Tomo: Nobu Protégé in Atlanta

Tomo may be one of the better kept secrets for Atlanta sushi. Chef Tom Naito worked for world renowned Master Sushi Chef Nobu Matsuhisa in his Las Vegas restaurant for three years, and has now opened his own place in Vinings. Located in a Kroger shopping center just south of Cumberland Mall on Cobb Parkway, it doesn’t ooze of hipness like the Nobu’s of Vegas or Tribeca, or the clubby feel of Morimoto’s in Philadelphia. We tried ordering some sake bombs, but the waitress made it pretty clear that such behavior was frowned upon. (She did bring us beer with our sake, but the sake glass wouldn’t fit all the way inside the beer glass, so it didn’t really work.) But make no mistake; the sushi is the real deal.

We started with the Yellowtail Serano Sashimi, which included six pieces of fish, each adorned with a small jalapeno slice. My friend told me this was one of Chef Nobu’s signature items, and I wouldn’t doubt it. Excellent. At that point, we decided to live large and go with the Omakase dinner. At $50 per person, half the price of a Nobu Omakase, it’s a relative bargain.

This Omakase featured about 6 plates, and I couldn’t even begin to describe most of them. The “Live Scallop” dish was extremely memorable, if for no other reason, the waitress said the mollusk was alive no more than an hour ago. Most plates are fairly small, so I was a little concerned if we would need to order more at the conclusion of the Omakase. The final plate is a fairly large assortment of sushi, so leaving hungry is not a concern.

The sake menu is fairly extensive, and we sampled several of their varieties (which probably explains the lack of detail in this review). So bottom line, I would like to take Lady Steakhead here and try this again sometime. Being on Cobb Parkway, there is no need to go ballistic on the sake again, so I may remember a little more (and spend a little less).

Steakhead Recommends: Yes
Price: $$$