My tweeps @melissa808, @nonstopmari, @lenahanson and I checked out Umami, a new Japanese coffee and sandwich shop at Harbor Court. Umami opened a few weeks ago in the space formerly occupied by Satura Cakes. While the new owners didn’t do much to change the interior or exterior, the vibe is definitely trendy Japanese. Think Shirokiya food court but with a Martha Stewart flair. Everything in Umami is beautifully packaged and every time I’m there, I wander aimlessly looking at all the pretty things to eat. Although it’s a “grab and go” eatery, they have a lot to offer for breakfast and lunch with a variety of bentos, sushi, sandwiches, daily specials, coffee and tea drinks and of course, desserts.
Since Melissa and Mari were there to do “research” for their NonStopHonolulu website, we ordered a lot of items to share (it was a tad embarrassing). On today’s menu: kalbi fried rice, lobster sandwich, lobster inari, salmon BLT, char siu pizza and a Reuben sandwich. I think we all agreed that the lobster sandwich was the hands down winner. Delicate lobster salad on fluffy white bread, ’nuff said. The lobster inari was also good however the lobster was a bit overpowered by the sushi rice and aburage but if you like cone sushi, you’ll like this item. We also liked the kalbi fried rice which was your basic fried rice with sliced kalbi. If there was a side of kim chee, it would have been perfect! Lena also ordered soup and Mari ordered a sushi hand roll and a couple of bentos to go.
As for dessert, we tried the strawberry shortcake and the red velvet cake. I had a piece of the red velvet cake last week and thought it was dry so I was very surprised when it was actually pretty good today. Don’t worry mom, your red velvet cake reigns supreme and you could probably make a fortune if you sold your recipe to Umami. I was disappointed with the strawberry shortcake which consisted of both chocolate and vanilla sponge cake.
Overall, I think it’s a great place for breakfast or lunch. It’s nice to have a eatery that doesn’t require me traipsing through downtown in three-inch heels. Business appears to be brisk so I’m hopeful that it will continue to thrive. They also cater so it’s perfect for a downtown lunch meeting. Thanks to my tweeps for a great lunch!
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- Tasty pizza with generous portions of char siu but the sauce was a bit spicy.
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- I liked this version of cone sushi. A side of karaage or garlic chicken would have been great.
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- Lobster sandwich…yum! I think this is my new favorite sandwich!
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- Kalbi fried rice. I would eat this again!
Looks good, Shawn!