M Tempura

Stopped by here for a friends birthday dinner and tried the omakase. Make sure to make reservations ahead of time as the space is on the smaller side and very popular.FOOD The omakase was $75 and definitely very filling. There were raw dishes, tempura, a meal, and dessert. We were already nicely full after tempura and were surprised with the bowl of ikura and fish. Very yummy, but flavoring is on the saltier/strong side. SERVICE No complaints on service. Our waitress was super attentive and nice! AMBIANCE LOVE LOVE LOVE the vibe of the spot. From the tiny fish detailing to the plush hand towels in the bathroom. Overall, worth a try, but not the best omakase spot I've had in the area! Giving it 5 stars since our server was so good. It was our friends birthday, and she caught on quickly and gave him a complimentary champagne.

I finally got reservations at M Tempura (hot commodity after Chef Savannah killed it in Top Chef)! We opted for the omakase meal, which was such a great experience sitting at the bar and getting served the steaming hot tempura course straight from the fryer by Chef Savannah. This is the perfect location in the heart of downtown Durham.We started with the chawanmushi, which was perfectly silky, and the smoke flavor here was phenomenal. Next up was the salmon crudo - the mango in the aji amarillo added a touch of sweetness which balanced out the spiciness, and the fried shallots on top added a lovely crunch. Moving on to the tuna tartare, which wrapped up into the perfect bite with a slight spiciness and sweetness. The 4th course was the tempura sampler of 8 items - everything was served fresh out of the fryer, perfectly fried, and the tempura batter was light and crispy. It was served with a platter of dipping sauce, salt, lemon, and pickled veg (cauliflower, mushroom, zucchini) for a palate cleanser. The "meal" of miso-marinated seabass was flaky and moist, and balanced perfectly by the spice of the wasabi, acidity and sweetness from the pickled daikon, and brininess of the salmon roe. We finished up the omakase with a zingy, refreshing ginger ice cream.What a freaking phenomenal meal. This was the absolute best experience. I was definitely fangirling the whole time, and cannot wait to come back to try more delicious cooking from Chef Savannah. OMAKASE*Chawanmushi: steamed egg custard, blue crab, smoked trout roe*Salmon Crudo: scottish salmon, aji amarillo, black tobiko*Tuna Tartare: toasted inari, nori*Tempura: pink prawn w/ head, soft-shell prawn, shishito pepper, maitake mushroom, chilean seabass, maine lobster tail, scallop w/ caviar, brie cheese + nori + black truffle + honey*Miso-marinated seabass, house-cured ikura, pickled daikon, kizami wasabi relish *Ginger ice cream w/ ginger candy

I love M Tempura. The past couple of years I've gone for a solo birthday trip gift to myself and they never disappoint. The tempura course is an extremely unique experience, and their Omakase and Kaiseki meals have contained some of the best things I've ever eaten, especially the Lobster Shabu. The Chawanmushi is also a highlight. The only thing I'm not a fan of is the tempura Brie with honey and truffle. Maybe it's just not for me, but I've eaten it each time I've gone hoping I like it this time but it has not grown on me. Staff is very welcoming and friendly, love watching the show from the bar. I feel fine dining by myself there.

After watching Chef Stephanie on Top Chef, I wanted to try one of her restaurants when I was in the area.M sushi was full and had a 1.5 hr wait but M Tempura a few blocks down had plenty of seating.I was hesitant to try a multi-course tempura centric dinner at first but glad I did as this tempura is super light and not oily. It reminded me of good tempura places in Osaka Japan.The menu featured some classic preparations (shrimp, mushrooms, etc) as well as some new fusion flavors that all worked very well together.My favorite was the soft shell shrimp that was so flavorful. The crab chawanmushi was also well made and creamy.Highly recommend trying the Omakase by sitting at the bar and watching the chefs prepare your dishes.

