Miyake
129 Spring Street
Portland, ME
You know a place has to be good if it is recommended by the locals, but Miyake completely surpassed our expectations. They weren't open on Sunday so we decided to have a lighter breakfast on Monday just so we could stay in Portland for lunch at this highly recommended Japanese restaurant. It's a small restaurant and not on the main strip of Old Port, but you can't leave Portland without trying Miyake!
This is definitely not your typical Japanese restaurant where you will find lists of hand rolls and pages of dishes to choose from, but it'll still take you a few minutes to decide from their innovative menu. The sushi and sashimi are priced significantly higher than you would normally expect but the quality of fish speaks for itself.
We started with the shrimp shumai (steamed shrimp dumplings), which made us realize right away that our mouths were in for a real treat. Steamed in a light vegetable broth this shrimp shumai is naturally sweetened by the small shrimps on top. It comes with a very light soy sauce and mustard for dipping, but not necessary.
The Miyake spicy tuna roll is tuna with avocado roll, topped with seared yellowtail, toasted almonds, plum paste, and radish sprouts. A nice harmony of flavors with a bit of crunch from the almonds gives you a mouth full of sushi like no other.
Next the Edo-Mae Nigiri, one piece each of tuna, salmon, yellowtail, mackerel, whitefish, and a piece of chef's choice with a salmon avocado roll. The wasabi is light and almost fluffy; the fish is super silky and buttery; together they melt in your mouth!
Can you say BEST sushi EVER! There is nothing like the sushi and sashimi at Miyaki. Amazingly fresh and amazingly delicious!