i went to Kenichi last night with 4 other people. We had all heard only good things about it, so when Uchi had an 1.5 hour wait at 7pm on Wednesday we decided to try Kenichi. We were disappointed. I just moved to Austin from the gulf coast of Florida and I haven't been very impressed with the sushi selection in austin. Very boring rolls that are usually very overpriced. Uchi is the best in austin and i would only rate it slightly above average in the grand scheme of sushi. But again Florida has amazing sushi, so maybe its not fair to compare the two cities. Anyway Kenichi review: the drinks we ordered were not very good - I had this key lime martini that was very sour and pretty awful, a few other people had some martinis that were not made very well to say the least. I ordered the Aleucian island roll which was ok, but very small for its $13 price tag only about 4 pieces and the bonzai roll was ok, but again small only 4 pieces. The rolls available are not very creative and most are cooked. I want sushi - not smoked salmon rolls or tempura - which dominate the menu. My friends ordered the seared scallops. When the dish came out the scallops looked delicious, seared and golden brown, but after one bite she almost choked on it, i kid you not. It was completely raw on the inside - i mean cold and slimy. Now if she had wanted raw food she would have ordered sushi, not cooked food. The menu does not say that the seared scallops are served like seared tuna which is essentially raw. She asked the waiter to have it fully cooked. He apologized and when he returned, the dish was only SLIGHTLY cooked. It was still raw in the center. She was not happy and wouldn't eat it. I don't recommend kenichi at all.
Cons: yuck!
more