Houston has no shortage of restaurants serving sushi and other Japanese fare. Still, our seemingly limitless civic appetite for nigiri, sashimi, and maki means restaurateurs will always look to put their spin on the cuisine and lure diners to a new offering.
That includes Atlas Restaurant Group, the Baltimore-based company behind East Coast-inspired seafood restaurant Loch Bar and Italian steakhouse Marmo. Beginning Monday, June 24, the company will begin serving Houstonians at Azumi, its Japanese-inspired restaurant in River Oaks District (4444 Westheimer).
Located next to Loch Bar, Atlas closed Ouzo Bay in May 2023 to make way for Azumi. Over the last year, Baltimore-based designer Patrick Sutton has transformed the formerly European-inspired, 6,500-square-foot restaurant into a modern Japanese concept that’s similar to the original location in Baltimore’s Four Seasons Hotel.
Inspired by restaurants in Tokyo, the room includes white oak floors and Japanese calligraphy-inspired artwork by Leo Shallat. It offers an 80-seat main dining room along with an 11-seat sushi bar, 20-seat chef’s table, and a two covered patios with total seating for 66.
Turning to the food, chef Timur Fazilov brings experience working for Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto at both Morimoto in Doha, Qatar and Sa’Moto by Morimoto, a pan-Asian restaurant in Miami. His menu includes dishes such as scallop tiradito, hirame crudo, and crispy rice with either spicy tuna or truffle avocado. While the menu also includes grilled items and entrees such as miso black cod, an extensive selection of nigiri and maki options are what will likely draw diners. They include a spicy tuna tataki roll with shrimp tempura, a premium California roll with snow crab, a flaming kind crab roll, and nigiri pieces such as otoro, hamachi, king salmon, and uni.
Those who want to splurge may opt for Australian or Japanese wagyu, priced per ounce with a four-ounce minimum. Similarly, Fazilov with offer a nine-course tasting menu at three price points: $125, $210, or $310.
Like its siblings, Azumi will be open for lunch and dinner daily beginning at 11:30 am. Happy hour is available Monday-Friday from 3-6 pm.
"We’re incredibly excited to open Azumi and expand Atlas' footprint in Houston,” Atlas president and CEO Alex Smith said in a statement. “Chef Fazilov and the team have created an elevated Japanese dining experience that reflects the innovation and fusion of Houston’s culinary landscape.”
Courtesy of Atlas Restaurant Group
Start with flounder crudo.
