umi

motivation: to check out the brand new sushi restaurant 1.5 blocks from my place! also, pinky was exhausted by a combination of sf city planning contradictions and customized bath tub snafus, so he was too tired to cook.

our first impressions were of a sweet, earnest wait staff and a general improvement on the space, which had previously housed a korean barbeque. it had the same layout but the walls were repainted a calming neutral, they added interesting artwork, and remodeled with more professional work surfaces and materials. the furniture was also cute and lightly elegant.

the menu presented reliable maki favorites (spider roll, 49er's maki) and appetizers (seaweed salad, sunomono), priced to fit the prosperous potrero neighborhood clientele. (much to my chagrin. this renter really needs a raise.) the specials were more interesting, offering baby kanpachi, ocean trout, and japanese butterfish. umi also boasts "small plates" (albacore tataki, sakana) which we did not explore on this trip.

the quality of the fish was good. both pinky and i appreciated the oily red flesh of the ocean trout and tasty compact cherry blossom. the ume shiso maki definitely used fresh pickled plum for the tart punch i love. and the yaki nasu, an appetite for which i developed in japan a few years ago, was hot and perfectly grilled, the inside steamy and wet, the outside tight and chewy. alas, due to my limited budget, we left our bellies only partially full (or partially, pessimistically, empty?)

the flirtability in the place wasn't too high, but i think it's got potential. a few cute gay boys at one table and the convenient people-watching big window kept things alive, but frankly our work-day venting and monday night fatigue weren't making it happen. i can't blame umi for that.

i'll be back on a weekend to give it another shot, after a few drinks at blooms or lingba, and scoping out the crowd. want to come support my hamachi habit?

itadakimasu!