Miso On Meramec

Per the phone call I just made to inquire about their private room in April they are closing their doors on Saturday.

The service was beyond slow. We waited 25 minutes for a drink. Then 45 minutes for pot stickers which were decent. After being at the restaurant for an hour and 20 minutes, we still were waiting on sushi. Terrible service. The food is certainly not worth the wait. Overall took us 1 hour 45 minutes for sushi.

There’s a lower level with a more classy bar area (think changing colored lights and dressed up people), but the upper level is fine for casual dining. The staff is young and super nice: D
Miso doesn’t offer traditional Japanese fare like udon noodles or unagi (freshwater eel) as entrees. Their main entrees or «bowls» are Pad Thai, Fried Rice, and Vietnamese Caramel Chicken. My group ordered a few small plates to go with the sushi.
I didn’t try the sushi, but my friends said the fish is definitely fresh. The rolls look pretty generous, but they put a lot of rice into them.
One friend ordered the Asian Marinated Pork Tenderloin small plate. I thought it was strongly flavored wtih broad bean (which was yummy), but every one else said it was their least favorite, saying it was dry. He ended up trying to give it all away XD Another friend deemed he bokchoy on the side as delicious though~
The bokchoy-​fan was also a fan of the grilled asparagus that came with her Miso-​glazed Salmon small plate. The salmon was good, not *super* juicy, but not dry at all, although I couldn’t taste the miso.
Tokyo Nachos small plate– really interesting concept and fun to look at! The chip is replaced with fried shiso leaves. There’s a happy jumble of daikon sprouts, cucumber, spicy tuna tartare, and tobiko (flying fish roe). I didn’t try it, but everyone else liked it a lot ^^b
I had the Vietnamese Caramel Chicken bowl, which was a sphere of rice with a moat of chicken around it. The flavors were bold and delish~ What’s not to like with red and green peppers and onion stirfried with super tender chicken thigh meat? I can’t tell that it is Vietnamese in origin, but it was the super star of the table! And the bokchoy/​asparagus fan? She *loved* it and complimented that «all the veggies here are amazing. Even the green stuff on your rice is good!» … and that was the green onion garnish, hehehe! It was a little greasy, with a pool of sauce on the bottom, but I guess it was meant to be mixed with the rice on top. My friends enjoyed it so much that they ordered another bowl to share :)
For being in Clayton, the prices are decent for the sizable portions and atmosphere. But if you’re looking to satisfy your craving for authentic Japanese food, Tani and Wasabi (also in Clayton) are probably safer bets!

yummy. fresh-​fresh-​fresh. pretty much all u need to know. did i mention its fresh?

Miso is a cog in the Clayton machine commonly referred to as «Overpriced.» With so many area options (outside of Clayton) for good sushi and booze, there’s simply no reason to pay Miso’s prices. Because there are so many alternatives, I’ve provided a mnemonic to remember before you go out: Miso is only so-​so.

A bad experience gone good.
My girlfriend and I decided to get a little sushi a while ago, she has been many times to Miso but this trip was my first experience and a little bit of a disaster. It was a beautiful night so we decided to sit outside. Their patio is a little crowded but it didn’t bother me at all.
To start out we ordered a couple of drinks and an appetizer. Once the appetizer came we ordered a bunch of sushi that we were extremely excited to try. The appetizer was pretty decent, nothing to write home about. While we ate we ordered a couple more beers and waited for our sushi.
And waited… We really didn’t notice that it was taking a long time because it was a busy restaurant and on a Friday night but after the next beers were ordered the waitress apologized that it was taking so long due to an electrical problem and she brought us out some edamame.
And we waited… At this time we figured something was up because the place was starting to clear out. Then the waitress came out (who had been doing a great job) and told us there was a mistake with the order and due to the electrical problem we wouldn’t be able to get our sushi. We were briefly devastated. But the manager came out, apologized very genuinely, gave us a very sizable gift certificate and comped everything we had eaten and drank.
I can understand that most people would be very upset with this whole situation but the staff handled our situation so well that I really wasn’t mad and almost happy to get a free appetizers and drinks.
A couple of weeks after we had our bit of a disaster of a dinner, my girlfriend and I returned. This time we received the same great service and were able to try their sushi. I’d have to say that this is my favorite sushi place in town, although very pricey. My only regret from the whole debacle was that I didn’t get to try the special roll on the night when the power went out.
Great place for a date night, definitely bring your wallet.

