Umai Umai: Fabulous menu, new look!

For those of you that know me and my husband Eric, you already know that we love sushi. We love spice, simplicity, and BYOB’s! You also know that we love trying new places, experiences, and cuisines. However, sometimes revisiting some of our favorite restaurants is in order, like Umai Umai. For three solid days after we moved to our current apartment, we ordered takeout from Umai Umai. They were a lifesaver. We had no idea where our pots and pans were! We have become friends with the owners, and the entire staff knows that there are certain items that we will always order.

What are some of our favorites? Let’s start with the shrimp shumai. This is something that all people should try, unless you’re allergic. It is a lovely appetizer of delicately prepared shrimp dumpling’s, smothered in a saffron sauce, and a little dash of black pepper. They always come hot, and disappear quickly. The scallop carpaccio is another favorite. It’s mixed with citrus-soy, piquillo salsa, chives, ginger, and extra virgin olive oil. It is sweet and spicy at the same time. And the last item we always get is the ping pong roll. It is light, refreshing, and our absolute favorite signature roll comprising of crispy spicy tuna, inari, chives, spicy mayo, and pineapple salsa. It is a literal ping pong of flavor in your mouth.

For our most recent dining experience, we had all three of these items, plus I ordered the udon soup. We also picked two sushi rolls to go with our ping pong roll, along with a crispy banana dessert. A bottle of lightly oaked chardonnay rounded out yet another excellent meal. We also got a chance to see our friend, owner, and chef, Alex, since he normally operates the second Umai Umai location in Queens Village on 705 South 5th Street. It was an unexpected surprise. If you head to the Queen Village location, please know that they have cocktails, wines, beer’s and sake for your drinking pleasure. The menu is mostly the same, with a few differences. We do plan on eventually going to the second location, but the one on North 22nd street is just so conveniently located to us.

Try Umai Umai for a delicious dinner if you’re in town visiting, live out here in the Art Museum area, or just want to try something new. I promise it’ll be worth it.