Morimoto

I was very confused when I ordered a chirashi (always get them at every restaurant). It came it bits of pieces of fish like leftovers. Was not the freshest. I asked them if this was normal and they said yes but then I checked Unilocal and it totally wasn’t. Very disappointed because I love chirashi. Chicken ramen was okay, cod was pretty good, but otherwise would never return.

Morimoto $ 150 Seasonal Omakase [お任せ] menu — a meal consisting of dishes selected by the chef
We also selected to enjoy the sake the restaurant chose to pair with our food
Toro Tartare — fresh wasabi & osestra caviar
Torched Blackfish — kaiware daikon salad, za-​sai vinaigrette, crispy yuba
Chef’s selection of sashimi
Eel & Foie Gras — Green Apple Purée, Dashi-​Yuzu Foam
INTERMEZZO — Lime Ginger with Rosemary Sugar
Roasted Diver Scallop — Crispy Battera Konbu, Black Truffle Dashi-​soy
A5 Miyazaki Japanese Wagyu Ishiyaki — Lime-​Kosho, Maitake Mushroom, Veal Jus
Chef’s Selection of Sushi
Dessert — Mango Pudding, Coconut, Green Tea Sorbet, Lemon Yogurt Powder, Sumi Meringue

I am not a fancy food person and I don’t usually hunt for expensive and fancy dining when I travel, but this time I gave it a shot and it was very pleasant.
We shared the Omakase and ordered a bowl of noodle soup. The food is definitely very delicate with super tiny portion. Everything we ordered was very good in quality, flavor, texture, smell and presentation. It’s like, normally you go to an ordinary restaurant and find a favorite dish from 100 selections, then you go search for a favorite dish from the second restaurant, this Omakase is a selection of all best dishes.
Service was the best I have ever experienced in the US. Friendly, knowledgeable, attentive, changing your utensils after every single dish.
The interior décor is pretty cool as well, We sat at the bar to watch the chef cooking, but if you choose to sit at the normal seats, you can enjoy the cool environment more with nice lighting and all surroundings.

Best and one of the most expensive sushi restaurants in Philly. They aren’t just limited to sushi and I’ve had other menu items that were great but the sushi is the gem here. The fish is fresh, very simple rolls, and my favorite thing — there wasabi in the rolls. The drinks are fantastic. I once had this Acai berry cocktail that blew me away. The presentation of the drinks are food are beautiful. The restaurant is hard to find. There isn’t a clear cut sign outside that says morimoto, the front is white and plan with a glass door. To the left of the door it says morimoto but it’s so hard to read. The first time we walked by it 2 – 3 times before finally seeing it. The interior is beautiful and HUGE. It’s so modern and very nice lighting, a little dark but it goes with the posh theme they’re going for.

Still a 5 star for me, and I do not think they will ever go down. I got just sushi this time and it was off the chain as normal. I also was able to sneak a bit of seasonal soft shelled crab. Which was super light and served in some amazing sauce. For desert I had the daily ice cream, which was like a vanilla espresso ice cream. Which I believe they roasted the beans so they became crunchy and was a great texture element to the ice cream.
For my main the sushi I chose were the chu toro, yellowtail, red snapper, ice fish, spanish mackerel and I decided to get a spicy tuna roll. All awesome choices and I honestly could not decide which piece I liked best as they were all good. This is a highly recommend restaurant for me as the dishes are almost indescribable and unique; so come check it out for yourselves.

Morimoto was a great dining experience for my birthday. They even send you a signed menu for dining with them on your birthday. Just expect to start popin’ bands as Morimoto is very expensive.
I can recall the service being outstanding, and every little bit of food I put in my mouth to be divine. Their sushi is fresh and their menu is creative. Morimoto is a fabulous place for a romantic date, and the interior screams chic. One of my favorite items on the menu was their squid salad. Now that was great!
They have a cool happy hour from 5 – 7 Sunday-​Friday, but you can only get at that upstairs.
I was a tad bit disappointed that they forgot to bring me out a dessert for my birthday as it was pre-​ordered. One of the managers called to correct the issue saying that she would not only put me on the «list,» but also send me something complimentary. She did neither. A small quip, but Morimoto is nearly perfect.

