After seven years apart, chef Vikram Garg has returned to the Halekulani fold as the creative force behind UMI by Vikram Garg in Halepuna Waikiki by Halekulani.

The chef had carte blanche to create the restaurant of his dreams and came up with the seafood-centric venue.

Strangely enough for an island, Oahu has had few seafood-focused restaurants over the years. John Dominis and Monterey Bay Canners come to mind. More recently, there have been PESCA Waikiki Beach and Paia Fish House that moved over from Maui, but that’s about it.

For Garg, “umi,” which means “ocean” in Japanese, and “mother” in Arabic, are symbols of abundance and nurturing and he’s eager to share both with diners.

The restaurant is built on Garg’s philosophy of simplicity, combining fresh seafood and fine technique without heavy saucing to allow the beauty of the seafood to shine through.

In the morning, he serves an internationally inspired breakfast that includes a masala omelet with onion, tomato, cilantro, turmeric and jalapeño served with a side of leek-potato gratin; traditional French toast soaked overnight in eggs, cream and spices; and a wonderful chariot du pain, a daily selection of housemade pastries, sourdough, multigrain and milk bread served with all-house-made cultured butter, Kula strawberry and hibiscus jam, caramelized milk jam and chocolate spread. Such wonderful condiments that it made me eat more carbs than I normally would.

But it’s in the evening that the UMI concept springs to life through a series of $79 to $159 tasting menus, and an a la carte menu.

At the low end, the tasting menu features another of Garg’s specialties, Indian curry with seafood, chicken or vegetarian options. It starts with an arugula salad and ends with dessert of brown butter and vanilla bean ice cream.

The $99 Waikiki menu starts with diced kampachi and jicama, popcorn soup, rib-eye and rice, and ends with lilikoi pavlova for dessert.

UMI’s $159 tasting menu features scallop carpaccio, mushroom-crusted abalone, lobster, rib-eye, rice, and dessert of matcha sponge cake with black sesame and ginger.

If you really want to treat yourself to something special, splurge on Garg’s caviar and roe, a decadent creation that starts with an onsen egg in a pool of rich burdock cream with finger lime and your choice of smoked ikura or the chef’s private collection of Osetra ($149) or Golden Osetra ($199) caviar. What a way to start a meal.

Many dishes are inspired by the light touch of Japanese cuisine, so cold-smoked oysters ($18) are seasoned with no more than tosazu gelee, a lightly vinegared dashi that allows the oysters to shine.

Similarly, thin-sliced scallop carpaccio ($25) is interspersed with cucumber namasu that adds brightness to the dish without detracting from the sweetness of the scallops.

And I loved the simple silkiness of diced kampachi ($25) accented by the light crunch of jicama, with non-spicy shishito vinaigrette.

Ahi lovers might favor the tuna crudo ($27) with daikon, cured lemon and tobiko, and to throw a bone to meat lovers in your group there is a beef tartare ($26) with avocado, wasabi and a touch of mustard, served with crostini.

If by now you are in need of greens, there is an arugula salad ($18) with crunchy bits of onion tempura and tamarind vinaigrette. And, to make the meal more filling, there are light, airy fish and chips ($29) accompanied by a tempura dipping sauce.

At this point, you’ll arrive at main courses that include miso-crusted monchong ($45); silky Ora King salmon ($43) dripping with ikura, accompanied by Maui onion and sesame eggplant; and rib-eye steak ($73) with soy-pepper sauce and okra tempura.

And for dessert, it doesn’t get much better than a sundae ($17) of brown-butter ice cream finished with chocolate fudge and toffee.

UMI by Vikram Garg

Halepuna Waikiki by Halekulani
2233 Helemoa Road, Honolulu
Food: ****
Service: ****
Ambiance: ****
Value: ***½
Call: 808-744-4244
Hours: 7-11 a.m. breakfast; 5:30-10 p.m. dinner (last seating 8:30 p.m.)
Prices: About $200 for dinner for two; byob until liquor license is obtained

Nadine Kam’s restaurant visits are unannounced and paid for by Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Follow Nadine on Instagram (@nadinekam) or on YouTube (youtube.com/nadinekam).