Natsu Omakase was one of my favorite spots in Orlando for great nigiri in a quiet, intimate setting. It has been shuttered for almost a year now. Chef Stone has moved on to become head chef at Kappo Sushi, and the space that used to house his Michelin starred sushi counter has been rebranded under new ownership as AoBa Omakase, with Chef Kenny at the helm.
AoBa is only a couple of weeks into its soft opening, so not everything is running cohesively yet, and online reservations through OpenTable only recently opened up. There’s a $100 13 course menu on weekdays, which is a great deal, and a $160 18 course menu on weekends. I came on a Saturday night to see what they had in store.
Oyster with Hokkaido Uni Good
We started with an amuse bouche of raw oyster topped with beautifully vibrant orange Hokkaido uni. This was great: rich, briny and sweet. If you love raw shellfish, it doesn’t get much fresher than this, and I say that as someone who doesn’t even like oysters.
Scallop Crudo Interesting
The scallop crudo came with sea grapes, a gelee and marinated eggplant underneath. I found this dish a bit odd. I don’t think I’ve ever had eggplant with raw seafood before, and since scallops are delicate in flavor, the eggplant’s vegetal notes overpowered the dish for me.
Tuna Tartare with Caviar Good
This was a good appetizer. The tuna was rich but not fishy and paired well with the briny caviar, and the egg yolk added more decadence. It came with a shiso leaf tempura, and I wish there had been more than one leaf. If the idea was to eat it like chip and dip, shiso tempura is too delicate to work as a delivery vehicle.
Sweet Shrimp Interesting
Sweet shrimp is one of my favorite sushi ingredients, so I thought I’d like this more than I did. It came with a meringue style foam and what I assume was shaved cured fish roe on a little cracker. The salted roe was quite fishy, the cracker on the bottom was stale, and I’m not a fan of foamy meringue textures.
The plating was also a bit odd, with unnecessary flowers and the dish sitting awkwardly on a piece of paper with chives. They really like to garnish with flowers here.
Horsehair Crab Soup Interesting
I don’t think I’ve had anything like this at a sushi restaurant before. It’s a very savory, slightly sweet and thick seafood soup made with Japanese horsehair crab. I liked the soup, which had a lot of umami, but the dumpling ball in the middle took away from the dish. I would have preferred plain picked crab meat as a garnish, since the ball was like an overly starchy fish ball.
Amadai Good
The final cooked course was a piece of amadai, a fish I don’t think I’ve had before. It was very well cooked, and you can tell from the crispy skin with the scales puffed up. It’s a mild, flaky fish, so it pairs well with a sauce. The accompaniments of foam and figs seemed out of place to me, especially the figs, which felt more like palate cleansers than part of a cohesive dish.
The Nigiri and Wet Aged Fish
Something I haven’t come across at any other Japanese restaurant in Orlando is a place that specializes in wet aged fish. Dry aging is the go to for both fish and steak and has become almost synonymous with aging in general. I personally prefer wet aging for sushi since I like my sushi moist, and dry aging certain fish can leave it a bit dry and dense. Wet aging also preserves more weight, which means more pieces of nigiri per fish.
The nigiri covers a lot of classic cuts that I’ve eaten plenty of times, and I don’t have such a nuanced sushi palate that I can intricately describe every single piece. A couple of pieces were served taco shaped, handroll style with seaweed, which I found pretty interesting. The salmon was a very thick cut that nearly coated my tongue in fattiness, even more so than the otoro.
The sushi portion of the dinner was stronger than the hot courses at the beginning. I still think the old Natsu was more refined, while Chef Kenny likes to add some of his own creations.
Wagyu Foie Gras Truffle Bowl Good
The last savory dish tasted extremely familiar to what I’ve had at Sushi Izuki. By this point in the meal I was really stuffed and couldn’t handle much more, especially something this oily and decadent, even though it was only a few bites of food.
Foie Gras Truffle Ice Cream Interesting
Dessert was a foie gras truffle ice cream with a berry compote on top. I like liver flavor in general, but I prefer it not in my desserts, so this was just okay for me. An ice cream without such strong savory notes would have been a better way to end the meal.
Not pictured was a ginger creme brulee inspired by Hong Kong steamed milk pudding, since the chef is from Hong Kong. This was also just alright. I don’t like ginger in desserts, but if you like things like root beer floats, I could see it being up your alley.
Mood and Atmosphere
The restaurant looks exactly the same as it did a year ago under Chef Stone: the knife stands, the music box and the wall accessories are all unchanged. It’s still a modern, small format sushi counter in the heart of downtown Orlando.
Service wise, the chef and the co-owner who hosted were both very friendly and eager to please and accommodate. I could see that eagerness being taken advantage of by certain kinds of customers, so I think they should relax a little and let their work take center stage. For tea lovers, they were more than happy to keep my cup topped off with complimentary hot tea throughout dinner.
- ✓Wet aged nigiri you won’t find anywhere else in Orlando.
- ✓The $100 weekday menu and 5% fee make it a strong value.
- ✓Oyster with Hokkaido uni was a great opener.
- ✗Appetizers like the scallop crudo and sweet shrimp were misses.
- ✗Both desserts leaned on savory or ginger flavors.
Is AoBa Omakase Worth It?
On pricing, when I booked through OpenTable there was no standard 20% gratuity fee at checkout, only a 5% fee, which is very low by American standards. If you’re reading this in the future, they may have changed it already. At the time I booked, the total was easily cheaper than any prix fixe restaurant I’ve been to in Orlando, which makes the $100 weekday menu a strong value.
Tips for Visiting AoBa Omakase
- Go on a weekday for the $100 13 course menu. It’s the more affordable deal compared to the $160 18 course weekend menu.
- Check the current gratuity since the 5% fee at checkout may change.
- Come hungry because the later courses, like the wagyu foie gras truffle bowl and the foie gras ice cream, are rich and filling.
- Plan for parking. Free parking is very limited, but there is a paid garage behind the restaurant.
