Umi Japanese Cuisine — Restaurant in Fredericksburg

Umi is basically a tradition in the downtown Fredericksburg area. Small in size but big in flavor and service. Some of the area's best and freshest sushi can be sourced here, as well as authentic Japanese and Asian cuisine.

The Sushi bar and it's chef's are some of the most welcoming people and will conversate with you while serving you beautiful plates of sushi. Umi also likes to create local rolls based on fresh ingredients from the area and will advertise this at the door as you enter.

The service is spot on, quick, efficient and to the point. Lunch is usually until 3pm as the Dinner menu will replace it. This also will show a cost increase on dishes but also more options become available, so plan accordingly. Expect to pay $30-$50 dollars at lunch for 2 people with modest orders, $60-$80 during lunch. These prices can vary depending on alcohol or any of the pricer dishes. I've been here so many times I've lost count so those are my averages.

One thing to note, children do not have a separate menu, they do have things like fried rice or noodle options. If your child is picky though, I wouldn't bring them unless you're up for an additional charge for their plate (which are generous servings). This is the only reason for the 4 star rating, as I feel a small children's menu could be created for parents.

If you live locally please give this place a shot, for lunch I suggest the Bento box with Teriyaki Chicken. Dinner either the salmon teriyaki or the lo mein. My favorite thing here is the Kani Su (under cold appetizers) pictured...

I wanted to love this place as I recently moved within two blocks of the restaurant. However, I wasn't overly impressed. I love Sashimi and only go to Japanese restaurants to partake in raw fish; meaning, I don't order anything else. Unfortunately, the experience I had was just mediocre. The dining room is small and I was hit with an extremely "fishy" smell walking thru the door. That said, the raw fish was good and I don't have anything negative to say about it. The problem I encountered was service-related. I told the waiter I wanted the 12 piece Sashimi plate; I even physically pointed to the item on the menu, just in case language was an issue. When I received my order, it was 6 pieces of Sashimi atop individual balls of rice; what I normally refer to as nigiri. When I questioned the waiter about the order, he litterally said "you ordered the sushi; that's what I read back to you". I've never ordered "sushi" in my life and definitely didn't order it this time. If the waiter thought i said "sushi" and actually read it back as "sushi", then I missed it. Mistakes happen and normally I roll with it, however I was taken aback that the waiter didn't just say sorry about the confusion. I wasn't asking for a new meal, I was just inquiring about the order. I actually ate the raw fish off the tops of the rice, no big deal, the fish was good. I haven't been back since my visit and I'm not sure if I will... there are a dozen other Japanese restaurants in the area and I'll likely try them all before I...

So yesterday was my birthday and when asked where I wanted to go... no questions asked, I picked Umi! It’s always been my absolute favorite. The tuna spoons are to die for. So naturally I was surprised by the extremely poor service I received on today of all days. When we walked in, the lady who greeted us asked how many without so much as a hello. When I said there was a group, she apparently didn’t like that answer bc she gave me an attitude. Fine.. I can get over that. But then my boyfriend told them he wanted his steak cooked medium rare and it was really well done.. like beef jerky texture. Of course they cooked him a new with no problem but still an inconvenience. Why? Bc we were late finishing up our meal due to that. We also ordered a bottle of sake. When the waitress cleared the table she also took my full cup of sake. When my boyfriend mentioned this to her and just asked for another cup, she got an attitude like it was my fault she took mine. We weren’t asking for replacement saki.. just a freakin cup. Then finally to top it ALL off... due to us waiting for a food recook and our cup etc.. we took a little longer to finish our sake then I guess they would have liked bc they then came up to our table and basically told us they wanted to close and we needed to leave. I was completely baffled at the audacity and even more so that THIS is supposed to be my favorite place to eat and the service was so bad.. I don’t even know if I want to come back. Birthday...