Miso! Miso! Miso! Like the soup, love the sushi, and the drinks are to die for when it comes to their happy hour pricings. Settled in the heart of Clayton, is this cute little sushi place that people can come and mingle at right after work.
Their happy hour is from 5:00 — 6:30pm with a few select items for half the price than what they usually run for. One thing I truly admire is the portions of the sushi. You get what you pay for. Unfortunately, I can’t say that about any other sushi place I have been to in the city of St. Louis.
$ 2.50 Budweiser products, check. $ 3 domestics, check. Some wines and specialty drinks are as low as $ 4. You really can’t go wrong. One person could easily escape out of here under $ 10 with a full stomach.
The glory of this place is that it can cater to pretty much any crowd except the smaller, younger human beings. Date night or professional while dressing casual. I would not recommend bringing kids here simply because it really doesn’t strike me as a ‘kid friendly’ type of place. Otherwise, come, enjoy, and escape!

I never thought it would happen, but I think we have a «go to» sushi spot!
$ 5 simple rolls and $ 3.50 Stoli cocktails during happy hour — I’m beyond sold.
The fact that it’s a short drive from home and has a cute atmosphere helps a lot too.
The sushi isn’t bad, and I think the $ 5 is a great deal. They have some good options, too! Spicy Tuna, Salmon Avacado, and Hamachi Avacado are some of our favorite rolls anyways, so it’s a great way to have a sushi dinner without dropping a ton of money.
The service has been good when we’ve been here, and it’s never very busy — so you can pop in and out for dinner after work pretty quickly.
We’ll be back!

It was love at first bite… during my first visit in 2005.
After a bit of a Miso hiatus, we returned for sushi and asian tapas. The sushi was nothing like what I remembered it to be. The maki was sloppy and falling apart. One of the rolls we ordered was labeled spicy on the menu, but it was not. And clearly missing a few ingredients. The other roll, Crazy Eddie, was boring and bland. Asian Ribs, not really my thing – but my better half thoroughly enjoyed them and I was a super fan of the slaw they were paired with. The ultimate dish of the night: Spicy Green Beans. YUM. It’s too bad my heart was set on sushi… I made a meal out of green beans and I might have been content otherwise!
This place seems to be losing their maki magic and this makes me sad.

I’m a huge fan of two things at Miso:
1. The avocado roll
2. The bartender, Mark
The avocado rolls are wrapped with the rice out the outside surrounding big chunks of avocado. It just melts in your mouth. I crave it all the time.
Mark has been there most of the nights we were there for drinks after work. He’s a very friendly and accommodating bartender. Thanks Mark!
As for décor and ambiance, they just redid the upstairs and it looks very, very nice, but not cozy. The basement is cozier, but I’m not sure that exposed cement wall is doing it for them. The new booths look awkward. And they need new couches. In general, I recommend they get away from the metal look.

It’s been so long since I’ve had sushi! My appetite was satisfied with the spicy tuna roll. It came out super fast. Which might have been a reflection on the fact that we nearly had the place to ourselves at 6pm.
I liked the deco and ambiance. I was surprised that there weren’t many patrons. This place is more than just sushi people! I enjoyed a happy hour cocktail while I read up on their non-​sushi entrée’s…not a lot of options but a few. Which is nice because my husband won’t touch a raw fish with a 5 foot fishing pole.

In town visiting Wash U and was looking for a decent sushi bar dinner as I was dining alone. Checked out Unilocal and read the reviews and Miso looked like the top of the charts in the restaurant village called Clayton.
The atmosphere was nice and I sat right down at the sushi bar. I was somewhat surprised to see three sushi chefs behind the bar however only one was asian the other two were midwestern born and bred. Not that a midwestern born and bred can’t learn this craft, I’m just very used to seeing a Japanese chef or 2 behind the bar.
The waitress was very attentive and personable and reviewed the evening specials however I chose to go with the core sushi/​sashimi dinner. The dinner did not include soup, or salad or tea as most restaurants do.
I started with a cup of Miso soup which was your standard issue Miso. Fish was somewhat fresh for a midwest restaurant (no oceans in sight) but not great, presentation was ok however portions for $ 28 were underwhelming. The tea was actually very tasty.
For dessert, red bean ice cream wrapped in Mochi. I believe this is a frozen prepackaged item as it tasted a bit freezer burned.
In all an ok experience but very pricey:
Miso soup $ 4.00
Sushi/​sashimi $ 28 (only 4 pieces of each and a tuna roll)
Tea $ 5.00
Dessert $ 5.00
With tip, $ 50 for a mediocre, somewhat fresh skimpy Japanese dinner. Maybe Im spoiled being an East Coast inhabitant however next time I’m in Clayton, I’ll be visiting another restaurant for sure.

I’m not usually a a fan of Asian cuisine, however I enjoyed our Sunday night dinner at Miso. We sat in the front part of the restaurant and the décor was really modern & interesting. The food was good and I can’t complain about a thing. It seems like a great place for a happy hour or weekend dinner.

