For our last dinner in Milwaukee, Dad treated me and Mom to a sushi dinner. We went to Umami Moto.
First, the salads. We tried both – here is the Seaweed Salad with sesame soy vinaigrette
And the House Salad above with the description “burnt honey vinaigrette growing power greens”
I’m not quite sure about that description, but it certainly was a beautiful salad. Both salads were light and refreshing.
Next, we ordered the vegetable tempura.
Being very familiar with traditional panko tempura, this appeared to be a variation on tempura. The veggies that had been fried were carrots, asparagus, I think potato, and eggplant. The carrots and asparagus were especially good. None of us are big fans of American eggplant (Japanese eggplant is another story), but I still gave it a try and decided that if I liked eggplant I would probably think it was good.
Next, we had the Skirt Steak with “sweet soy and coriander marinade pickled vegetables, cabbage.”
I enjoyed this dish very much. I hardly ever order red meat at a restaurant, and when I do I expect it to be done right. This meat was juicy, tender, and very flavorful from the marinade. The carrot and cabbage slaw worked wonderfully against the meat. Light, crunchy, with great acidity from the pickling.
Next, we had a special sushi dish, which was bonito with quail eggs.
I love quail eggs. They always looks so beautiful and delicate. And mini. I wish I remember what exactly the sauce was that went on top. I think it was chimichurri. In any event, it was a beautiful dish, and a delight to eat.
Shrimp tempura, unagi, avocado, tobiko, and unagi sauce. Excellent. This may have been my favorite dish of the night. The shrimp tempura maintained a delicate crunch, the avocado was creamy, there wasn’t too much rice, and the unagi and unagi sauce were really great.
Next, the Coconut Scallop with pineapple coconut foam and ship salt.
This scallop was so soft and delicate. It had a wonderful consistency that paired extremely well with the even softer, effervescent coconut foam. For both the eyes and the taste buds, this was very much a delicacy.
And my dad and I finished off the meal with some delicious hand rolls.Umami Moto is definitely a high quality sushi restaurant that I will be happy to return to on a future visit to Milwaukee.