M Tempura's kaiseki (Japanese multi-course dinner) was one of the best dining experiences we've had in the Triangle. It's ideal for a romantic date, special occasion, or if you just want to treat yourself and indulge. The food and service were outstanding. That's all you need to know. For details, keep reading.The restaurant opened in October 2018 in downtown Durham, across from city hall. I suggest parking in the nearby Chapel Hill Street Parking Garage at 326 E Chapel Hill St. At the time of writing this, parking there costs $2.25 per hour, Monday-Friday, 8am-7pm. Otherwise, it's free.M Tempura is part of M Restaurants, named after Korean-American chef-owner Michael Lee. He started with M Sushi in January 2016. M Sushi has the best sushi in the Triangle, in my opinion. Then came M Kokko (September 2016), M Tempura, M Pocha (June 2019), M Sushi Cary (September 2022), and M Test Kitchen (April 2023). The latter two are located in Cary's Fenton mixed-use development. The rest are in Durham. These restaurants really helped elevate the Triangle dining scene.M Tempura is a small restaurant with a low-key, intimate atmosphere. The bar and dining room share the same space. That said, it doesn't feel cramped in here unlike M Kokko. The ambiance here is nicer.This place is popular. It got completely full during our Saturday visit. Book your reservation using OpenTable. Unfortunately, I didn't get any dining points from M Tempura. I did get the standard 100 points each from M Sushi and M Pocha. What up with that?I found the name "M Tempura" to be a bit misleading because the restaurant offers way more than just tempura. Only one of the 10 courses in our kaiseki was tempura. During our visit, they offered a $38 tempura tasting as well as tempura a la carte ($4-14 each). There was also an "M Omakase" menu ($75/person) similar to, but not as involved as, the kaiseki ($127/person).Here's what our kaiseki consisted of:* Course 1: Sakizuki (amuse bouche) - NC grass-fed bison tartare, egg yolk, black truffles, sunchoke* Course 2: Otsukuri (sashimi/raw dish) - chef's choice sashimi of the day; for us, it was chutoro* Course 3: Ni-mono (steamed dish) - chawanmushi, steamed egg custard, crab, ponzu, trout roe, walnut oil* Course 4: Atsu-mono (warm dish) - scallop from Hokkaido, Japan, curried cauliflower puree, kaluga caviar* Course 5: Age-mono (tempura/fried) - pink prawns (my substitute was eel), lobster, maitake, asparagus* Course 6: Sui-mono (soup/broth) - shabu-shabu, dashi, ponzu sauce; we were served Hawaiian amberjack and sea bream* Course 7: Yaki-mono (grilled dish) - Wagyu "pave" (a.k.a. "flake steak"), soy-cured egg yolk* Course 8: Shokuji (rice/meal) - blue crab hand roll (my substitute was a tuna tartare with tobiko hand roll), ikura, miso soup* Course 9: Pre-Dessert - monaka, foie gras, persimmon, Fruity Pebbles; paired with complimentary sauternes* Course 10: Dessert - chef's choice ice cream -- yuzu mango ice cream topped with raspberry sorbetDrinks* Born "Gold" Junmai Daiginjo Sake (8 oz carafe for $25)* Glass of the Santiago Ruiz, Albarino, Pontevedra, Spain (5 oz for $15)Every course was delicious, equally fantastic, and gorgeously presented. It was evident that each course was well thought out and carefully executed. The food quality was fresh and superb.Something I appreciated was the substitutions because of my crustacean allergy (see Courses 5 and 8). They weren't afterthoughts. In fact, my wife admitted she was jealous of the tempura eel substitute I received instead of prawns.The tempura was terrific. It was "authentic" tempura where you could actually taste the ingredients. The batter was light and crispy, and enhanced - not overwhelmed - the seafood and veggies. The tempura and other courses came with cute and fun dining accessories. Examples included lemon juicers that looked like fish (for the tempura) and little golden spoons that matched the small chawanmushi bowls.The chawanmushi was phenomenal. Umami to the max, and the temperature and consistency were perfect. The Wagyu "pave" "flake steak" was unique in the how we were able to press our steaks down into ultra thin slices. How'd they do that?The shabu-shabu course had some firsts for us. First, the plates bended in half at 90 degrees. Second, the boiling flame hot pots had paper linings in the broths. We've never seen that before.Though not uncommon on prix fixe menus, we liked that there were two desserts. The monaka with foie gras and Fruity Pebbles was certainly creative and interesting! It hit me with all sorts of flavors and textures. The dessert wine was a nice touch.If M Tempura has a weakness, it's drinks. They don't have any cocktails.Service was excellent. We had a party of four and the courses were paced comfortably with no hiccups. Our server (Woolim?) was great. She was friendly and knowledgeable. She let us sample both wine and sake before we committed to purchasing.

This M restaurant is only open for dinner. The great thing was I was able to get a table even when I didn't have advance reservation. They only serve set experiences and the a la carte menu act as an add-on to your experience set. For a full experience (M Omakase), at the very end expect to spend about $90 to $100 per person. Although the price sounds steep for a tempura set experience, it's worth it for this area, type of food, and service. My favorite part of the meal is how the entire experience flavors tie in together. You'll receive palette cleansers in between to get a full taste of each dish. It is an elevating experience at a "not-so-stuffy" environment. It's relaxing and fun. The highlight of from the tempura selection was the Mero Seabass. It's the best tasting tempura I've had in awhile! The brie cheese, normi, black truffle, and honey at the end had a wonderful texture and complex flavors that tied the tempura experience. My absolute favorite dish of the set was the meal: miso marinated seabass, house-cured ikura, pickled daion, and wasabi. Served with miso soup. That seabass was cooked to perfection. No matter how hard I try, I don't think I can make my seabass that juicy with the right amount of flakiness. Also, the server really had great knowledge of the M restaurant chain.

Went here on a date night with my husband. We got the M Omakase. Overall, great meal and a good price for omakase. Good experience and each piece was brought individually, one by one. The server and chefs were really friendly. I would come again and recommend this place to anyone who wants a nice dinner experience and enjoys a variety of Asian foods.

Absolutely incredible omakase experience. It's an unassuming location, but the the interior is simple and fits the theme. Every employee was really helpful and kind, and the chefs were nice and funny (we sat at the bar in front of them).There was so much variety in the food. The first course included A5 beef tartare, a gyoza, and fish in an almost ceviche-style preparation. After that, we had multiple pieces of tempura presented with a tempura tray to season it in various ways. For the main course, we received an A5 Wagyu donburi, and then a Pandan cake for dessert. It was all fabulous. This was one of my favorite omakase experiences ever.

M Tempura is a must try experience. M Tempura specializes and pretty much exclusively offers omakase. All you have to do is pick which type of omakase you want, and then you wait in anticipation as each round is served to you. The menu is set by the chef seasonally, and they bring out your food in courses. It's a relaxing environment where you should expect to be here for over an hour. This restaurant is a small, romantic, and intimate vibe. There are only a few tables and the bar, so it almost feels like the whole restaurant is to yourself!The tempura is very delicious. I especially loved the eggplant they had that night. I don't think you'll leave hungry because the last course was a larger bowl that included some rice. All of the food was extremely tasty, and it wasn't overly fried or too heavy. It's truly a fun and relaxing time.

Food was amazing service was boujee the atmosphere was relaxing but very small place.