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A prized dish is the bluefin otoro, which is culled from inside the fish's belly — the most desirable part because it's the fattiest; each bite will melt in your mouth ($18). Or make it a fish flight with bluefin akami, the popular and readily available loin ($20), and bluefin chutoro, a blend between the richness of the otoro and the leanness of akam ($16) — remember to consume each bite "fish side down" on your tongue for the most heightened taste experience. Nigiri and sashimi selections include sake toro (Scottish salmon belly, $5.50/$18.50); hamachi (Japanese yellowtail, $6.50/$20); and shime saba (cured Norwegian mackerel, $6/$20) For the Hot Tastings, slow cooking, live fire, and smoke come into play, creating bold, masculine flavors. For example, the charred-onion aged A Bar N Ranch beef is seared four times in mirin, aged gluten-free tamari, uni, and fermented crab butter, and served alongside foie gras au poivre and rich, thickly cut potato spears fried in A5 beef tallow ($36). "We've been experimenting a lot with charring and juicing vegetables and the use of smoke to strike a balance between bold and more delicate flavors," King says. "The dry-aged duck is rich, delicate, and smoky, and I think it is representative of the evolution of the Uchiko concept." This dish features dry-aged five-spiced duck braised with house-made charred-orange hoisin sauce, dashi-braised cabbage, and an orange-peppercorn compote ($29). The dessert menu, created by executive pastry chef Ariana Quant, blends French technique with Asian ingredients and even plays with the subtle smoke that lingers throughout the menu. Her clever version of fireside s'mores is a treat where the marshmallow-topped log of rich dark chocolate is seared tableside with a piece of red-hot compressed binchotan wood ($12). Open for dinner nightly. Uchiko, Post Oak Place, 1801 Post Oak Blvd., 713.597.5464; uchikohouston.com. BEYOND SUSHI THE MODERN JAPANESE WORLD OF UCHIKO (Continued from page 28) Uchiko designed by Michael Hsu Office of Architecture TRAVIS HALLMARK FOLLOW COKINOS OLIVE OIL ON FACEBOOK FACEBOOK .COM/COKINOS.OLIVES Enjoy the healthy gift from the Greek gods. 100 % Produced Organic WWW.COKINOSOLIVEOIL.COM