YouMee Nexus Shantiniketan Mall — Restaurant in Bengaluru

As I and My Otto are wholeheartedly obsessed with Japanese food specially Sushi so we never missed a single chance to devour it on special fiesta. We have been to this restaurant four to five times but I do remember mostly of Rose Day and Women’s Day we celebrated here.

This place is tucked in ShantiNiketan Mall of Whitefield proffers both Indoor and Outdoor settee.

At the entrance, they have a list of dishes and a small display showing pictures of food along with its name, so one gets an idea of the food. Their Indoor area is significantly hued in woody shade, upper walls are painted in Manga style corresponds to the theme of food journey gives a Japanese touch(I have seen Manga themed Ambiance in any other Japanese restaurant), prettified by fish pot on kitchen top, live kitchen with high chairs and has wooden and colourful sittings. Their Outdoor spot is smaller than Indoor but its very gratifying and airy on the other hand. The sittings are urbane and provides some private space for couples.

Their menu is conveniently described in one-line and jam-packed with Sushi, Dim-sums, Ramen, Robata dishes, Noodles, Rice avail in both -veg and non-veg including many variants of Beverages. As soon as you place an order, they welcome you with two bowls full of tsukemono veggies and spicy whole peanuts which you can enjoy till your food arrives.

Here are some glams of our food journey and we started off

LYCHEE & BASIL QUENCHER : This eau-de-Nil hued aromatic quencher is a fusion of fresh basil, lychee and ice served in Martini glass settled with a fizz in a hill shape donned with a whole lychee flesh and basil flag on top sparks off chilled herby punch every-time you have it.

CHOCOLATE SHAKE : This Chilled Chocolaty Shake is a superb blend of Vanilla flavoured Ice-cream, caramel sauce and nuts coroneted with fresh whipped cream and chocolate fudge ripples prinked with dusted pretzels is whimsical and drool-worthy. Chocolate lovers can’t go wrong with this freak shake.

YOUMEE GARDEN DRAGON ROLL : This virescent amber hued classy Sushi rolled up with crunchy asparagus scintilla and vinegar flavoured cold rice swaddled in fresh splinters of Avocado beautified with spicy and normal mayo in wobbled pattern, black and white sesame seeds and micro-greens accompanied by pickled ginger, potent wasabi and soya sauce gives off a comforting feeling of contentment specially to those who steers away from non-vegan sushis.

GODZILLA ROLL : This coral pinkish hued sea-food maki are rolled fatty tuna squares, avocado nubs, generous tittle of cukes and sticky sushi rice in wakame seaweed magnificently accoutred with fresh Salmon gallets graced by crisp little tempura crumbs and green pea-shoots

served on a bed of soya-sauce are like the more I eat it, the more I loved it.

HAMACHI SASHIMI : Light and dark toned Bite-sized slightly pickled Yellow-tail Sashimi beautifully presented with cuke julienne and grated daikon plus carrot accompanied by invigorating wasabi, soya sauce and pickled ginger are hale and hearty. Don’t forget to dip in soy-sauce and then feed in.

Coming to their main Course, their Ramen Comes in three editions(Light, Spicy and Rich) and Noodles too(White Wheat, Healthy purple or handmade) so accord to your taste buds you can choose one of them…

Light - a light chicken or vegetable broth

Spicy - a light chicken or vegetable broth infused with chilli and flavouring spices and

Rich - a reduced chicken broth with dashi and miso

CHICKEN RAMEN : This Raging red spicy version of Ramen is a stunning commingle of Chicken broth, white wheat thick smooth and chewy noodles, fresh green veggies like Spinach, Bok-choy, Bamboo shoots and shiitake mushrooms; scrupulously placed tender Chicken morsels and half boiled egg over the noodles plus tangy spices mizzled with scallion cuts are full of umami. Try to devour it early as the noddles get more soggy, the longer they sit...

A newly opened restaurant in Forum Shantiniketan, mostly catering to Japanese, Thai and Chinese cuisine. The mall is also fairly new and this is the restaurant next to Punjab Grill on the ground floor.

