Omo by Jont’s Salon Menu: A Second Chance, Same Verdict on Value
I enjoy fine dining but don’t do it as much as I used to since it’s an expensive hobby, and life just happened where we don’t have as much time to sit around for hours waiting dish by dish through a prix fixe. But I was browsing for anything new in the Orlando food scene and came across the fact that Omo by Jont had a mini set course menu for $78, so I had to give them another try after my less than glowing review of them in my Orlando Michelin Star rankings, which has since lost a couple of starred restaurants.
Crab Tartlet And Shima Aji Nori Roll
We started with the snacks, which was a crab tartlet. Honestly I cannot remember the taste in great detail compared to the other dishes, but it was okay. I wish it was bigger and more substantial, but some mild crab meat in a delicate little shell is nothing to complain about.
This wasn’t great. The rice filling on the inside was a bit mushy and had no bite to it, though it was flavorful, more of a paella consistency than say a handroll. The outside nori was a thick sheet, like if they compressed multiple sheets and deep fried or dehydrated it into a cylindrical shape, similar to something I once saw a chef who looked like Adam Levine do on an episode of On The Line by the Bon Appetit YouTube channel.
The nori was stale and must have been sitting too long because it felt like chewing on construction paper and wasn’t shatteringly crispy like I was expecting. Overall not the best start to the dinner, and the tiny one-biters just made me hungry for more food.
Scallop Crudo
The next dish was another appetizer, a scallop crudo, and with all the colors it looks almost like a bowl of Korean bingsu rather than a seafood dish. The scallop was fresh with a nice brininess, and the seasoning was citrusy and sweet. I would have preferred it more savory and done without the addition of nuts. I didn’t think it paired well since everything else on the plate was tender and soft.
Main Courses: Wagyu/Madai Good
The main dish of the evening is either the wagyu or the madai depending on the diner’s choice. I got the wagyu since I thought it would be more filling, and my friend got the madai. I took a picture of both, but since everything had been a small portion I didn’t take him up on his offer to try a bite.
The wagyu was Australian and was tender and juicy as expected, and the jus was very flavorful and umami packed. The deep fried shiitake mushroom with the filling inside was really good, with a very aromatic flavor, and the crisp outer shell reminded me of a fried taro dumpling I would sometimes get at dim sum restaurants. This was unsurprisingly the best dish of the night.
Cherry Chocolate Choux
Our final course was dessert, a little chocolate cherry cream puff with a chocolate disk garnish and some chocolate sauce. They call it the cherry, but chocolate is the dominant flavor here and the cherry isn’t as pronounced, which I like since I am not the biggest fan of cherry flavored things. The chocolate is high quality and rich without being overwhelmingly thick and cloying, and the slight hints of cherry add an extra layer of fruitiness to the overall dessert. It was good, but my favorite cream puffs will still have to go to Light on the Sugar.
Atmosphere & Mood
This is a beautiful restaurant, as most fine dining restaurants are, you are paying for the environment as much as you are the food and service. This menu is served in the Salon, which is basically their fancy reception area up front. You can opt to sit at the bar or, like me, decide to sit at one of their coffee table style setups lower to the ground.
The Salon feels like entering a rich European hunter’s home wine bar. The chairs are comfy though they get a little warm after an hour or so of sitting, and the space is modern and cozy. The bear rugs can elicit some polarizing opinions, but that is their design style. It has a very Park Avenue feel. I won’t cover much of the other parts of the restaurant, which contain two other rooms, since I didn’t eat there today, but I do like their main kitchen counter the best.
At the end of the day it’s still a small portion of food and came out to over $200 for two people, which required a follow-up trip to Shake Shack for round two. If I’m judging on taste and technique, this place is decent, but there still isn’t a wow factor for me. If I’m judging based on price and how full I actually felt, the Salon prix fixe is hard to justify, and I think doing the full Omo by Jont course menu is a better, fuller experience.
- ✓Fried stuffed mushroom was good and unique.
- ✓Beautiful restaurant environment.
- ✓Ingredients are high quality and dishes have fine dining finesse.
- ✗The food is pricey for the portion size.
- ✗The snack dish needs some refining.
Tips for Visiting
- The Salon accepts walk-ins but best to plan ahead.
- The Salon also has an a la carte menu for those that are still hungry.
- Budget over $200 for two and consider a backup plan for food afterward
- The Salon has a lower commitment, shorter format than the full tasting menu if you want a taste of Omo by Jont without the full time investment
- This is a taste and technique win, value loss so go in knowing which one matters more to you.
