Yume Sushi
Arlington / Japanese / $$$$
A meal at the sushi counter passes like a luxe fantasy covered in gold leaf, a maximalist reverie of wagyu and otoro. In short, this is not traditional omakase. The restaurant is aptly named for the Japanese word that means “dream,” after all.
Yes, there are spicy tuna rolls and individual pieces of nigiri, but that’s not the point. The reason to visit Yume Sushi is to indulge. Chef Saran Kannasute presides over a kitchen stocked with some of the most expensive ingredients you’ll find. If you aren’t enamored with the silky, sweetly briny melt of fresh Hokkaido-harvested sea urchin, his oeuvre probably isn’t for you.
In a seven-course tasting, uni first appears in the form of a pasta dish, with lobes of the shellfish reposing over skinny noodles dressed in garlic butter. Globes of gleaming orange ikura and a small shower of French caviar sit on top, ready to be mixed in with the noodles, popping with each bite. You’ll see it again in at least one other application, perhaps over a torchon of monkfish liver, the foie gras of the sea. But as the word omakase, which means “I shall leave it up to you,” suggests, it is best to simply sink into a meal here and lap up the decadence.
See this: Sit at the sushi bar for the best view of both the chefs at work and the graffiti-style mural behind them.
Eat this: Uni pasta, A5-wagyu-foie-gras nigiri, The Winner
Service: Though not as sleek as the kitchen operation, the team gets the job done.
When to dine here: You’ve got a date who’s wowed by the finer things.
Feature image by Rey Lopez
This post originally appeared in our November 2021 issue’s Best Restaurants cover story. For more food reviews, subscribe to our weekly newsletter.
