Wow. My first visit to Tatsu last night left me satisfied with a slight bit of questioning. The quality of the food was top level - Chef Tatsuya Sekiguchi selects high quality products, and then shows off impeccable knife skills as he slices perfect cuts right in front of our amazed eyes. Yet I have questions I'll discuss below
AMBIANCE 3/5
I enjoyed the entrance with the juxtaposition of an old wooden door next to the clean modern Japanese styled Tatsu door, then the inviting foyer where we waited for our seating. However, the actual dining area was clinical with high wood walls that look like cheap lamination with no appeal at all and diners are in a long line so there was not a communal feel. Other area small seating sushi dining experiences of 8-10 customers have felt more intimate and like a shared experience with occasional discussions between guests that led to my increased enjoyment of the evening so I've seen what it COULD be and that's why I missed it here. With more care to the layout this dining area has potential to be minimalistic yet appealing rather than stark and bright. The placing was very nice with great chopsticks carefully wrapped in a minimalistic Tatsu logo, a wooden spoon, and a folded napkin on a wooden tray. Chef Tatsuya Sekiguchi greeted us with a terse (almost grim) expression.
FOOD QUALITY 5/5
The food (and Chef Tatsuya's knife skills) are the star of the show, hands down.
The appetizers were fantastic - first dish, the asparagus was brilliantly cooked - tender yet firm enough to stand up, nice portion of fish with the jelly - just delicious. Then thin sliced sea bream followed by a perfect red fish seared on top to create a crunch and when paired with lime just sang in my mouth - thoroughly enjoyed the beginning 3 items before moving to the nigiri sushi.
Sushi selections were great - every morsel was well selected and executed. My standout was the Nodoguro TKG - sea bass in a cup with a quail egg over rice. Macerate and eat - absolutely incredible. Every time a new sushi was given to us, we had another high point of happiness. There were items I'd never had before as well like Kue (long tooth grouper) and Karuma Ebi (Japanese tiger prawn). Just watching Chef Tatsuya's knife skills was awe inspiring.
FOOD PREPARATION 4/5
You'll see very little accoutrements in the photos - if you scan all the photos ever taken at Tatsu, you'll notice uniformity - a little rice, a piece of fish and repeat. I've been internally debating if this is something I desire or not since last night's dinner. I know I loved the careful preparation with complimenting items at Yellowtail and Sushi Dallas, though, so the debate continues. Some would call the minimalistic approach "boring", but each bite was delicious - obvious care went into choosing the ingredients, cutting down the tuna, preparing the bites with Chef Tatsuya's own rice blend, marinades, and hand packing our tasty morsels. It definitely let the fish shine more but also missed opportunities to showcase pairing knowledge and ingenuity. I know for a fact that seeing a chef play with the preparation has been a huge highlight for me in past sushi experiences so it felt like a void to me, even though the food was fantastic. I just wanted a bit more personally. This is a personal taste so make your own opinion.
SERVICE 5/5
The service was impeccable. Servers anticipated our movements, filled cups quickly when empty, and folded napkins if you got up. They kept our bottle of sake out of sight and if a cup was emptied it was refilled very quickly.
OVERALL
I would go back to Tatsu just to experience Chef Tatsuya's skill absolutely. But only once in awhile - I have a short list of sushi restaurants that deliver on other points I've made above that would be in my regular rotation - just as expensive, btw. There are some great choices in DFW and I'm thinking of 3 in particular that will get my normal business because I like unique preparations and pairing, ambiance and shared experiences. So YES to Tatsu and YES to eating in DFW read more