Tomo

My sister and brother-in-law gifted me a gift card to Tomo for Christmas. My husband and I have cut back on the dining out, so we were excited for this opportunity to try something new.Reviews for Tomo seem very hit or miss on Yelp. We arrived in the area early to get a quick snack at a taco truck (2 tacos each) and to give us time to find the place. Surprisingly, it was not difficult to find Tomo. They're located next to an adult video store, and they have huge windows with Tomo on it. We were immediately greeted and led to sit at the bar. I personally wouldn't have it any other way. Our bartender took good care of us, checkin in at the right moments, some light banter, and even bringing us extra boquerones for the leek salad that came with the steak without us asking. This alone is worth a 5 star rating.After consulting with the bartender, we went for the tasting menu. They started us off with a snack from the kitchen: 2 Daikon cakes with plum sauce for each of us. I'm glad the bartender warned us about taking a small bite as they are piping out. I enjoyed the nice crips exterior and the hot and fluffy interior of the cake. Here is what we have from the tasting menu:- Sea Lettuce Parker House Rolls (supplemental)I enjoy the light seaweed taste of the rolls, which reminded me of the pizza crust from Kobo in Capital Hill. These rolls are fluffy and I think 2 rolls per person was just enough.- Dungeness Crab & Enoki ChawamushiThis was my husband's favorite dish. I appreciate that Tomo did not skimp on the lumps of crab. It is custardy and full of flavor. We did not leave any drops behind.- Celery root, Mustard Greens, Carrot, MolassesTomo could have fooled me into thinking I was being served ahi. The way it was presented appeared to be like sliced bbq ahi! I took one bite, and I couldn't believe all the different savory/umami flavors I was getting out of the celery root. This is my personal favorite from the set menu.- Albacore, Savoy Cabbage, Tomatoes, CurrantWhile I thought the fish was cooked fine (slightly under), I did think it needed a little more salt. The sauce it was in was on the sweeter side but nevertheless enjoyable enough to eat it all- Dry-Aged Steak, Leek, Parsnip, Au Poivre. Steak was tender and tasty. I appreciate the bartender for bringing the extra boquerones as that elevated the leek salad.- Cheese Semifreddo, Chestnut, Sweet Potato, QuinceThis was a great dessert to round up the tasting menu. I appreciate that you get the cheesy taste and how the fruit compliments it. The flavor profile is similar to Mora Ice Cream's fig & goat cheese ice cream for reference.- Kakigori for 2: Winter Citrus, Popcorn Mousse, Sansyo (supplemental) We ended our meal with the kakigori thanks to our bartender's suggestion. They told us they recently switched up the flavors qnd highly recommends it. Also, they shape it in a block which is different from how they present it in a bowl. Luckily, kakigori is a shave ice so it wasn't going to make us feel overly stuffed. What I found most interesting is the popcorn mousse: you get hints of butter, kernel and light caramel.For the drinks, I went with bourbon-based cocktails. I like each one for different reasons. I found the Aki Milk Punch so refreshing with the mix of bourbon & apple cider. For something with punches of flavor & texture, I got that from the Parallel Lines (Bourbon, grapefruit, blackberry, egg white). I was very happy with both drinks.As for portions, I thought they were just right, and it was not necessary for me to snack before dinner. Then again, I have been macro counting for the past month so that plays a role on how much I can eat during a meal without feeling stuffed. I had such a wonderful experience at Tomo, and I would go again to dine/drink at the bar.

Host: 2Waiter/sommelier: 2Food: 3; uninspired and unremarkable Ambience: 3; property, decorThe resto is discretely or purposefully non-descriptive. No lit business signs and only a small name on the door.

We went to Tomo for my birthday in June, so this post is a bit late. Service was great, as were our cocktails. The food was good, yet without the wow factor that I was expecting after all I had heard. Sounds like our experience wasn't unique.

TOMO's set menu is delightful - packed and filled with various flavors. Loved not knowing what was coming next and seeing what creative way they interpret each dish. So fun and tasty - highly recommend getting a Ressie and wait until you number is called for this great treat!!!

Our experience at Tomo was very mid. Not great, not terrible. I don't regret going but the cost for what we experienced means we don't plan to come again. In terms of ambience, the music was loud and my side of the table was sticky when we sat down. Honestly, if I could get a 50% refund, I would.We were seated looking into the kitchen which I loved because we could see food being prepared. The chefs on Appetizers were very efficient. Things seemed a little behind in the Mains section and that was still true based on the long stretch between our appetizers and mains. At times, there were multiple wait staff clustered waiting for food for their tables.The best thing (and honestly only item I'd boast about here) were the Sea Lettuce Rolls! They were soft and umami. We splurged (literally $4 a parker house roll so $16 a plate) and ordered a second plate. The first plate was lukewarm but the second had a much cozier temperature. I was excited about the Beets, Yogurt, and Shiso, and while good, it didn't have shiso! I would have said something if we were able to catch a staff member before eating, but we were hungry. I'm pretty disappointed about the missing ingredient that made me want to get this in the first place. This was also $16 for some very thin beet slices and a spoonful of yogurt. Yikes. The Dungeness Crab Rice was an unexpected gumbo. Very small portion considering it was $24 for a few spoonful of rice between two people and five chunks of crab. Came out almost cold.The Halibut Collar with Clams and Serrano Jaew was pretty delicious and the fish was very well cooked, however some of the clams were still really gritty. Temperature was lukewarm. The sauce was good. $45 and I don't think I'd pay that again. The Fried Chicken was unevenly salted and overall not salted enough. The onions were super long and overcooked so difficult to eat, but were were still hungry and wanted to get as much of the $38 out of that dish as possible. The is also a 22% service charge. Normally when I see this, the staff are excellent and always coming to check on us, but my fiance said he'd only leave a 15% tip if we had a choice. Nobody was rude, but they just weren't attentive and we were forgotten near the end of the meal when trying to get the check and leave.

