Uchi - What to Expect?

The Valley of the Sun, and all that is tasty therein
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ToneRanger
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Uchi - What to Expect?

Post by ToneRanger »

Hi folks, haven't posted much recently because, well, life. I'm curious what to expect from Uchi in Scottsdale.

Has anyone been to the Austin one(s)? Will this one be too "Scottsdale"? Kind of feel like I'm better off spending time and money at places like Hana and Nakano, but I am intrigued by Uchi. In the same-ish vein, been meaning to start a thread on Hai Noon, which I absolutely loved, just haven't gotten around to it.
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Skillet Doux
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Re: Uchi - What to Expect?

Post by Skillet Doux »

I hate to see this thread hanging here, because I'd love to know myself. I twice had trips to Austin lined up that ended up being cancelled. Been trying to get to Uchi for years.
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Lunchbox
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Re: Uchi - What to Expect?

Post by Lunchbox »

Funny, we went to Austin around 10ish years ago and tried to get into Uchi for a meal. But it was 2-3 years old at the time and it was like THE hottest restaurant in town at the time and we couldn't get in. Period. No tables at all. It's always intrigued me so I'm kind of excited to try the Scottsdale outpost.

FTR we wound up at Congress (now closed) and it was good but there are two stories from that dinner that I remember, one is that Chef David Bull came to the table to thank us for trying his tasting menu and I said "Thank you, good luck with the JBF award but I hope that Charleen (@FnB) beats you." He looked at me like "fuck you asshole" and then laughed and we chatted a bit and he wound up being cool about it... The guy from Underbelly in Houston won that year...

And then when you went to the bathroom the most amazing mashup I've ever heard, played only on the speaker in there. They either had it rigged up to the door so it started when you walked in or it was just on a loop, but it made my bathroom trip longer than necessary because I listened to it three or four times. I think I took a video because I needed to hear it again. Mrs. Lunchbox was like "What took you so long? Is everything ok?" :lol:

This is what I heard.
Last edited by Lunchbox on Mon Feb 05, 2024 9:45 pm, edited 1 time in total.
PHXeater
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Re: Uchi - What to Expect?

Post by PHXeater »

Went to the new Scottsdale Uchi last week and really really enjoyed it. Everything we got was absolutely fantastic with flavor and preparation off the charts. The menu was a bit overwhelming so we went with the "curated tasting" option of just letting the server select all of our dishes and providing a price range and general likes/dislikes. It was not cheap, but he worked very well within the budget given (we gave $250 but he actually came in around $200 and we left quite full) and we got a great variety of dishes without feeling like any throwaway type dishes were put in. The wagyu carpaccio and the walu walu were two standouts for us. The kinoko nabe is a dish at all Uchi locations and absolutely worth a try as well. And of course, all the sushi was impecabbly fresh.

It definitely has a Scottsdale vibe but not like you're in a club. The only issue, which other online reviews back up, is that the sushi bar was taking a really long time to get food out. It was not ideal, but certainly one should expect some kinks need to get ironed out the first couple weeks open. Much credit to our server who proactively communicated on the timing and let us decide how to pace the meal - we opted to have the kitchen send out the hot food even if the pacing wasn't quite right as we had a babysitter waiting at home!

I have also been to the Dallas Uchi but it was a business dinner and I wasn't ordering, so hard to draw a true comparison as the two dining experiences were much different.
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exit2lef
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Re: Uchi - What to Expect?

Post by exit2lef »

PHXeater wrote: Tue Feb 20, 2024 9:56 pm It was not cheap, but he worked very well within the budget given (we gave $250 but he actually came in around $200 and we left quite full) and we got a great variety of dishes without feeling like any throwaway type dishes were put in.
Was that per person or for the table?
PHXeater
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Re: Uchi - What to Expect?

Post by PHXeater »

exit2lef wrote: Wed Feb 21, 2024 5:12 am
PHXeater wrote: Tue Feb 20, 2024 9:56 pm It was not cheap, but he worked very well within the budget given (we gave $250 but he actually came in around $200 and we left quite full) and we got a great variety of dishes without feeling like any throwaway type dishes were put in.
Was that per person or for the table?
Oops. Total for the table - so for 2 of us.
mattrozen
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Re: Uchi - What to Expect?

Post by mattrozen »

Sat and did 10 course Omakase at the sushi bar Sunday Night. Was 250$ for two people and was phenomenal. One of the better meals we have had in a while. Sat at 715 and left around 930. Felt timing was not fast but was appropriate. Service was spot on and the two cocktails I had were very good as well.
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