Umamiya happy hour delivers on taste, value

The sweeping curves of the Nimitz Highway in Iwilei seem like an odd place to find a good restaurant, but there you have it. Sam Choy’s Breakfast, Lunch and Crab used to be located there; now that building is the site of Liliha Bakery and Umamiya Shabu Shabu.

Perhaps the curves encourage drivers to slow down and take a look at what’s there. If they do, they won’t be disappointed.

Both establishments are run by restaurateur Peter Kim and his Yummy Restaurant Group. While Liliha Bakery continues to serve favorites, Umamiya is something relatively new, having opened a little over a year agos. Shabu shabu, the Japanese hotpot, is its highlight, but Umamimiya also offers other Japanese cuisine, as well as Korean and local dishes.

It’s especially nice to have a happy hour there, since traffic can be bad at that time of day. Might as well pull into the parking lot for a bite.

THE EXPERIENCE

Umamiya has a simple but elegant Japanese ambiance. The large main dining room is set off not so much by fancy decorations or artwork. Instead, textures are on display, from the rough-hewn stone wall along the entryway to the checked pattern on the ceiling and floor tiles. Rectangular shapes dominate, but there are also metal railings demarking aisles that have a curved, leaf-like decoration, just to break up the pattern a bit.

While happy hour is usually a time when smaller groups convene for an early dinner or snack, Umamiya offers something for larger groups as well. Private dining rooms line the main dining area, giving medium to large-size groups some privacy. If your entire office wants to go out, you can go to Umamimiya and not be concerned that you would be “taking over” the place.

Shabu Shabu is not on the happy hour menu, but having it there reminds you that it would be worthwhile to try it sometime. In fact, on Tuesdays there’s a special all-day price of $19.95 for the dish.

THE FOOD

Umamiya splits its menu into 70 percent Japanese, 20 percent Korean and 10 percent local dishes. You really don’t have to be concerned with such details at happy hour, when all you want is something easy, interesting and good. Umamimiya satisfies on all counts.

A popular happy hour item, according to manager Leslie Calledo, is the Tofu Kimchi ($9.95; regularly $11.95). I was expecting simply kimchi and tofu, but there were strips of grilled pork in the dish, a welcome addition. The tofu, meanwhile, was of the firmer variety, allowing you to clear your palate. Since I’ve found that kimchi can overpower everything else in the meal, this was a pleasant surprise.

Shrimp and prawns often appear on happy hour menus, but they’re usually coated in batter and deep fried, effectively hiding the shrimp. Tempura is a bit better, since the batter is lighter, but Umamiya goes even further with its Poached Prawns ($6.95; regularly $9.50). This is simply a plate of prawns, poached whole with the shell on, and a slice of lemon. It was great to actually taste the prawns, unadulterated by crispy, oily coating. A little squirt of lemon or a dip into the light yuzu sauce enhanced it even more.

Umamiya’s Yook Hae ($8.95; regularly $12.95) featured a beef tartare with ground meat from Korea topped by a fresh egg yolk. You might consider the raw foods daring; Calledo assured me it was safe, and I found its subtle flavor and soft texture very pleasing.

I also had the seafood pancake, ($7.95; regularly $9.50) a Chinese “bing”-like flour pancake, but filled with small shrimp and squid. It was a bit greasy – eating it fresh off the grill would be best – but the flavor and combination of crispy and chewiness satisfied as well.

THE DRINK

Umamiya offers a wide range of discounted beverages for happy hour, from $3.95 beer to $5.50 wine to fancy sake that even at happy hour goes for $37.

I tried one of their specialty cocktails, the Yuzu-licious ($9.95 regular, $7.50 happy hour), a combination of yuzu, Sprite and Ichiko shochu. It was appropriately named, but I suggest getting it on a steamy day, where quenching a humidity-induced thirst would be especially relaxing.

THE VERDICT

Umamiya is a terrific place for a happy hour snack or meal if you’re in the area. There are 11 items on the menu, so plenty of variety to make a full meal.

It apparently isn’t a secret either. By the time I left at around 6 p.m., the place had gone from nearly empty to having families and young couples dropping in, and Calledo said it tends to get full by dinner time. There’s a late happy hour as well, so go early or late for a taste of both subtle and spicy Asian and local offerings.