Ambrosia Japanese Restaurant Santa Maria Suites Ambrosia

Ambrosia Awards

Sushi, Japanese cuisine and artisan sakés in a stylish South Beach-inspired dining room on a tiny backstreet.
Openings: Lunch Mon.-Sat. (seasonal), Dinner nightly

Features


Ambrosia Restaurant Review:


He doesn’t banter, but sushi chef-owner “Masa" rarely takes a night off, accounting for the consistent quality of the food. The extensive list of sushi includes local fish and shellfish not often found in sushi bars, like stone crab, conch, sweet shrimp and white tuna. Sushi purists should stick to nigiri, as many makis, while crowd-pleasers, are loaded with fried items and cream cheese. However, some makis do allow fresh seafood to shine, such as in the Hamachi Heat roll incorporating snow crab, hamachi and jalapeño. Vegetarians will like the simple ume shiso (rich plum paste balanced by astringent fresh shiso leaf). For cooked fare there’s katsu (breaded pork cutlets), miso marinated broiled cod, and tempura. Choose a seat in the bar area for a light bite or to focus on the wide selection of limited-edition boutique sakés. Plus, the barstools offer the best view of the spacious room complete with a glass waterfall and undulating steel walls.