Kissaki is a New York City export offering affordable omakase from a handsome, lounge-like space at the southern tip of South Beach. It’s not trying for the authentically Japanese approach that’s defined Miami omakase in the past, instead offering a more entertaining experience headlined by a fusion menu.
The vibe is Club-Restaurant Lite, the beats kept low enough for conversation, the lights dim and the high ceilings making the 3,000-square-foot dining room feel spacious. It’s all very attractive, though we wish they’d copied the East Village restaurant’s counter, where you can watch the chefs at work. Here, there’s a short ledge obscuring the view.
An a la carte menu is available, but stick with the chef’s choice. At $94 for seven courses, it might be Miami’s best omakase deal. We were told this option arrives on carts similar to the ones employed in the two New York locations, but they hadn’t rolled it out yet when we visited.
Instead, we got the 15-course option at $185, covering three apps, 10 pieces of nigiri, a hand roll and dessert. Officially, the executive chef overseeing the kitchen is Edgar Valerio from New York. But behind this counter is Yair Gaona, a gregarious and talented sushi chef from Monterrey, Mexico, who will slice tuna belly while also talking about his favorite tacos (El Porky—an excellent choice).
Some of the best bites we had came first: white fish wrapped around a grapefruit segment with a slice of black truffle on top; corn on a crispy seaweed wafer with tuna, caviar and truffle; and chopped wagyu on brioche with caramelized onions.
If the meal stopped there it would’ve been great, but now we were on to the nigiri section of the night, a series of tuna and white fish and uni, all often topped with sauces that add ingredients that skewed Latin in ways that feel very Miami, quite often flamed in front of you.
Dessert gets the torch too, a soft-in-the-center, French toast-like number topped with sugar and then bruleed until a glorious, crusty exterior forms.
At the tables behind us, we spotted a sea bream and mushroom shabu shabu and an A5 wagyu steak getting grilled on a hot stone. At $24 and $36 respectively, these would be unbelievable prices in a west Kendall strip mall, so finding them in the South of Fifth neighborhood at a trendy New York clone makes Kissaki feel like a restaurant unicorn.
These days, there’s lots of excellent omakase in Miami. But the combination of a vibe-heavy space serving creative dishes at relatively affordable prices just might make Kissaki a new favorite.