Thank you, Miso, for finally satisfying my month-​long sushi and sake craving. I tried other places, including that other Clayton standby (Wasabi) without relief. I even found myself debating the pilfered selection at Whole Foods on more than one occasion. But it was you — harshly written off in my college days for being faux-​trendy and too expensive — that came through for me. And for that, you have earned a place in my digital rolodex once more.
First of all, your cute-​as-​a-​button server was just fantastic. He was attentive without being leering, quick without rushing, and overall knowledgeable and friendly. Can we be besties?
Second, your $ 10 bottle of Nigori (enough for two people to sip throughout the meal) is offered at a better price point than is by some of the liquor stores ’round here. I’m in heaven.
And finally — The sushi was just what Dr. Feelgood prescribed. After a bowl of perfectly salted edamame, we ordered four specialty rolls, including the Papasan (mouthgasm) the Magic Mushroom (chewy and delicious — no rice in this one, which disappointed my dining companion but left me rubbing my belly in pleasure) and some sort of spicy-​tempura-​type-​thing that I can’t pick out on the menu.
I don’t usually order dessert, but after such a well-​rounded meal, I had to go for the green tea mochi. The perfect digestif. Total bill was ~$ 80, which may be a bit pricey for everyday St. Louie dinners, but felt warranted for a Sunday night treat.
I heard you got a new chef and hired a decorator. It shows. See you for a late-​night rendezvous soon?

I wish I could remember our servers name… she was awesome. We had a group of 12 – 15 downstairs and she did an amazing job. The apps were great, sushi was obviously amazing and the restaurant was very clean. Great staff, very friendly!!!
Keep up the great job! If the place stays consistent with service and quality like we had that night, it will be open forever.
Props to the staff!!! Hope to see you all again very soon =)

Came here for dinner with a few coworkers once, and I loved it! We ordered a bunch of rolls and just shared them all and there wasn’t a single roll that I didn’t like. We had the following rolls (and ordered multiple of a few of them):
— Crazy Eddie Roll
— Red Torpedo Roll
— Yum Yum Roll (my favorite!)
— Sumo Roll
— Tiger Eye Roll
— Kamikaze Roll
— Godzilla Roll
— Mamasan Roll
Needless to say, I was full. Very full. While this place is a little pricey, I’d recommend trying it at least once! You don’t be disappointed.

St. Louisans like to think Miso makes good sushi and I can’t figure out why. It’s really not that good. Delete the «that». It’s really not good at all. Having been there three times (and the third time only out of indecision and sheer laziness), I’ve tasted about ¹⁄₃ of the menu and the quality of their execution is conspicuously poor.
I haven’t been in about a year, so perhaps things have improved. That may in fact be the case, as my entire impetus for writing this review was an article I just read announcing they’ve expanded and are opening up the new space today. If they’re focusing that much on their atmostphere, hopefully they’re focusing as much on improving the food; which would require sourcing better fish and hiring better trained sushi chefs. Last I went, everything I ate smelled fishy, had a mushy texture and the rice fell apart.
I know it’s the midwest and sourcing sushi grade anything isn’t cheap or easy, but the thing about sushi is that it really should never BE cheap or easy. As with a lot of things in Missouri, I find cheap is often top priority, which leaves those of us searching for quality over quantity with few options. I think I’ll have to try Café Mochi.

Hmmmm. I’m on the fence. I don’t eat sushi, but I came along for the ride because I knew Miso had other things.
The good: Everything we ate (and drank) was very good. We chose the sweet, unfiltered sake and I really liked it. I had never had sake before so it was good way to start out. I had the pad thai with tofu. It wasn’t GREAT, but I would eat it again.
Now for the bad: I was dining with friends and we had a lot to talk about. That was a good thing because I think it took them an hour to bring the sushi once it was ordered. That seems EXCESSIVE to me. It was a Saturday night, but still.
I’d go back here on a weekday night and see if its still this slow.

Trying the sushi at Miso is on my to-​do list. I’ve only ever been to Miso late at night, when my friends and I are more in a sake and cocktail kind of mood.
The sake list is fairly good. I have sent myself at least three text messages with varieties of sake that I’ve tried at Miso, and notes about whether they’re good or not. Sho Chiku Bai is my favorite at the moment.
I enjoy the 80s movies and music, and the staff is very nice. The crowd isn’t always my favorite, but if I’m in the mood to get prettied up and hang out in Clayton, Miso is definitely on the agenda.

My boyfriend and I went here on Sunday night for the first time. It has a trendy atmosphere that is probably best with first dates and get together with those «sophisticated» girlfriends from bigger cities but not much else was impressive to us. The sushi was pricy and just okay. It took more than an hour for the food to be ready, which was more than we have ever waited at a sushi place. The place was not even packed!
It was also impossible to see the tiny menu items using candle light… I understand they are trying to be romantic/​trendy but they need to have a little bit of lighting over the tables, or use bigger font on the menus! Because when I have to crank my neck to look at what I’m ordering, I don’t feel romantic or trendy.
Overall: too much foo foo… will not return.