It's nice. Service is good although they did forget one item we ordered. Food was ok. There's not one bite of food that was memorable. The wines in the wine pairing were also forgettable. It's an extremely expensive evening for nothing special.

Living near White Center, I've wanted to frequent this place for a long time and ventured one evening with my fiancé for her birthday. Well, we were both blown away, dish after dish, we were amazed by the quality and the flavors in each. They all built on top of each other and it was truly only of the finer eating experiences I've had in Seattle. Highly, highly recommend.

We made reservations early and were excited to dine here. Parking can be a bear on a weekend night so plan to arrive a little early. We ended up on the patio, which was a bit chilly. But our server was happy to get an extra heater going or grab some Filson blankets. She was was super friendly and prompt. We started with drinks: two Atmospheric Rivers, Parallel Lives, and a Lucky Bunny while we decided whether we were doing the wine pairing. Our friend Brian at Field Bar & Bottle Shop recommended that chat with his friend Rebar who's the somm at Tomo. So we decided to ask Rebar what should we do. We settled on the Piquenique followed by the Andrea Scovero to go with dinner. The April menu looked great and the gift from the kitchen that came out, beet arepas, were unexpected (and super tasty). The Dungeness crab starter was fantastic - I wanted to lick the bowl. The sweet potato milk buns were awesome - the salt on top was a great note. We all loved the gigante beans in tendon. The porchetta was to die for. Basically everything was VERY good!

This restaurant has so much hype around it and after finally getting reservations to go for a table of 4 on a Friday night - it was quite a lackluster experience. I thought the portions were definitely small, the menu was okay, and service was also just okay. I came on a rainly night as well and parking was hard to find and surrounding area wasn't very pleasant.The menu for the evening was a fig and straccietella appetizer, gem lettuce salad, albacore, lamb and chocolate for dessert. The best dish of the evening was the cheese and fig at the beginning, and everything else fell flat for me. The flavors were fine, but not "inspiring" or new/different. For the presentation, price point and hype around this restaurant, I was expecting something more. The portions were smaller than I would've liked... definitely felt like everything was a taste or sample rather than a full plate. I don't have a huge appetite, and I left the restaurant hungry. Drinks were great! Cocktails were on point but also quite pricey at about $16 each. We didn't get the wine pairing, but if we did, it would've been $68pp. Service was okay, I didn't feel like they were particularly attentive, nor did they ignore me. They did swap out the cutlery after each course which is nice. I thought the dishes took a while to come out, so the entire dinner took us 2 hours even though we didn't order anything else (nor did we get the kakigori). Would skip next time and opt for another place for this price point. Dinner with drinks came out to be $120 per person before tax and tip. Plus the Lil' Woody's burger on the side after.

The atmosphere when you first walk in gives off very hip and modern vibes. There's minimal decor and low lighting, which is in total contrast to their maximalist website, which is just kind of funny. We started off with cocktails--Tokyo Drifter and Chikorita and the latter was delicious and so unique! Tequila + matcha + coconut is the combination I didn't know I needed in a drink. We both got the set menu (you have to have full table participation anyways..), and both opted for the Dungeness crab rice add-on. The first bite was delicious! A lightly fried (I think) daikon radish with small toppings. This was followed by the chawanmushi with shiitake and stinging nettle, which was a table favorite. Honestly, all of the courses were pretty good, some better than others, but nothing really blew me away. I knew I'd have to write this review the next morning because if I waited much longer I'd probably forget each dish. One thing that clearly stood out, however, was the amount of time between courses. While I wasn't in a hurry to leave, there was a bit of a noticeable lull between courses, especially when we observed tables next to us (who arrived later) getting the same set menu and a bit of a faster pace. It's definitely a relaxed pace and gives you plenty of time to eat and savor the plate! Service was friendly and they explained every dish, but honestly not the most attentive. Would really only come over when the next course was ready, and we had to ask for more water which I certainly don't mind doing, but feel that it would be a non-thing at a restaurant like this. The meal itself was lovely, the ambiance is nice and the bathrooms reminded me of Japanese bathrooms. But for the overall price tag (plus 22% service charge), I'm definitely not going to be back.