When my wife surprised me for my birthday with a visit to a Michelin star restaurant, I already…read moreknew the experience was going to be special. I must admit, however, that I was a bit, unsure about what could possibly make a Korean barbecue restaurant worthy of a Michelin star. After leaving there, I found myself questioning why it only received one star. The meal was in a word perfect.
Now I have seen a few reviews that mentioned some issues. I can confidently say that since the time those reviews were written, any of the problems mentioned have been addressed because there was nothing about my dinner experience there that could have been improved upon. Food, quality, presentation, service, and even the vibe of the restaurant contributed to the excellence that permitted the entire evening.
No, I would say that this is a far cry from the Korean barbecue restaurant that you would bring your family to but strangely enough there were a number of families here, including small children. And everybody seemed happy. Wanting the ultimate experience we ordered the Omakase. Omakase is something that I have always associated with just sushi so seeing a meat Omakase was pretty excited. And it exceeded any expectations I might've had. Unlike the standard Korean barbecue restaurants, the cooks come over and make sure that every piece of meat is perfectly prepared.
I don't know if it was because of my birthday or if it is always part of the Omakase, but they began the service with delicious top shelf, champagne. This was followed by an amouse bouche a fresh golden Uni on top of a Washington state oyster. The oyster was a perfect balance of briney and sweet, in combined well with the rather nuanced taste of the uni. Little did, I know that the perfection of this small bite would be carried on through every part of the meal.
A cup of bone broth was brought out to drink. Some upscale Korean restaurants I have eaten at in the past serve bone broth, but it's not something that I had seen locally and I really do enjoy it.
The first meat dish we were served was called steak and eggs. This was a unique creation of filet mignon tarte and caviar. The caviar added wonderful texture and a bit of saltiness that made the dish outstanding.
This was followed by ample portions of filet mignon, skirt, steak, ribeye, ribeye,
Again, I would note that the staff cooked each piece perfectly before placing it on our plates. Next came mushroom and skirt steak. Seasoned with salt it was quite enjoyable. So was the 45 day dry age Ribeye and 45 day dry age Rib eye cap. The Rice cake that followed was tasty, but I must admit was not in the same way as any of the other ingredients. Then came the over the top, premium meats, the American wagyu, Japanese wagyu, and LA galbi American A5 wagyu.
An unexpected taste treat was the Japanese A5 in ginchi broth with noodles.
Sides included
Dehydrated chinrse lettuce stem
Okra
Kimchi cabbage,
Scallion onion salad
Egg soufflé
After this male okra could become my new favorite vegetable; all of the kimchi varieties were superb, and the egg soufflé was delightful, although filling. I must admit it was too good not to overindulge.
I probably would not have ordered dessert because I was so full, but they gave me a birthday dessert as well as some fresh fruit, which was a perfect finish to a perfect meal.
Love this place and I do know there are some far less expensive options than the omakase so I do plan to be back. Highly recommended as among Miami's finest.