Ambience: There are small details to the place, all of which I fell in love with. The restaurant has these cute little tables with chopsticks wrapped in the YOU MEE covers. What caught my eye though is the little stone on every seat for the chopsticks to rest on. Their cutlery also very unique and adding to the charm of the place. Its adorable.

Food & Drinks: For all those sushi and dim sum lovers, YOU MEE is definitely the place to be. They have HUGE variety of dim sums. Their Sushi’s are delectable in taste. They had a duck menu and I tried a couple of items from here that I loved as well. A couple of things I had and loved here were:

• Crispy Teriyaki Duck Rolls - Wrapped in sticky rice with a smoky duck filling and Teriyaki sauce adding flavour, this dish was heavenly! I LOVED IT completely!
• Beijing Duck Cups - Very unique. Again roasted duck served in cups, looked so different and tasted really really good. The roasted texture of the duck that was cooked to perfection makes my mouth water.
• Youmee Dragon Roll - This was I’m guessing an uramaki, with avocado Roasted peas, and sauce and cheese drizzled all over it. Loved how it was presented like a dragon too. Gyoza Chicken Dumpling - Juicy chicken filling, melt in the mouth outside, the dumplings here were amazing. They served many types of which each one was so different from the other, and for any dumpling lover, this is the best feeling Pad Thai - Flat noodles, slight sweet and sour with a hit of spice served with a groundnut drizzle is a very common Thai Street delicacy. This is also served with chilli flakes more groundnuts and some lemon to add flavor for anyone who’d like it.

A couple of drinks I tried were:

• Youmee Cocoa - for anyone who loves hot chocolate, this might be a go to. This is by far one of the best hot chocolates I have had. So warm and comforting with marshmallows on top. LOVED IT!
• Litchi and Basil Quencher - This was a cooler. Refreshing to say the least.
• The Geisha Tea - It smells absolutely refreshing. I haven’t had a tea with such a unique smell. It tastes as good as it smells.

Finally for desserts we had

• Banana Fritter Sundae - I fell in love with the textures in this. Fired banana served with Vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce. The flavours that the fried banana gave with the ice was magical. I enjoyed it so much. I was also advised to have it with coconut ice cream instead of vanilla which is definitely on my list.
• Traditional Thai water Chestnut - This to me was very unique. It had the water chestnut with tapioca flavour that added a crunch, the coconut flavour was all so refreshing. Definitely awestruck by the spread.

Service: Service here was good for two reasons, the staff being so well informed on what they served and their warmth. They were so sweet right from when I entered till I left, they literally did everything to ensure we had a good time.

I loved the whole experience at YOUMEE and honestly wish they were in...

YouMee was on my list for quite some time and I finally got time to visit this pan-Asian cuisine restaurant. The first impression was a pretty solid one as you get welcomed by the some cool manga style posters and table mats all around. The decor definitely shouts Asian right in your face which doesn’t overwhelm the diner at all.

The service and hospitality were impeccable. The entire staff was really warm and would speak with you with a genuine smile and zeal to give you a good experience.

We were in the mood to try some veg sushi and ordered the YOU MEE GARDEN DRAGON SUSHI. The tempura fried asparagus was coupling really well with the spicy mayo and the dark soy sauce just elevated the dish to the next level. I would highly recommend this. Next we tried the SICHUAN CHILLI OIL CHICKEN WONTON on the staff’s suggestion. It was one of the best chicken wontons that I had ever had. The steamed wonton was translucent giving a good peak of the generous portion of the chicken filling in it. The chilli oil opened my sinuses for good and I found myself digging deeper for more. Lastly, we tried the HIBACHI EGG FRIED RICE. If you love the Indo-Chinese style of preparation, then this fried rice is for you. We didn’t have to order any gravy with it as the rice itself was very flavourful. Special mention to the pickled veggies and groundnut that they serve before your meal which serves as the perfect finger food before you dive into the world of lip smacking Asian food.

The only reason I haven’t given 5/5 for atmosphere is because I was expecting some South East Asian music to be played, just to complete that wholesome experience but was surprised to hear pop hits like Smack That by Akon. Not that it bothered me, but I did find it to be a bit out of place. I would have loved to hear some Korean or Japanese songs playing in the background. May be it could be something that the management finds...