What an experience! Went here last night with two longtime friends to catch up. I can’t tell you everything that was said at the table, but I can tell you all about the food and drink.
I think we ordered almost everything on the menu… starting with a carafe of sake (fukumitsuya morimoto) aka «the one in the middle» because nobody can really pronounce it. That was good stuff, nice way to get things started.
We ordered a number of appetizers — diver scallop ceviche, hamachi, the 10 hour pork ‘kakuni’, and rock shrimp tempura. The three of us agreed that the chilean sea bass would be a nice entrée to split after the appetizers.
The sake was a nice balance to all of the appetizers, very smooth. Everything was incredibly fresh tasting and good.
We did get annoyed and started to laugh at the phreakishly phallic mood light that pops up from the middle of the table. You almost have to do a reach-​around to get to the other apps and the carafe of sake. Funny, none of us could figure out why such a place with amazing design and mood would have a shafty light in the middle of the table like that. You’d think they could come up with a better, more elegant lighting concept that would fit the presence of the large room. It became hilarious after a while though (could have been the sake), I digress.
All of the appetizers and the sea bass … Just amazing really, I’ve had this many times before but this was truly awesome.
After that was gone, I think we were all wondering what we could order next for dinner, because the apps and the entrée went in a flash.
The waiter asked if we wanted to order a sushi combo and so we did, and added another carafe of sake. The Sushi came out hella-​fast and was out-​of-​this-​world good; all the fish was ultra-​fresh. I’ve eaten a boatload of sushi in my time, this was «up there» with the best. We demolished the sushi platter and finished the sake.
Wow, just wow. Just enjoying that memory for a moment.
The bill is what I expected it to be — a few hundred (don’t kid yourself, you know what you’re getting into). Totally worth it for a meal like this, with service like that. I couldn’t afford to dine here regularly, but I’ll find a way to come back!
Catching up with some old friends #Priceless
…that light though: O)

For the highest rated sushi place in Philadelphia, owned by a nationally acclaimed chef, I was surprised at the low value this place presented. First of all, the food was not bad at all (except for one dish). It was fresh where it needed to be and they have a great selections of drinks here. However, for a $ 300+ dinner for two (including tip) in Philadelphia, I would expect a lot more. I don’t mind paying the price, or even higher in some cases, but it needs to be worth it.
I would equate this experience with many other decent sushi places in Philadelphia (we obviously don’t have any «amazingly great ones» here) at a much lower cost.
The service was very good, the atmosphere is very nice, and, as I mentioned the sushi was good, but did not come close to the standards of NYC or LA. For example, one of the items we ordered was spicy tuna roll, and I was surprised at how it tasted like almost every other spicy tuna roll I have ever had, even at the low cost places?
Finally, for the main course, I ordered a chicken roulette. The skin was nice and crispy but the filling was flavorless and the chicken was dry (would not recommend this dish). I was pressed for time so did not sent it back.
By the way the most disheartening issue I had with my experience here was that I asked for fresh wasabi and they said it is not standard, it would cost $ 5 extra to get it. I was shocked. This is a top place that is supposed to present the highest standards and they charge for making wasabi correctly and not providing you with the standard horseradish? It was not the $ 5, it was the principal of not having it as a standard and not even mentioning it to me until I brought it up to them? In LA, NYC and Vegas, it almost always comes standard at the top places, here, I guess they just assume people are ignorant and won’t miss it. It was actually kind of offensive if you think about it.
It was a disappointing dinner since I really expected a lot more out of this place. Perhaps they had an off night, perhaps my expectations are unrealistic, it was Monday after all. However, I don’t think that is a good excuse for the «top» sushi place in Philly.
If you guys at Morimoto are reading this, please note that people do travel and know what good/​great sushi is, and I think you need to up your game.

