Mujō — Restaurant in Atlanta

Tldr: Expensive. Incredible service and presentation/setting, good but not incredible sushi, left wishing for just a bit more at this price point.

I wish there was half stars, because I’d give 4.5 instead of 4 if I could.

Disclaimer – this was my first Michelin experience, and I understand there are more ‘affordable’ options, but I wanted a top-tier omakase experience and this was cheaper than flying to Japan (though the bill for 2 ppl was ~$1000). I was fully expecting this bill through research. I’ll start with the Great, then the Good, then the Disappointing. In no way was anything ‘bad’, but at this price point, I had some lofty expectations that weren’t fully met, respectfully.

Great: The service was, by any outrageous standard, simply incredible. I cannot state enough how engaging, friendly, professional, and attentive the service was. The entire FOH team was so aware and rhythmic, it was a joy to be served. Watching our chef’s consistent and efficient precision over and over again through his preparation of each sushi piece was a marvel. Nobody was hurried, and everything felt anticipated, truly the stand-out aspect of the evening. Also Great: The ambiance and the bathroom, the wine service and the plateware/glassware. This place is a full package of cohesive presentation, 5+ stars.

Good: The actual sushi. With some standout exceptions (the pea shoot soup, the ultra-fresh Uni, various mackerel and their famous ice-cream dessert) I was honestly a little underwhelmed. I’ve had (within ~5%) comparable quality at a quarter of the price point at an omakase spot in NYC (U) with more varied and distinctive dishes, and that was my main point of comparison here. I can surely say that Mujo is more refined and the setting/service is exceptional, but was the food also as exceptional? Unfortunately I cannot say it was.

The disappointing: I was almost taken aback by the dress code allowed by other guests at this gorgeous restaurant. Short sleeves with bright prints, collar-less shirts, I think I saw some people leaning on the service counter at one point… I know I’m being particular but they go out of their way to encourage a limit to colognes/perfumes, so I figured this would translate to at least a long-sleeve dress code. Also disappointing, the corkage fee, which is very high ($100). To be fair, I should have called and inquired after their wine list, but I made the mistaken assumption that only beverage pairings were available versus individual bottles for purchase. (I recommend posting your wine/sake menu online to clear that up) And finally disappointing, I think at this price point, there should have been at least one or two more dishes to the menu. I did get two hand-roll add-ons, but even still I would like to have experienced another dish of variety beyond the extensive nigiri offered. The dishes were very good, but I felt there was ground left...

I’m always a little torn reviewing omakase experiences claiming an edomae style because 1) I’m not Japanese so what do I know really, 2) I shouldn’t have high expectations because ATL isn’t really known to be a hotspot for Japanese cuisine, 3) I don’t know how much leeway is normally given to a type of cuisine before it becomes fusion or some sort of abomination. Feel like it’s all relative depending on how much of a purist you are I suppose. With all that said, I’ll start by saying the service I had at Mujo was hands-down some of the absolute best I’ve ever experienced. Walking into the restaurant feels a little cozy but the darkness keeps it from being too claustrophobic. The walls could extend to infinity for all I knew. The dining area is sparsely lit but lit well enough to keep your focus on the food, the chefs, and your dining companions. Meanwhile the staff is ready in the shadows to hop in and assist you at every moment. You can make a mess and they’ll smoothly swoop in and keep your space uncluttered of errant rice or sauce. Early on in the omakase experience I lowkey was worried because I didn’t want the residue on my wooden chopsticks to alter the flavor of future dishes and, to my surprise, they were swapped out and I could continue my meal without having to voice any concerns. I realized after looking around I was maybe a little underdressed but other than me noticing it myself no one made me feel any sort of way about it. The food was excellent. My wife and I had the omakase. I had the beverage pairing which was very thoughtfully presented and explained. We shared some addons that were shareable - the wagyu, Hokkaido hairy crab, and the Japanese mackerel. Also we both got the fatty tuna temaki (hand rolls). All the food was tasty, as expected at this price point. The slight issues I had was cost and fish variety but with the obscenely great service and knowing ATL is a bit further from Japan.. I’ll give them a pass. But similar west coast experiences would probably be about 25-33% less in cost and maybe 15-20% more fish and might have more locally sourced seafood presented. Not sure I’d want anything from Lake Lanier in sushi form though… so yeah, we’ll take what we can get. For the uninitiated, most omakase experiences at nicer sushi restaurants can be such a fun and interactive way to eat because almost every sushi chef I’ve dined with has been awesome at explaining and talking through their process and Chef Trent was no exception. Ingredients, sourcing, preparation methods, almost anything. It’s a very unique and personalized form of dining and in combination with Mujo’s excellent service my wife and I had a great dinner. There were some nice little touches throughout the 2.5 experience and there may be some seasonality with it so I’ll leave some surprises outside of the review. Overall we were impressed, and will definitely...

Mujo has five star potential but I gave it only two stars for a specific faux pas for fine dining.

Let's start with the positives: The ingredients were fresh with fish flowin in twice a week from Japan. The atmopshere was intimate and comfortable. The service aura behind, both, the sushi bar and cocktail bar was what you would find in Japan: more introverted, serious about the craft, soft spoken. The service staff were friendly, attentive and had great attention to detail. You can tell they were well trained in their protcols. Finally, I liked the diversity of the staff for the goodness of that and proving strong training can give you the feel of a cultural experience.

Now for why I am not giving this place five stars...

I have had many omakase experiences, and separately, many Michelin rated restaurants. This is the first Michelin or omakase restaurant that tries to aggessively upsell you. For example, they gave you a menu with nine items to purchase in addition to the omakase. Typically, I would see a list of what they are serving in the omakase instead of a list of things they want me to add-on. This demonstrates where management's empahsis is: on the upsell vs the core omakase menu and experience. Another example, the service staff asked at least three times (maybe four) if we wanted to add more. In all the other omakase experiences I have had you would get more than you could eat and the decisions you had to make were the win pairing and maybe a caviar add on.

Keep in mind the term omakase is Japanse for "I'll leave it up to you" referring to the chef. It is not supposed to be a normal restaurant experience.

To the owners or management, I urge you be more true to the omakase experience and take out the aggessive upsell. Fair if you want to charge more - your clientele is prepared for it. But it's not a great fine dining experience when you are being asked multipel times if you want to buy more.

Overall, I enjoyed my time here and the food was good. It was not the best sushi I've had but it was high quality. Aside from the upselling, the service was excellent.

My friend and I ended the night with a $1,056 bill in which we tipped an extra $250. This was about the same as my bill at Alan Ducasse in Paris (3 Michelin stars). Ducasse was far superior experience and they did not try to...