There's a new restaurant in Bonifacio Global City (BGC), Taguig, and it features a union of Brazilian and Japanese flavors.
Uma Nota, which has outposts in Hong Kong and Paris, has opened its third branch at the lower ground floor of Shangri-La at the Fort. It gives diners a taste of Brazilian-Japanese cuisine, a unique subculture in Sao Paulo that started in the early 1900s.
"We actually have the biggest Japanese community outside of Japan in Brazil, specifically in Sao Paulo," co-founder Alexis Offe told ANCX. "Japan made an agreement with Brazil to send workers to the coffee farms, and most of them never went back. When they arrived, they had to cook with the produce they could find and with the techniques they use from Japan. And over the years, it's been known as Brazilian street food."
"We're actually showcasing more than inventing, so that's why we don't like to talk about fusion so much," he added. "Because it's a real subculture of Brazil."
Two of the appetizers served during the launch, Offe tells us, are "probably the most iconic dishes you could find in Brazilian izakayas." There's the Coxinhas de Frango, or chicken and okra croquettes served with chili sauce for some heat; and Dadinhos de Tapioca, chewy cubes of cheese and tapioca with a sweet chili dip.
Japan is represented by Uma Nota's selection of nigiri sushi, rolls, and sashimi. Aside from the usual tuna, scallop, and grilled eel, there's the Avocado Roll with grilled asparagus, shibazuke pickles, vegan herb mayo, and crispy cassava; and Salmon Roll with wasabi cream cheese, avocado, ikura, and sweet soy.
"All of our seafood gets flown in from Japan... We really try to use the best produce available but the interesting thing about the Philippines is that the climate has a lot of similarities with Brazil in general, so we were able to kind of find very similar ingredients." Offe shared. "The only thing that we cannot find here are the unique spices and peppers. We get that from South America."
Another thing that both Brazilians and the Japanese are proud of are their meats. Uma Nota once again marries flavors from both cultures with the A4 Kumo-Oh Wagyu Striploin, with premium beef from Japan's southwestern Kyushu region served with a fresh Brazilian salsa.
But if Offe were to pick his favorite on the menu, the Uma Nota founder was quick to shine a spotlight on their vegetarian dishes: "We have the Uma Nota Udon, a peanut and green beans udon, which is a little spicy but absolutely beautiful. And our Berinjela (whole eggplant with miso glaze, cashew nuts, and goat cheese), I'm a big fan of it."
For dessert, we were presented with a pink cotton candy cloud that was torched on the table, and underneath it is a lovely matcha layered cake served with Hokkaido milk ice cream. Another sweet ending to the meal, although much simpler in terms of presentation, is the Abacaxi Churrasco, which is made of roasted pineapple, coconut ice cream, almond coconut crumble, and a Japanese whisky-infused caramel sauce.
'SEXY, CONTEMPORARY, ELEVATED'
According to Offe, the Uma Nota Manila branch is different compared to its counterparts in Hong Kong and Paris, which are "very casual restaurants."
For now, it is divided into four main areas, with the fifth (a Founder's Room that can accommodate 12 guests) already in construction. There's the Dining Room with a hanging tree installation, the Bar, the Brazil-themed Tropicalia Room which is ideal for chill nights and listening sessions, and the Meiji Room which showcases Japanese design.
"As you can see in the cuisine and the presentation, we really wanted to make it very sexy, contemporary, and elevated," he said of their 173-seater restaurant designed by Asmaa Said, founder of The Odd Duck Studio in Dubai.
Acknowledging Filipinos' love for nightlife experiences, Offe made sure to bring their A-game when it comes to their cocktails. Standouts here are the togarashi-rimmed Red Flag with Arette tequila, Mancino Rosso Amaranto vermouth, Durango mezcal, and raspberry chili syrup (they even serve it with a Polaroid photo for a personalized touch); and the Uma Nota Cup Noodle which, as the name suggests, can be sipped from a cup noodle-inspired glass. This cute drink has Plantation 3 Stars rum, toasted coconut liqueur, pineapple, cucumber, lime, and sesame oil.
"We want to have a nightlife element. So after 11 p.m., we dim the lights a little bit like this, the music goes up a little bit, and then it goes more into party mode," said Offe. "And the idea is once a quarter, we have a large-scale event, whether we bring a DJ or one of our brand partners."
"It's not just a restaurant, but first we got to nail the restaurant part," he added. "And then, we could party."
Uma Nota is open for dinner from Sunday to Tuesday, 6 p.m. to 12 a.m. Bar hours are until 2 a.m. from Sunday to Tuesday, and up to 4 a.m. from Wednesday to Saturday.