The fiancé and I celebrating 4 years of being together with the omakase at Morimoto. The regular omakase is $ 100pp and the seasonal is $ 150pp. We weren’t feeling adventurous so we went for the regular and although we left full, all of the dishes didn’t «wow» me. As other reviewers have mentioned, the fish really does «melt in your mouth». My favorite dish was the yellowtail tartare (I love anything yellowtail though!) They have a great selection of sake, cocktails, and a handful of Asian beers.
Service was great throughout our meal — everybody was friendly to us and we didn’t have any issues with that. The ambiance is intimate and swanky. The bathroom is downstairs and there is a bar upstairs that you can hang out at while you wait for your table.
If we were to dine here again, we’d go for the a la carte option, but it was a good experience for us to try.

Price is worth the experience and quality! Wish I could remember the different pieces of sushi like the wait staff could. They could recite every piece both of us had. Great presentation and just the perfect amount. The $ 43 chef special was just enough for me and my colleague had the $ 65 chef special. Both fantastic.
Very modern atmosphere and a bar upstairs to wait while your table is getting ready. Reservation recommended. 30 min wait on a Tuesday at 8:30 pm.

Chef Morimoto and his colleagues on the original Japanese version of Iron Chef are the reasons I got into exploring food. Remember when Bobby Flay challenged Morimoto and jumped on the cutting board to «raise the roof», pissing Morimoto off?! I do! I watched the show religiously on the Food Network back in high school so a visit to Philadelphia would not be complete without a visit to his flagship restaurant.
I don’t know what it is about neon lights and Japanese restaurants in Philly but I guess it is OK since the food is special. The menu offers anything from a bowl of ramen to sushi and sushi tasting menus to savory hot dishes to omakase menus. There was no way to go about it but to choose the $ 150 omakase menu on this first visit which came with 8 courses. The restaurant was noisy and there are many components to each dish so we couldn’t hear them all from our awesome waiter.
1: Toro tartare with caviar. Delicious. I loved the crunchy element mixed in with the fish as well as the cold broth. The fresh-​grated wasabi really elevated it through each bite did clear my sinuses each and every time.
2: Soup. This was the mildest dish of the night but done really well. It contained snow crab meat, fish filet, uni and daikon.
3: Sashimi sampler. This dish had items like bluefin tuna, barracuda and firefly squid among others. Everything was undoubtedly fresh and many of the items came from their seasonal sushi/​sashimi menu. I didn’t love the firefly squid and never like them whenever I have them. Matsuhisa in Beverly Hills often has it on their omakase, too. It is too briny for me. The barracuda was delicious and smokey.
I started to get full right around here.
4: Foie gras with unagi, apple and yuzu foam, crushed apples and shiso. This dish was so balanced. I generally don’t eat foie gras but had to here since it is costing part of $ 150. This dish was simply and perfectly conceptualized and cooked.
Palate cleanser of cucumber juice and lemon jelly served here.
5: Scallop with black truffle soy sauce and crispy seaweed. Geez, I love me a perfectly cooked scallop and anything with black truffles. The crispy seaweed were very interesting. This dish was amazing but just a tad bit too salty.
6: Japanese A5 wagyu with mushrooms and root vegetables and onion sauce. Simply blew my mind. This dish was so perfect. When you have fresh and high-​quality ingredients, I think you have to really restrain yourself and they did so here by letting the food speak for itself. Served on a very hot sizzling platter, you can pour as much sauce as you’d like. Just beware of the spattering. You can spread out and cook your beef as much as you’d like.
7: Sushi sampler. At this point, I was too full so taking more food in was becoming a challenge. My ears stopped working too because I didn’t catch what was on the platter except bluefin tuna, orange clam and mackerel. I bit into one and knew right away I was not crazy at all about the texture of the rice. Much like Matsuhisa in Beverly Hills, sushi is not their strong suit in the omakase. I only ate the fish off the top and left the tuna roll untouched.
I added one piece of uni because they had a special option from Hokkaido, Japan. It cost $ 14 for one piece and I had to make room for it. It was the best uni I’ve ever had. The pieces are smaller than you generally see in Santa Barbara sea urchins, almost like the pieces came from a miniature sea urchin or something. They stacked the piece deep with so much uni that I can barely feel and taste the rice. No complaints here! Please give this a try if you like sea urchin. You won’t regret it.
8: Cheesecake soufflé with fresh berries, strawberry wine sorbet, mango and passionfruit and avocado purée. This was the fluffiest and lightest cheesecake I’ve ever had. It wasn’t too sweet which was great. The sorbet was good as was the passionfruit purée. The dessert could have used more crunchy and varying elements (like something sour like the passionfruit) though.
I was only able to get through a quarter of the dessert before my fullness took over. We waddled out to our Über ride slightly overwhelmed by the quantity of food we had taken in. I seriously think the food I took in could have fed two people satisfactorily.
It was a delicious meal with minor flaws. Morimoto is special and did not disappoint.

