Finally, I ate at Umi Nom. After hearing about this place for a while and having loved it's Manhattan sister restaurant, Kuma Inn, I was happy to have eaten here. But (and this is a big but), the location leaves MUCH to be desired. It's pretty much in the middle of nowhere. It's a few blocks from the G train stop, but that's not saying much. I'm not really familiar with the Clinton Hill/Bed-Stuy/Pratt area and perhaps I am missing something but I could have really done without the location.The inside of the restaurant was small, but nice. It had pretty exposed brick which had a small opening into the "open" kitchen. I wish they had blown out the opening even more so that we could get a full look at the chefs while they cooked. The concept and most of the menu is very similar to Kuma Inn. I had read that for 2 people 3 apps and 1 entree was sufficient. We asked our waitress what was the appropriate # of dishes to order and she said "1-2 dishes per person"...um, ok, so is our order ok? she then repeated "1-2 dishes per person", so we decided to order 4 apps instead. We order the manila clams (I had heard amazing things about it), the sliders, pork spare ribs, and spring rolls. Then she said "and for an entree?" -- we were so confused b/c didn't you just tell us to order 1-2 dishes?
Regardless, we stuck with our 4 app order. The first one that came out was the spring rolls. While they were good, they're just spring rolls, and it wouldn't have been something I ordered, but Dan wanted it, so I didn't object. Next came the clams and they were DELICIOUS! They are similar to the black bean sauteed clams that you usually get in chinese restaurants, but these were soaking in some sort of salty, buttery, spicy goodness. I basically wanted to drown myself in the broth. Instead, we poured it over our coconut rice (which at $3, wasn't really worth it. It was white rice with coconut juice poured over it. It was yummy, but for $3 for a small bowl, I'm not so sure...). The sliders were also great, 3 buns filled with beef, pork and hoisin sauce. The pork ribs were also very tasty, although some pieces were more falling off the bone than others. While 4 dishes was enough, I could have ordered much more. The couple next to us got some sort of crispy chicken lollipops and said they were worth the wait.
While I really enjoyed my meal, I wished their brooklyn location was in a more convenient location. Given that the LES location is probably just as close/far and there's more stuff around it, I might be inclined to stick with the city locale for now. Total bill was $46 with tax.
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