Uchibā — loosely "Uchi Bar" in Japanese — is Hai Hospitality's izakaya-inspired cocktail bar and restaurant, sitting alongside Uchi and Uchiko in the group's Austin lineup at 601 W. 2nd St. downtown. Chris Campisi runs the kitchen as chef de cuisine, with Doojin Lee heading the sushi program.
The menu moves between raw and cooked registers: suzuki crudo with striped bass and honeydew, a sake crudo built on smoked salmon, aburi-torched Hokkaido scallop, and A5 wagyu alongside yakitori grill items and Uchi classics. Snackier plates like the hot fried chicken bun and a fried milk dessert round things out, backed by a deep Japanese whisky list and cocktails like the Zilker Park Swizzle.
The room was designed by Sanders Architecture, with custom steel-and-walnut side tables from local millworker Edwin Walston and artwork from Stephani Strange filling out the space.
Regulars point to the sushi and fish quality, attentive service, and the interior itself as reasons to return, with lunch drawing particular praise for value. The Infatuation scored it 8.3 out of 10.
The menu moves between raw and cooked registers: suzuki crudo with striped bass and honeydew, a sake crudo built on smoked salmon, aburi-torched Hokkaido scallop, and A5 wagyu alongside yakitori grill items and Uchi classics. Snackier plates like the hot fried chicken bun and a fried milk dessert round things out, backed by a deep Japanese whisky list and cocktails like the Zilker Park Swizzle.
The room was designed by Sanders Architecture, with custom steel-and-walnut side tables from local millworker Edwin Walston and artwork from Stephani Strange filling out the space.
Regulars point to the sushi and fish quality, attentive service, and the interior itself as reasons to return, with lunch drawing particular praise for value. The Infatuation scored it 8.3 out of 10.