Went just last night with a few people from the conference I was working on this weekend to debrief. This was my first time at the restaurant, but it was a good experience.
The space was ultra modern and ultra chic from the façade to the physical dining space although the booths were not the most comfortable I did like that they were intimate and allowed for good conversation. The service was excellent, the waiter was knowledgeable about the menu and very eager to help.
To start I had the hamachi «pastrami» with gin infused crème fraîche and pumpernickel toast. The seasoning did add an authentic pastrami flavor to the fish and was very novel. Not an all time fave but certainly good. For my main course I got their seafood «toban yaki» which came in a super buttery dashi and included prawns, lobster, crab, scallops and clams with bok choy and mushrooms. While it tasted great it was extremely difficult to eat because the seafood was all in the shell and it was hard to remove from the shells with splashing butter and dashi all over the place. The dessert was surprisingly excellent as well. The soufflé cheesecake with avocado crème and berry and mango compote was a great dish to end the meal on.
Overall, a cool space with innovative cuisine that’s pricey but of very good quality.

Two Iron Chef restaurants in a few days! That’s what happens when you’re on vacation & in such a great foodie city such as Philly! Morimoto was the first stop — we decided to dine here during lunch just to save a few dollars because everyone knows… dinner at these types of places are NOT cheap.
During the weekdays, lunch is served from 11:30am-2pm and then they close for a few hours and reopen for dinner from 5−10pm. (Friday Dinner 5pm-​midnight.) Weekends they only do dinner — Saturday 5pm– midnight, Sunday 5pm-​10pm.
The décor is extremely modern; you’ll have to see my pictures. The lighting changes colors every few minutes (underneath and around the seating areas — from green, to red, to purple, and blue.) Very trendy. You may also giggle at the phallic shaped lights at each table. I did. It’s not so much a formal place, but very funky/​cool/​and definitely different.
Service was amazing; very attentive staff.
My boyfriend had the «OH-​TORO FATTY TUNA ROLL.» Nuff said. I didn’t even try it because I wanted him to enjoy it and his lunch was smaller than mine. I had the «BEEF GYUDON — RICE, ONION, GINGER, SOFT BOILED EGG.» Sorry that these are in caps; I just copied and pasted directly from their menu online. My dish was delicious; especially the egg, OMG it was perfection. My lunch also came with Miso Soup & Salad. If we ever dine here again, I will definitely go for the Morimoto Omakase («Chef’s Choice» Tasting Menu… I think that would be the only way to get the full experience and appreciation of a place such as this. Presentation of everything was great, as I expected.
I definitely recommend!

