Shibui Japanese Restaurant

I would like to start my first review with my favorite sushi restaurant: Shibui Japanese Restaurant, located at 10141 SW 72nd Street Miami, FL 33173.  While I absolutely love sushi and enjoy trying it at different locations, I tend to be careful and stick to places I feel use only fresh fish. I have been going to Shibui for over 13 years and have yet to have a negative experience.

Tuna Sandwich

Shrimp Tempura

Let's start with the food. Their rolls are very creative and substantial in size. While I have tried many of their appetizers and have been pleased, from their Soft-Shell Crabs to their Shrimp Tempura, the one that keeps me coming back for more is their Tuna Sandwich. It is amazing! Fresh spicy tuna inside bread shaped rice. Yum! I will tell you it is very filling, so keep that in mind when ordering the rest of your food! 

Moving on to the rolls...I haven't had one that has disappointed me yet, but my favorite ones which I repeat over and over are their Volcano Roll, an inside out roll, with salmon, cream cheese, avocado, and cucumber, topped with a special sauce made with cooked conch, mayo and masago. Truly, the the best I've tried in any sushi restaurant. Also among my favorites is their Spicy Tuna Roll. While pretty popular in most sushi restaurants, I find the one here is unique in its size and taste. It is prepared with raw tuna, avocado, cucumber, lettuce, nori, and your choice of either spicy mayo or red spicy mayo. I personally always order it with the spicy mayo, which is not too spicy but has enough of a kick to flavor the tuna, making it totally scrumptious. The next sushi gem in my book is the Bagel Roll;  a new wave roll created with raw salmon, cream cheese and scallions, and sealed with cooked  translucent seaweed that makes you lick your fingers; and finally their Top Roll, made with tuna, salmon, white filet of fish, crabmeat, masago, avocado, scallions, rice and nori.  Delicious! When I'm in the mood for a little cooked fish as well, I absolutely love their Caliente Roll, prepared with cooked fish, spicy mayo, lettuce, rice and nori. Nothing compares!

Continuing with the ambiance, it is quite different than other sushi restaurants. While the restaurant is small, it includes a nice twist. If you want to have a more authentic dining experience, you can choose to sit on the second floor, where you are actually sitting on cushions on the floor. Very nice when out on a date! If you are more traditional, they have regular tables and chairs on the first floor.

Blue Raspberry Sake

Volcano Chocolate Mousse

If you like sake, and want to experience something different, they have a delicious cold sake drink called Blue Raspberry Sake that you will not get enough of. It comes with sugar around the rim of the glass and berries inside. Trust me, you cannot have just one! And what would dinner be without dessert? You definitely want to try their Volcano Chocolate Mousse. A hard chocolate shell covers a creamy chocolate mousse inside; and is served with whipped cream and cherries. Finally, the service is very good. They are all friendly and aim to please. Now, one caveat. It is usually a good idea to make reservations. The restaurant can get very full on the weekends and if you don't have a reservation, you might have to wait for a long time. Give it a try, and tell me what you think. Here is their phone number and website: 305 274-5578. www.shibuimiami.com.