Umai Umai

A heavy hand with the citrus sauce similarly dulled the distinctive flavors of the scallop carpaccio and the yellowtail tiradito. Dialed back just a notch in marinade volume, these would have been spectacular. McCoy's ingredients are top-notch, and when he presents them in simple presentations like sashimi, an experienced raw-fish lover can savor some unusual delights, like the toothsome snap of needlefish, or the fishy fresh tang of willow leaf smelt, or something even more exotic, like the tiny ice fish that look like translucent threads with eyes, or miniature "fairy squids" (hotaru ika), or a "shako" mantis shrimp. Honestly, I've never loved the gray chalkiness of that particular shrimp, but the fact that McCoy even carries such a rarity (and others) is alone reason to visit.

I found a number of others. The steamed monkfish liver, mounded over an Asian beurre blanc sweetened with miso, was a rich and vaguely marine-tasting pate turned exotic with kumquats and shiso mint. The tuna bruschetta is a clever take on carpaccio, a crisp rice cracker topped with sashimi, tangy piquillo pepper salsa, and dill aioli, a surprising herb for tuna that worked marvelously. A similar combination worked just as well in a completely different form, a checkerboard of tuna (dabbed with dill aioli) alternated with squares of "white tuna" (escolar) ringed by a fire-red froth of piquillo-miso sauce. Meanwhile, a hot glass of minced eel topped with creamy potato mayonnaise and crunchy potato laces was so beguiling, at once earthy, sweet and sea-like, that McCoy is excused for mislabeling the eel (it's salt-water anago, not conger).

Umai Umai's service has improved since my first visit years ago, with pleasant waitresses who are well-versed on the menu, and so attuned to the "clickety" of fallen chopsticks that a new pair appeared on our table out of nowhere (twice!) within seconds. On busy nights, though, there can be long delays for cooked food from the kitchen. And it was rarely worth the wait. The chicken teriyaki was overcooked. The scallops were stifled by an over-rich cream sauce. The seafood "paella" was more of a gloppy coconut curry risotto. And the tuna burger, overwrought for such a tiny slider, was shown up by the side of deep-fried feta mac-and-cheese.

Of course, Umai Umai is just a tiny corner nook, and McCoy runs the entire kitchen with just one helper. But if this ambitious chef tends to some of his weaknesses, this little "Umai tree" has the promise to really grow.

Next Sunday, Craig LaBan reviews Novità in Graduate Hospital. Contact him at 215-854-2682 or claban@phillynews.com.