Urban Hibachi Sushi + Grill, a minichain with three locations spread across Greater Orlando, is really slick. Or at least the Oviedo location I visited is. The decor is bright and modern with minimalist decorations.
I think maybe I just misordered.
Stopping in for lunch, I selected the Makimono Lunch Special, which allows you to choose two selections from a small list of specialty rolls. The two that sounded the most interesting to me were the Sumo and the Tokyo.
The Sumo had escolar and salmon rolled with avocado and scallions with a bit of spicy mayo dotted on top. I somehow missed the note that said the roll was deep fried, but I don’t think it would have been a deal killer anyway. I was in the mood for some escolar. Also, not at all sure why this was called the Sumo. No wrestling was involved and they certainly weren’t bigger than other rolls.
And it probably would have been a nice counterpoint to a more conventional (read: uncooked and cool) if I hadn’t also ordered the Tokyo.
That roll had takuwan (Japanese daikon, or essentially turnip), and cucumber rolled in rice coins that were topped with chunks of fish in a Japanese curry. I love Japanese curry and see it so infrequently. I was intrigued by its inclusion in a sushi roll.
The brown curry, besides not looking very palatable, wasn’t a very good representation of what a Japanese curry can be. And the chunks of fish — yellowtail, salmon, tuna, escolar, whitefish — were unevenly cooked, some just right, some a bit dry.
Both rolls showed great creativity, and again, my ordering two cooked rolls together was a bad idea. I’ll order better next time.
The lunch special came with a option of miso soup or ginger salad, the Hobson’s Choice of Japanese menus. Instead of taking nothing, I chose the miso, which is basically the same thing.
The young man doing the serving was good and knowledgeable, and a manager made a point of visiting tables to ask how they liked their food.
I fibbed, just a little. But I liked the overall experience of Urban Hibachi Sushi + Grill and look forward to trying it again.
Urban Hibachi Sushi + Grill is at 15 Alafaya Woods Blvd, Oviedo. Other locations at the website. It is open for lunch and dinner daily. The phone number in Oviedo is 407-604-3074.