I must start with my PET PEEVE first. Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to place a large male organ shaped lamp right in the middle of the small «two seater» tables? And everywhere else for that matter. The damn thing doesn’t move so servers awkwardly place your dishes around the lamp. Plus, you get to talk to your date /​friends with this ridiculous lamp in between you all night. Sure it’s good for a joke or two but WTF?
I visited Morimoto 5 times within the month of February, 2016. Overall, I’m happy with my dinning experiences but think the food is somewhat overpriced compared to other great Japanese restaurants I visited across North America.
Being new to Philadelphia and a sushi lover, I’ve been very frustrated with all the sushi I tried in the city. The quality has been fair at best and the fish selection is very limited. Morimoto has the best sushi in Phily so far based on my experiences.
I ordered their $ 90 sushi platter on two occasions and the fish was incredibly fresh (woot woot) but I was disappointed to see so much salmon and Ebi on the platter and two very basic rolls (salmon and spicy Tuna). How about a few more pieces of unique fish flown in fresh daily for these prices? Having lived in Toronto before Philadelphia, I could get far better sushi, more variety and about 20% cheaper (if your visiting TO, try Yasu).
On one visit, I had the seasonal tasting menu for $ 150 per person. A great experience overall but again, not sure it’s worth the price. In this case, I upgraded from the $ 100 tasting menu specifically to get the seasonal sashimi /​sushi upgrade. I did get a few more delicious unique pieces of fish but hoped for a little more variety.
On another visit I tried the Wagyu beef which was excellent. Really does melt in your mouth. I also recommend trying the Wagyu dumplings on the app. menu, they are fantastic.
The Iron chef has teamed with Rogue brewing to offer 4 – 5 unique beers on the menu. I usually get the Soba ale.
Service was excellent on each trip but definitely slows down on Friday /​Saturday evenings. There is a bar upstairs if you get there early and you can eat there as well.
Bottom line — good food but you will pay extra for Morimoto’s name.
BK

Imagine a tofu cheesecake with apricot sorbet… You’ll be just as gobsmacked as I was to find it a delightful way to end a very impressive meal.
I’m aware this is an odd comment, but the restaurant was very warm — almost uncomfortably so. The ambiance didn’t excite either — looking a bit like a warn lava lamp-​Weird right?
We had high expectations for the food, which were met by the seasonal tasting. We also ordered a soup and a couple of apps. The highlights included fluke fin, barracuda, and the soup. A great adventure.
We look forward to coming back to eat an all-​sushi/​sashimi meal. We are regular sushi eaters, but there was certainly something special going on at this sushi bar.
Service was exceptional. Always aware and available without being intrusive. A delicate balance deftly handled via an effective team approach.
Pricey-​yes, but that we knew. The food was different and sumptuous. A true treat as a special meal out.

Wowowowowow!
Can’t believe this is my 400^th review already. Now I must review my favorite restaurant of all time, Morimoto!
I heard about this establishment a couple of years ago from a colleague who couldn’t stop raving about it. She went during our annual conference in Philly and highly recommended the chef’s choice tasting menu. When I heard about it, I was determined to go b/​c Morimoto had always been my favorite iron chef and I was also a big fan of Japanese cuisine. How could I miss an opportunity to dine in his restaurant?! Luckily Philly is a popular city for our association annual meetings so I came back again on a business trip.
The restaurant was a bit hard to find b/​c the sign was almost invisible. I walked back and forth several times in downtown Philly in July and almost had a heat stoke. But it was all worth it when I stepped my foot in the door. The restaurant was not over the top but was modern and inviting. It was relatively slow during lunch on a Tuesday. I ordered the chef’s choice tasting menu that ncluded 7 courses. It’s priced at $ 60 for lunch, $ 100 & $ 150 for dinner. IMO it’s well worth it!
Service was impeccable as this is considered a high end restaurant. I had three staff serving my meal from start to finish: one takes my order, explains to me about the dishes, and checks on my dinning experience, one serves food, and one takes the dishes out. My silverware was changed for each course which was very much appreciated.
My meal was absolutely phenomenal, spectacular, extraordinary, times 100. It was the BEST meal I’ve ever had at any restaurant, period! I was almost crazy enough to empty my wallet and order a few more chef tasting meals but was super full after 7 courses.
My courses included: toro tartare with caviar as a starter (outstanding!), carpaccio thinly sliced with yuzu soy, hot oil, and mitsuba leaf (out of this world, wow!), sashimi salad (delish!), scallop (simply amazing!), black cod miso (BEST THING EVER!), nigiri (yum!), and this dessert that I do not remeber the name but it was so decadent!!! The presentation was abslutely beautiful. My dishes looked as wonderful as they tasted. I was surprised and blown away by one course after another. I almost felt like I was Alice in the culinary wonderland. It was certainly an experience to remember for a long long time!
I can’t wait to come back for my next chef’s choice tasting meal at Morimoto!!! Morimoto for life!!!

