Sushi UOmo (2nd visit)

FIRST POST ON SUSHI UOMO [HERE]

After my first visit to Sushi UOmo, I declared the restaurant as probably the best choice for Japanese on Hastings street! The food as well as the service was great and having said that, I have been wanting to revisit for quite a while and finally found time to. Plus, I was craving for red tuna and uni!

Walking in, the sushi chefs along with the front of the house staff were friendly and greeted us. The interior is clean as well as simple, and the seating arrangements are not cramped. In addition, there are also a couple of televisions.

 MISO SOUP

Miso soup is included with the purchase of a donburi and the restaurant sent a second order on the house (like the previous visit). The soup is served hot (unlike the last visit) and has some seaweed along with tofu. There is a light miso flavour and the soup does not taste salty nor bland. If anything, I did not get a chance to finish more than a couple of sips because all the food arrived extremely fast and our small table was an issue for the both of us.

DELUXE ASSORTED SASHIMI ($18.50).

Going for the deluxe assorted sashimi again, the selection included atlantic as well as sockeye salmon, tuna, tako, amaebi, hamachi and hokkigai. Both types of salmon along with the tuna are generously sliced and taste fresh. However, the hamachi has been sitting out since the morning and because we arrived near the end of the day, the color started to oxidize a bit. This can be prevented by something very simple such as properly suran wrapping the sashimi. Nevertheless, the hamachi tastes somewhat fresh. 

Continuing along, the hokkigai as well as the tako are properly rinsed and neither taste gritty. Up last, the small amaebi taste slightly sweet and we found it a bit funny for the restaurant to include fried heads from medium sized amaebi. 

EBI (SHRIMP) SUNOMONO ($3.50).

The ebi sunomono is a huge portion, which neither of us expected. There is a light tanginess along with a stronger sweetness, and the medium sized prawns taste bouncy. However, there could have been a stronger vinegar flavour and the sunomono is not tangy enough. As for the noodles, they have a pleasant chewiness and are neither mushy nor hard.

SOFT SHELL CRAB WITH PONZU SAUCE ($8.95).

From what I remember, Sushi UOmo serves one of the largest soft shell crabs! However, we are not a fan of their breading and requested for a tempura batter.

When requesting, the waitress mentioned the restaurant does indeed use tempura batter. But to prevent a mix up like at Ginza Sushi, I mentioned the soft shell crab had a different batter on a previous visit and she confirmed with the kitchen. The soft shell crab is lightly battered, tastes very juicy and has a crisp exterior. This is my favourite way to enjoy soft shell crab!

PRAWN TEMPURA, FOUR PIECES ($5.25).

The tempura tastes crispy as well as flaky, and is lightly battered. In addition, the prawns taste bouncy with a nice snap.

AJI ($1.50), SALMON ($1.25), TUNA ($1.25), HAMACHI ($2.00), TORO ($1.50), AMAEBI ($1.50), UNAGI ($1.75) AND MASAGO ($1.50).

The salmon, tuna and hamachi are pretty much the same as the sashimi from earlier on. Starting with the saba, there is a nice fishy pickled flavour and the addition of green onion as well as ginger are appreciated. As for the toro, the slices are not fresh and taste at least a couple of days old. Perhaps toro is not very popular in this area? The toro does not taste fatty or rich, and is very dry. I understand that if not many people order toro, the sashimi piles up. But, usually when there is too much toro and the sashimi is no longer fresh, most restaurants have it themselves, use it for negitoro rolls or throw some in a seafood udon. 

As for the amaebi, the sashimi is nicely butterflied and have a nice sweetness. However, the fried heads are not included unlike the previous visit. Perhaps the restaurant decided to start using them for presentation purposes like with the deluxe assorted sashimi? Continuing along, the unagi has the perfect texture; a nice firm softness which is not to be confused with mushy, like what some restaurants serve when they microwave it for too long. Furthermore, there is a light brush of unagi sauce rather than a drenched and overwhelming.

As for the rice throughout the nigiri, it is perfect. The rice is well cooked, not mushy and there is a perfect amount of sushi vinegar along with a great formation. In addition, none of the nigiri fell apart or was too stiff.

SUKIYAKI DON, BEEF STIR COOKED WITH MUSHROOMS, NOODLES, TOFU AND EGG ON RICE BOWL ($7.00).

Feeling obligated to go for the nabeyaki udon because chicken was forgotten on the last visit, we wanted rice instead. The sukiyaki don was a great choice because it is pretty much perfect.

The rice tastes soft and the noodles are loose, not clumped together. In addition, the egg is perfectly placed between the meat as well as rice, and tastes fluffy. As for the beef, the meat is not overcooked and tastes tender with a light sweet teriyaki sauce. Also, there is not too much sauce which can cause the rice to get mushy, and there is a nice sweetness from the onions. The sukiyaki don is fairly good, a 3.5/5.

TOTAL: $73.45 + TIP $14.55 = $88.00.

The staff at Sushi UOmo is very friendly and again like the previous visit, brought over at least four cups of hot water for me! As for the food, there are misses unlike the last visit and I may not be in a rush to revisit. However, Sushi UOmo still appears to be one of the better Japanese cuisine restaurants on Hastings Street.

POSITIVES

- Great prices and large portions

- Friendly and welcoming staff

- Clean restaurant

NEGATIVES

- Toro nigiri (1/5)

- Sashimi was just average this time

- Everything arrived too fast and our table was too small for the amount of food we ordered

LITTLE THINGS

- First post on Sushi UOmo [here]

- Soft shell crab (with tempura batter 4/5) and the sukiyaki don (3.5/5) are recommended!

- Uni and red tuna may not always be available (like in this case)

Food: 3/5

Service: 4/5