Tis Me Michelle

So many omakases in Orlando these days. Another new one opened recently, in the Dr. Phillips area. I love seeing some options like this outside of the main Mills/Downtown part of Orlando. It’s also a mid-level price, probably on the more affordable side for an omakase that I’ve experienced.

The Parking: It’s in the newer Town Center at O-Town West, amongst other restaurants, workout spots, and such. Plenty of shared parking in the lot. It’s still not an overly busy place, so there’s not too much parking competition. This center also houses one of the Rumble locations I’ve gone to, so I’ve been a few times and never had a parking issue.

The Atmosphere: I will say it feels random being in a sophisticated omakase restaurant space in the middle of this shopping center. But as soon as you walk inside, it’s very beautiful. Minimalistic, elegant, and curated. It is a small space, yet it seems intentional. The hosts were very sweet and engaging, but it definitely felt like they were still getting the lay of the land.

On some social media posts, I’d seen photos and videos of the booth seating, which really intrigued me. It’s designed to look like a personal space, and I love a booth. It looked cozy and intimate. I did not understand how you can book a regular experience for a meal in the booth, as all the reservations were bar seating, which requires the omakase participation. So I’m not sure if the booths are simply a waiting area or special decor.

The Meal: The omakase is offered at two different time slots a night, and I went with the earlier one of the day. It’s a 17-course omakase, so I do think the $150 price point is not too bad. It comes with 4 appetizers, 11 nigiri, 1 handroll, and a dessert. I do wish every omakase experience had a menu to follow along with because I have a hard time keeping up when it’s being explained. I actually took notes of each and every item I had – but the main name may not be fully correct.

Appetizers

Chawanmushi – This custard egg dish was a good start. It was creamy and comforting. There was a dollop of a mushroom tapenade-type situation, and I believe Ikura, which added a nice pop of saltiness. Both went along well with the egg. There was one shrimp on top, which was cooked perfectly, but bland. I think some ingredients should speak for themselves, but simply salting an ingredient well goes a long way. There was also some edamame. I appreciated the pop of green, but I just didn’t think it paired with this dish.

Sea bream with yuzu sauce – This was one of the standout bites of the night. The yuzu sauce was stunning with its sweet, bright punch. It paired well with the sea bream. I delicately delicious bite.

Kinmedai with miso sauce – Please note, I may be wrong on the actual fish. But, wow. Whatever it was, I think this in miso sauch was my favorite bite of the night. This small bite was buttery, umami, and simply melted away. Such a small bite with so much flavor. It came with crisp, lightly sweet, pickled cucumbers, which were a great palate refiner to the rich fish, plus one little tomato.

Kampachi – I could see this being some people’s favorite because it was coated generously with freshly grated truffle. Underneath the truffle were a couple of slices of the baby yellowtail with crunchy potatoes inside, garnished with microgreens. This was my least favorite of the appetizer section. It was a bit too earthy flavored for my liking. I felt like it ended up being a bit one-note.

Nigiri

1 – First up was Flounder, which was a good meaty start. It had a bit of depth, nothing super exciting, but a solid start.

2 – Hokkaido sea scallop – the couple next to me loved this one. It remained their top bite through the night. I think the texture threw me off just a bit, because I’m used to eating scallops cooked. I’m sure I’ve had it raw in omakases before, but the delicate texture threw me a bit. It was garnished with lime zest and truffle salt, which brought it a nice bright flavor.

3 – White Straight Jack – This fish had a nice buttery flavor, with a nice added acidic flavor from yuzu.

4 – Barracuda – this was given a nice torching, which gave it a good grilled flavor. Otherwise, a bit bland. It was mentioned this was the special of the night from Japan.

At this point in the nigiri course, we were all given a cup of green tea as a palate cleanser and to help cut through the fat as the next pieces were richer.

5 – Fatty prawn with foie gras – This is probably going to take the top spot for me in the nigiri section. I’ve had one other instance with foie gras in Paris. Because I was in Paris, and it’s a delicacy there. It can have a rather pungent smell. And I had gotten a full pasta dish with it. The smell took over, and I simply could not. This was a small slice on top of a fatty prawn, much more palatable, and paired beautifully. It was indeed fatty, and also buttery, sweet. Decandent if you will.

6 – Dry Aged King Salmon – A very solid nigiri piece. Salmon was delicious, a simple torched slice of tomato that added a touch of sweetness. 

7 – Chutoro with wasabi – I love a good tuna piece, and this did not disappoint. Buttery, smooth, and almost melts in your mouth. These types of cuts of tuna don’t really need anything to shine, but I didn’t really taste wasabi.

8 – Otoro with caviar – Given I didn’t have a new experience with that fatty prawn and foie gras, this would take the cake. Otoro never disappoints. It sure melted away, so rich yet delicate. A perfect bite.

9 – Sea urchin – This flavor is definitely an acquired taste. Still not my favorite, but I don’t hate it. I do appreciate that it comes chilled, which was refreshing after the fattier pieces.

10 – Waygu – A good, good waygu is just as melt-in-your-mouth and rich as a great Otoro piece. This was fine, but actually a bit tougher than I would have liked.

11 – Eel with eel sauce – I love the flavor of eel, but I’ve come to realize the bones may be hard to take out, and the feeling of the bones or cartilage really throws me off. This was good, but rather basic.

Handroll

For the handroll, we got some more Kampachi this time with crispy onion and green onions. I enjoyed the kampachi here much more than the appetizer. The fish was mild, with a light sweetness, and the onions added a nice crunch and saltiness. A solid and filling hand roll.

Dessert

A yuzu cheesecake lightly bruleed on top with a scoop of green tea ice cream. The cheesecake was decent. I liked the light yuzu flavor, not super overpowering, but you could taste it. The brule was nice, a bit chewy as it was a very light torching. The texture was decent, not decadent, yet not light and fluffy, somewhere in the middle. I did love the green tea ice cream. I love ice cream. Give me a sundae, call it a day. But it was refreshing, and it lay on top of some salty almonds that provided the perfect crunch and contrast. I would have enjoyed just a larger portion of that side of the plate.

Overall: At the end of this 17-course meal, I was full, but surprisingly not bloated. There were some highlights that I really enjoyed; otherwise, it was run-of-the-mill. It does seem like they are overall figuring out their flow. And I think there is potential for it to be even better. Affordability-wise, this is a great value in comparison to some other places I’ve tried. I enjoyed my experience, but unless they have an a la carte menu option, I probably will not return for the omakase. Not that it isn’t worth a try, there are just other ones I enjoyed more.

Rating: 8.2

Address: 8685 Fenton St #150, Orlando, FL 32836