Sweetmonger took me to Uchi recently for one of my Christmas presents. We ended up fashioning our own 7 course tasting menu. And here we go:
Thinly sliced flounder, smoked sea salt, yuzu zest, daikon, quinoa candy
Our opening course was delightfully refreshing. The flounder was tasty and smoothly textured. Certainly a palate enhancer. Good.
We followed the flounder with a 5 piece chef's sushi selection. From left to right, we got tuna, halibut, salmon, flounder, and escolar. Other than inexplicably giving us a flounder sushi since we had just ordered the flounder dish, this course was very nice. Although I am not a sushi connoisseur, I found the fish nicely textured and border-line delicious. The escolar was certainly the star . . . what a balanced fish. Very good.
Bluefin Tuna Belly Sushi; John Dory, finger lime, wasabi
We ordered two of the daily sushi specials. The tuna belly was what tuna belly should be: rich, smooth, and delicious. Very good. The John Dory was a waste of $7 though: just unbelievably disappointing and wiry textured. Not good.
Biendo Roll: Tempura and raw tiger shrimp, spicy viet vin, frozen grape salsa
This was the best seafood dish of the night as it was an great combination of spicy, sweet, smooth, crunchy, hot, and cold. I would not hesitate to order it every time at Uchi. Very good.
Pan-seared diver scallops, dehydrated lime, salsify, Thai chile
This was a nice dish. The scallops were sweet and juicy, and the dehydrated lime provided a good crunchy texture contrast. The aromatics were also very nice. Good . . . almost very good.
Bacon sen: roast pork belly, granny smith apple puree, cilantro, sherry vinegar, shaved fennel
I love this dish. I believe it would work in terms of taste and texture (although obviously not stylistically) in any restaurant in the world. The pork belly is rich and salty, and the apple puree is delicious and is a great contrast: a salty and sweet combination that would probably make any chef proud. Excellent.
Dark chocolate sorbet, maple, tobacco, scotch
I was not expecting this as my previous dessert experiences at Uchi have been disappointing, but this was truly delicious. The scotch-tobacco puree that brought everything together was something of an oxymoron: a mild-yet very tasty addition. Excellent.
I really enjoy eating at Uchi, and all things considered, it probably is Austin's best restaurant (and almost certainly its best fine dining experience). However, in the grand scheme of things, I'm not really sure what that means. I certainly would not call it a "must" on a visit to Austin. The Mexican and BBQ in this city are almost just as praise worthy and certainly more uncommon in quality relative other versions in American cuisine than is Uchi. Also, as much as I love dining at Uchi, in 5 meals I have only had two things that have wowed me: the various versions of the Bacon Sen and this recent chocolate-tobacco dessert. For a Japanese restaurant supposedly specializing in exciting uses of fish, I find this fact a little disconcerting.
Uchi
801 South Lamar
Austin, Texas 78704
(512) 916-4808
0 comments:
Post a Comment