Umami

Atmosphere and Service were excellent. Staff seemed to enjoy their job which is important. Good music and interesting location. Menu was very intriguing but I don't have the biggest background to compare to. As a casual in the Asian food world, it sounded and tasted good. The staff were very knowledgeable and thorough when it comes to the menu. Drinks were good and $2 off before 6pm, even on a Saturday. I would like to return again to try more of their sushi menu. The quail eggs and octopus balls/takoyaki definitely live up to the "Umami" name with the sauces used.

Dining at Umami was an absolute pleasure. We came in on a Saturday night without reservations and were seated at the sushi bar within 30 min. The atmosphere was intimate, dimly lit and izakaya-esque, with a live DJ. Drinks were a great start to a lovely evening. Onto the food - which was the highlight. We ordered a nigiri plate, uni, o-toro, king mackerel special, karaage, agedashi, and a few pieces of robotayaki. The karaage flavor and seasoning were brilliant and could not have been better. The fry on the agedashi was life changing. So crispy and perfectly paired with the saucy broth. O-toro was as you'd expect, the most melty, fatty, flavorful piece of tuna you can dream of. And the king mackerel was a delight; perfectly cooked and tender with a bright and refreshing sauce. Service was also spot on. Sitting at the bar, our server juggled making cocktails and staying attentive. He did a marvelous job. We spent about $200 for two for an unforgettable dining experience and it was worth every penny. I would highly recommend Umami for a night out to treat yourself.

This is one of my top 5 favorite restaurants. Anything on the menu is guaranteed to be objectively good, even if you don’t like it. I definitely recommend the salmon roe with a raw quail egg; I could eat an entire meal of them. Also, the quality is very consistent. Always make a reservation at least a week in advance (2-3 weeks if you want a table in the back room; totally worth the experience). It is expensive but I will gladly spend a ridiculous amount to be full all night on really really good food.

Super cool spot, walk up a few flights of stairs to a "hidden" bar, lounge and private area. Had a group of 8 and enjoyed our sushi, chicken kaarage, chili cucumbers, yaki udon, TNT maki (fried tempura maki roll), and tekka don (tuna rice bowl). Great drink menu too - cocktails, sake, whiskey wine etc.

Overall not bad experience, the staff was nice and the ambience was relaxing. We didn’t have to wait terribly long for a Saturday night, and the service was pretty timely. The food itself was only okay. We enjoyed the eggplant and oyster mushroom skewers, they paired well with the burned flavors and the teriyaki sauce. The fried tofu were surprisingly impressive, it had very crispy outside and soft and hot inside, and the yuzu sauce was very unique, unlike most Japanese spots only serve it with a soy sauce based sauce. The Shoyu ramen was a bit disappointing. The ramen eggs weren’t marinated but just soft boiled, and the dish really lacked a good stock for flavor. The stock more or less just tasted like soy sauce mixed with vinegar, rather than a good broth flavored with soy sauce. The pork belly had good texture but again it lacks a base flavor. At the very least it could be saltier, and I wish it were marinated with something to complement with the dish. The noodles though, were perfectly cooked. That definitely was the highlight of the dish. But overall I wouldn’t recommend the dish especially given the price point, the dish looked much better than it tasted. My husband got the teriyaki eel hand roll and Okonomiyaki. He liked the hand roll but complained the Okonomiyaki being too greasy, which was actually difficult to eat towards the end. I am indifferent about the hand roll and can’t comment on the Okonomiyaki. Overall it was a good hangout spot. The drink was pretty good but the food was on the more expensive side. I would recommend the small plates but otherwise this is not the place for a remarkable Japanese food experience.

The food was amazing. The location felt a little “exotic” (in a good way) on the third floor of a Lawrenceville block. Our server was absolutely incredible, running through gluten free or gluten risky options and just seemed happy to be serving us. We will 100% go back. The only downside of our experience was the heat. It was a hot summer day and I think the AC was trying to keep up as best it could on a third floor that had a kitchen in it, but we we’re definitely hot! Even so, I still easily give this place 5 stars.

The atmosphere and staff here were excellent. It was a spacious restaurant with nice ambiance. The food was tasteful but too strongly flavored with the sauces. We ordered okonomiyaki and variety of grilled skewers. The gyudon was surprisingly drenched in the bbq sauce. For two people, came out to be about $35 per person. Overall I would recommend to first time goers.