri, they mixed and switched the plates putting some of our food in front of them and vice versa. We realized some things were missing and may be in front of the wrong people, we asked the waitress for help on what nigiri was what, and she said it was correct and walked off...
It was just a constant neck crane, looking for a waitress, what happened to that beer I ordered, wait didn't we order miso soup, I thought you had X and we ordered Y, my water glass is bone dry and that beer still isn't here, type problems. It detracted so much from the excellent food, especially considering we paid about $300 per couple for dinner.
I'm settling on 4 stars because the food really was excellent and every place has a bad night. Other reviews don't list repeated service issues, so let's cross our fingers and hope for a better return visit.
If you're looking for top level sushi in an intimate venue, this is a great option.