#atldining

Typically, I order out but I felt like popping out today! I pulled up very casually for my first time dining in — fresh silver Pegasus joints, some tiny denim shorts and a Burna Boy concert merch T-shirt. It’s actually my favorite shirt in the world at the moment, and I’ve been telling everyone with ears so congrats as it is finally your turn.

Anyway, I came to write. If you’re seeing this it means I’m still writing our comic book and so, as a boxer trains and warms up with a series of exercises to get the blood flowing, so do I. It has recently dawned on me that I warm up with this blog. I describe the tastes and the vibes of the foods and places that delight me, and… idk, it just warms me up. I’m already warmed up truth be told, but we move.

This week and day and month has been complex enough, so I opted for simplicity for my drink. I ordered a lychee martini — it’s honestly become one of my favorite drinks. First of all it’s good. What other reason do you even need?

I chose to go with different yet familiar for my starter, so I chose the scallop tiradito — a beautiful, light helping of “scallop sashimi with yuzu, cilantro and aji amarillo.” Those are Umi’s words, per the menu.

To me, it was bright and citrusy and there was sugar involved. It tasted like a sweet little perfect bite of a sweet, sliced scallop that’s been resting in citrus juice and topped with a brown sugar crumble. No joke — that is exactly what I tasted. If somebody ordered it for the table though, I’d eat it again. It was cool and it felt intentionally made.

For my entree, I ordered butter poached Maine lobster tail & diver scallops. Babe. I literally do not even know, just walk with me and let’s get into it.

Bitch I had to take a break. One because I literally wasn’t even breathing just now when I was INHALING that food, omg. I’m a geechie girl and once I tasted that mf sauce, I HAD to order me some rice lmaoooo. My trainer Josh says I’m not even supposed to HAVE rice, but baby sometimes you gotta make an exception. This was worth it.

They ain’t lie one bit about the lobster being poached. It is soft and sliced and sweet and good. The scallop is delicious also, even though I feel like they could have included one more. That would probably cost them at least $100 more per night though, right? Idk, I been watching The Bear so I think I know stuff.

Anyway, I am not the same now. All this time, Nobu has been fulfilling my needs and she is still that girl but Umi is special. I also love the bathrooms in here — it’s black as night over there but the toilet seats are heated, lol. Gotta love that.

Finally made it to Yebo. 

Had mushroom burrata to start. Pleased, but not overwhelmed. Presentation could have been better – mushrooms were everywhere, but the flavor was good.

First cocktail is quite refreshing: something called a Haus Cooler. It’s good, but I’m ready to be wowed. The vibes are right though. I’m the only one with an iPad out at the table, but I have a perfect seat along the back wall where I can see everything. There is one guy at the bar with his laptop out as well 😂 I suppose the work is not gona do itself.

Mixed crowd, very into their own little bubbles — I like it here.

Fast forward to dinner – I ordered the halibut and it was fine. 7.5 out of 10. Whoever made it could obviously cook, but it lacked depth of flavor by a mile. There was a light cream underneath to wet the palate – that was pretty good. The broccolini just absorbed it like a little bath. That was pleasant, but overall I needed some salt. 

For my dessert, I can’t remember what it was called but I do remember getting the vibe that it had been sitting in the refrigerator just waiting for me to order it. It was very cold. Like, not refrigerat-ed cold but refrigerat-OR cold, and I just don’t like that. I know restaurants have processes and operational efficiency to consider, and I do appreciate the speed of the service in light of this. However, there’s a fine line between being so fast that it gives buffet at the all-inclusive resort with the desserts that they’ve been refrigerating and serving all week. Freshness might be an illusion, but it’s important to do your best there — that’s all I’m saying.

I also ordered the frozen espresso martini, since the waiter told me it was like a dessert. I imagined it to be a boozy version of the frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity – maybe that was my bad. The glass had clearly been in the refrigerator, and it was a nice touch. But there was nothing frozen or even frothy about the martini. When I asked my waiter why, she told me ‘sometimes their blender doesn’t work.’ It was giving McDonald’s, and I hate that for them and I hated it for me even more. Maybe it was the iPad I brought with me, but I felt like a food critic with nothing nice to say. Ugh.

Bottom line:

Would I go back? Yes, the vibes were good, the prices were not outrageous and there was something charming about it that I just… liked. Maybe it was the people. I’d go back again, but I wouldn’t go back starving.

Were the drinks good? Yes, they were. The frozen espresso martini — albeit, not frozen — was very strong, punched me right in the chest LOL.

Food: 7.5/10

Drinks: 8.5/10

Vibes: 8.8/10