I like the experience of Michelin-starred restaurants, I enjoy traditional sushi (i.e. Edomae-zushi), and I really like when they combine into a Michelin-starred sushi restaurants.
In January I had a week where I visited all three of Miami's Michelin-starred sushi restaurants: Hiden, Shingo, and Ogawa (which is the order in which they were established). I've also gone in recent years to two of the starred sushi restaurants in Tampa (Koya and Kosen). All five were one-star, though I've also experienced two-star (Sushi Masaki Saito in Toronto, since dropped to one) and three-star (Masa in NYC) sushi restaurants - as well as other places that have been exceptional but simply weren't in cities with a Guide.
All of this is to say, I know my way around both the dining style and the experiences and expectations set by such restaurants. I'm not the person to just toss laurels on a place because they make above-average sushi. I think it's also unfair to reserve a 5-star review for only a three-star restaurant, or assume that any Michelin starred experience should receive a top review.
These initial paragraphs are a boilerplate intro I'm putting atop all three reviews for Hiden, Shingo, and Ogawa because I want each to be taken in context of the others and the experiences I had.
If you want the short version. All three were worthy, but there was a clear pecking order that happens to correspond to the inverse of when they opened: (1) Ogawa, (2) Shingo, (3) Hiden. Hiden established the scene, the initial head chef of Hiden opened Shingo, and (soon after) Ogawa opened to compete with the other two.
Hiden's name is a play on their unique angle: The restaurant is a small place tucked in the back of The Taco Stand, a casual Mexican restaurant in Wynwood; you walk to the back of the restaurant and use the keypad to enter a unique code you received via email to gain entry.
Let's get it out of the way: It's a gimmick and kind of silly. The same San Diego restaurateurs own both the eateries. It's not as distracting and bad as the screen at Montreal's Sushi Okeya Kyujiro (which didn't end up getting a star and does not deserve one), but it feels incongruous to what the restaurant is now - a first class, intimate 8-seat dining experience.
Hiden introduced Miami to the concept of high caliber Edomae, i.e. the traditional sushi experience served chef's choice (omakase) served over a multicourse meal. It's a compact space with a handful of servers aiding chef Seijun Okano and his assistant, Yair Goana. The entire experience is first class, functional, and pleasant.
The menu is good; the fish is excellent quality. They start with some intriguing chef-driven items, on my visit they had a thin-sliced scallop sashimi (usuzukuri-style) with a striking Tosazu (vinegar) that made it pop. It was followed by warm and comforting sea urchin toast, tuna prepared in the square-simmer style (Kakuni) usually reserved for pork belly, and salt-grilled rockfish. The traditional sushi section was good, the rice stayed mostly together, and the meal finished with a handroll, broth, and desert.
The meal is handled efficiently, the staff supporting the meal is ready to serve pairings, individual pours, and/or just work with you on your beverage experience.
It's good, you won't be disappointed. But how do I compare it with its rivals Ogawa and Shingo? When I sat down to compare the three--and Hiden was my final visit--there was something that felt a little colder than the other two, and I think I know where it comes from: This is a restaurant that is owned and run by the restauranteurs who have several holdings, and when their previous chef, Shingo Akikuni, left to start his eponymous spot, this system reloaded with chef Okano. Shingo felt a little more personal, and Ogawa had its own flair that clearly came from its chef co-owner Masayuki Komatsu.
Does that mean Hiden doesn't deserve to have one-star? Not at all. If anything, Ogawa is making a case for being the two-star option. If you forced me to rank all 5 of the Florida Michelin sushi spots I've tried, I'd say Ogawa, Koya (Tampa), Shingo, Hiden and Kosen (Tampa) in that order.
As a one-star Edomae experience compared against its rivals, I'd give this a 4-star rating, as a restaurant it's a classic 5.