I have had the ultimate meal. And yes, it was at Umi again. Oh Umi. It's strange how I haven't talked to anybody that has even gone to Umi and I really have to say that you are all missing out. Mr. Shu is an absolute genius, and if you really appreciate good food, I would say forget about damn Soba and head upstairs for something soooo much better!
We finally did it. We did the 'Trust Mr. Shu' omakase. We've had the regular $85 omakase a bunch of times, then upgraded to the $125 omakasse, and we finally decided that we'd go all out and have one of the best meals ever!
There were 16 courses so I'm not going to go into detail, and I of course can't remember. But I hope these pictures speak for itself...
Kumamoto Oysters with special sauce
Uni on top of tempura
Raw Kobe Beef Carpaccio with special sauce
Kumamoto Oyster with foie gras and a side of fried eel, with foie gras
Whitefish Sashimi
Spanish Mackeral with a light citrus sauce
Lobster Sashimi with special sauce
Salmon two ways: One with spicy sauce, and another piece of nigiri topped with foie gras
Salmon Belly
Spanish Mackeral seared with hot sesame oil
Lobster sashimi spoon with foie gras, sashimi topped with Uni
Raw Scallops with special sauce
Yellowtail with mushroom paste and truffle oil
Black Cod Miso
Lobster Sashimi with raw scallops on top
Soft shell crab tempura topped with O Toro
Just looking at these pictures is agonizing. Each dish was spectacular and absolutely perfect. I would say the dish I liked the least was the soft shell crab with the toro. But, really, it was still amazing.
To top it all off, we sat at the sushi bar and had this great meal with the owner of Big Burrito! He was celebrating his birthday with his son Max (the reason Mad Mex is named what it is) and it was great to know that we were having the same meal as him! If it's good enough for Mr. Big Burrito, I guess it's good enough for us.
I don't know the next time I will have this meal (probably never) but I can say that it is one meal that I don't mind paying for. If you are new to Umi, I would suggest to bite the bullet and go for the simple omakase and then build you way up to 'Trust Mr. Shu', but I promise- whatever you go with you won't be disappointed.
Seriously, go to Umi and get the Omakase.
And say hi to Drew for us!
Price: $$$$
Service: A+
Food: A+
Ambiance: A-
