Kenichi: A Review

The Austin branch of Kenichi is a chic little place downtown. The host was quite gracious to us when we entered and he sat our party quickly, even though we all looked pretty haggard (we'd just walked 5 blocks from Flugtag and were hot, cranky, and sweaty). The decor was very modern and warm and the other patrons were well-dressed and sipping expensive-looking drinks. I honestly felt out of place, but none of the staff seemed to notice, which speaks really well of their professionalism and hospitality.

At the table we were presented with steamed paper towels instead of cloths. (Am I too much of a traditionalist to want cloth?) We also had to wait a little longer than we expected to be greeted by our waiter and have our drink orders taken. I had a Metropolitan, a mix of raspberry vodka and berry liqueur. It was refreshing, and most importantly, it soothed the frustration headache Flugtag had given me. For an appetizer we had spicy edamame in the pod. It arrived steaming hot, coated in what I assumed was a spicy hoisin sauce. Delicious!

Kenichi offers a wide variety of food, including Pan Asian entres and a long roster of sushi choices. For my entre I ordered some fairly standard stuff: sweet potato tempura, spicy tuna rolls, and shrimp tempura rolls. I usually get 3 rolls when dining for sushi, but since each roll cost at least $9, I held back in favor of getting a refill on my $10.50 drink. The sweet potato was great --- the tempura was light and crunchy. The dipping sauce was nothing to write home about so I pushed it aside and favored the soy sauce instead. The two maki rolls I had were tasty, but not the best I've ever had. Certainly not for $9 a pop.

So for $61, I got some decent food and a mildly pleasant experience. Not bad, but not mind-blowing either. This is not a good first date restaurant --- it's very noisy and busy, especially on Saturday night. While the food is good, you can get the same quality or better for less money elsewhere. The staff is neat, accommodating and professional, which is really the only reason I would return, as Austin is full of restaurants that treat customers poorly "just because." Oh, and the ladies room is the last door on the left. There are no standard men's and women's room signs on the doors, only 3 fish, pointing in meaningless opposite directions.