Fantastic!
I wish there were a restaurant closer to me because I would come again and again.
I was in town for a few days and had to stop by this restaurant. Only observation was the street leading to this restaurant was very congested, which I heard from the cab driver is pretty typical. The restaurant itself is also hard to find — without the valet man, I would have probably walked into the wrong restaurant!
This restaurant is visually stunning. It’s a little dim, but not in an impairing way. The service was fantastic — given it was our first time at this restaurant, the waiter had plenty of suggestions.
We started with the edamame appetizer, which was the largest bowl of edamame I have ever seen. Split between my friend and I, we were having trouble finishing!
Spicy tuna roll was tasty as expected, but nothing spectacular.
The 10-​hour pork kakuni was the highlight of the meal. Essentially a small bowl of porridge with sweet soy sauce and a 10-​hour cooked pork belly — so tender and flavorful. It was so delicious I wish they made a bigger version of this as an entrée!
The dessert, chocolate pot de crème, was also delicious — at that stage we were both already stuffed but figured we’d make the best of the experience. The caramelized banana was a great pairing for the custard.

I think Morimoto lives up to the hype. From the moment you walk in, you can tell that they’ve made an effort to distinguish themselves from other restaurants. The ambience is a little funky (neither very casual nor very formal) with unexpected lighting, and colors and unusual seating for a high-​end restaurant.
The food at Morimoto was outstanding. Came in with very high expectations and they did not disappoint. I tried the chef’s choice Omakase. This is essentially a multi-​course meal (with a series of small dishes) that is designed by the chef and it is definitely recommended for your first experience of the restaurant. My host also had the Omakase but his dishes were different from mine since he was a repeat customer. We also tried the tofu which they make on site. The whole process on making it on the table itself was very cool. The server was polite and helpful, a bit formal but not pretentious. If I’m ever in the Phily area again, I’d definitely try it again.

I was super excited to visit Morimoto because I’m a huge fan of Chef Morimoto on Iron Chef! Of course I was expecting good food, but I was blown away by how much I enjoyed my meal. We started off with some cocktails. Karai is a bit spicy with cilantro and jalapeño. Kiku is a blend of pear and chrysanthemum tea. Both drinks were great! The hubs ordered the eight course omakase and I got the duck duck duck.
duck duck duck is not for the faint at heart. You really gotta love duck to order this dish. The hubs isn’t much of a fan, so he wasn’t really impressed. I LOVED it! The roasted duck breast was cooked to perfection. The skin was crispy and had a nice amount of fat. The meat was tender and flavorful. The duck confit fried rice was kinda oily and too salty. I still gobbled it up though. Duck egg had the best runny yolk. Mixed well with confit!
It was my first time having omakase. Even though the portions look small, we were both stuffed by the end of the meal. We took home a good amount of the duck duck duck. The whitefish carpaccio with yuzu sauce, miso marinated black cod, diver scallop with truffle, and austrailian raised wagyu on sizzling platter were definitely the highlights of the meal. We really took our time savoring each entrée. I could taste the quality and flavors of the ingredients.
Our waiter took his time in explaining each course and was warm and inviting. We enjoyed our first visit and would recommend Morimoto for a special occasion or just a very nice gift to yourself! It’s not a meal that we could afford often, but it was very much worth the splurge.

I ate my way through the East Coast a few weeks ago but haven’t had a chance to write any reviews until now. So let’s start off with Morimoto!
I had lunch here during my last day in Philly. Save the best for last, right? I ordered the Morimoto omakase (copy/​paste from menu: ‘chef’s choice’ a multi-​course tasting menu designed to allow you to experience the essence of morimoto’s cuisine) and it did not disappoint.
I honestly cannot remember all the details of the courses served (and probably don’t need to list out the details of each anyhow), but everything was delicious and took my tastebuds on a culinary adventure. The omakase consisted of 7 courses from the sushi bar and kitchen, concluding with dessert. My favorite was the sixth, which was five pieces of nigiri. The toro was TO DIE FOR. Melt in your mouth, amazing, delicious, orgasmic, *heavy breathing*, whatever-​else-​descriptive-​adjective-​here. Best sushi I’ve ever had, hands down.
Best sixty bucks I’ve ever spent.