ELITE – The Yelpiversary

In the limited time I have to try to get this review out I will not be able to do this event justice. It was the best elite event I have attended and after some of the other events recently that’s saying somthing.
The staff and food were amazing and the servings seemed everlasting.
As you might see from some of the other comments the afternoon was amazing so I’m not alone in making sure I try to stay «elite status» again next year.
Special thansk to Brett and his team and the staff at Samurai Blue

WOW!!! This was amazing!!! So good! This is one of my favorite places to eat and every time I go it gets better, but who could expect this! The owners of this restaurant are just so generous and wonderful, and they certainly out did themselves on this occasion. Everything, even the cute little menus were done with excellence. The staff was extremely attentive and we rarely lifted our heads before our glasses were refilled and the next course was coming. I just can hardly say enough good about this experience. The food was delicious!!! Picking a favorite menu item would be near impossible. There was a salad that is called, Hiashi Special that was so spicy but so good, I couldn’t quit eating it! I loved the Panko Crab Claw and the sauce, but was utterly thrilled with the Osaka Hako-​Sushi! It’s help motivating me to come back to Tampa and I can hardly wait to get there!

Oh my god, my husband and I were filmed beyond the rim. Glad we went to this event bc I really would not have had an opportunity to go since my husband does not like sushi or seafood. The restaurant was very nice, and the people working were accommodating, and gave him extra personal helpings of the items he did like. He did go away stuffed and happy. Our favorite was the cake which we would never order else wise. Glad we got to try something new. This was a great event shared with great company.

First of all, well done Brett. You planned another great event and I had a great time as usual. Happy one year!
This was the first time I had been to this location of Samurai Blue. If I’m ever in the area, I’ll def go back here. It was very spacious and there were a lot of seating available.
Onto the food! Absolutely everything we had was really delicious. They had many different options including raw sushi, noodle bowls, and rice bowls. I have to say though, my favorite was the Crab Rangoon. I think I could eat that all day. Everything was brought out to us very quickly and was also presented in a very nice fashion. The Green Tea dessert we had was absolutely delicious. I don’t think I’ve had anything quite like it and it’s something that I think I will order again.
I had the pleasure of talking with some wonderful Unilocalers and it was truly a great afternoon. Well done!

OM NOM NOM. I was so full after eating that I had to go home and rest! Everything was absolutely delicious. The staff at Samurai Blue were amazing. My +1 is a vegetarian and they made her a few special dishes that weren’t on the menu. I’d like to give a big thank you to Samurai Blue for doing that.
I have been to the Ybor location, so I know what these guys and girls can do. I expected nothing but excellence and I was not disappointed. Great job on the event. The food dishes and drinks were served in a very orderly and timely fashion.
And, of course, my hat is off to Brett for making this whole thing happen.
Some notes on the food…
The Japanese scallop — raw, but tasty. I can’t say I ever had a raw scallop, this was pretty good. It had a little kick to it as well, which was a nice touch.
Panko crab claw — One of my favorites. I liked how the incorporated the claw into the design of the dish. It makes a great little handle.
Hiashi salad — Very spicy! I made the mistake of taking a bite without having a drink right in front of me. It had a great chile flavor. It literally made me sweat.
Inari box — Sweet and cripsy panko wrapper stuffed with a sweet rice/​crab mixture.
Crab rangoon — Melts in your mouth. Very sweet and scrumptious. Tasty sauce.
Sashimi — Tender and fresh. Awesome.
Makimono — Osaka hako-​sushi. It had a nice crab salad flavor.
Hamachi — Lime zest was a bit bitter and the jalapeño was very subtle.
Kyoto — Creamy crab salad topped with avocado. Yum!
Blue moon roll — A tempura battered roll. I’m not sure what was in here but it was awesome.
Green tea crêpe — By this point, I am about to burst at the seams. I had never heard of dessert at a sushi restaurant, but this fit in perfectly. I would highly recommend this dish. It was a lot, so share!
There is only one problem, however — there are no Samurai Blues in Pinellas county!

I had the pleasure of attending last year’s Unilocal event at the Ybor location so this event was much anticipated. I knew I needed to come on hungry! :)
Since we live close to this location, this is the Samurai Blue that my boyfriend and I frequent more. The space is light and airy with a casual vibe. It’s definitely great for a casual get-​together. They had a fully stocked bar too! I’m not a drinker but it bears mentioning: P
From start to finish, the waitstaff was efficient and friendly. They didn’t mind when I asked them for a quick photo of their plates. They also made sure to check in to see if we needed anything every few minutes so they were attentive (to say the least!)
All the seafood was incredibly fresh which is important when in sushi especially if it’s in sashimi and nigiri form with nothing masking the fishiness that happens with old seafood.
Of the appetizers, I really enjoyed the spicy sashimi and cucumber salad and the scallop with ponzu.
Of the specialty rolls, Hamachi Fresh roll was top notch! I could taste every single ingredient listed and it all worked together (the added jalapeño was a nice touch and not overwhelming).
The scallops were PERFECTION in every dish they were in.
The icing on top was the Matcha Mille Feuille (Crêpe Cake) that ended the night. It’s one of my favorite desserts to eat and make!
Overall, this was another fantastic event! Thank you Brett and Samurai Blue!

My very first Unilocal event and it was fantastic!
Full of new people to meet and new flavors to taste.
Well organized with goodies and name tags to introduce yourself to the Unilocal Community and restaurants that help support it.

A real treat to eat such a variety of well prepared, and well presented, assortment of sushi, rolls, bowls and other wonderful dishes served up at the Sunday afternoon event.
Loved the open, airy design of the restaurant, which gives it a contemporary and comfortable feeling.
There is a reason the original Samurai Blue in Ybor City has long remained a favorite of sushi fans and I suspect that this location will be equally as well loved.
Some of the standouts were the Japanese Scallop with Ponzu Jelly and the Blue Moon, made with lump blue crab meat, asparagus and cream cheese. The Green Tea Crêpe Cake was a delight and an altogether new experience. I adore green tea and thought this nicely retained the flavors and combined a creamy texture with just the slightest bit of chewiness.
Great to know this is a sushi place that I can return to eagerly and can recommend to others whole-​heartedly.

Absolutely loved this event. Great food, good company, what’s not to love?
I am a sushi fanatic, so ever since I RSVP’d I’ve been anxiously waiting for this event to come. Samurai Blue definitely lived up to its hype as one of the best sushi places in the Tampa Bay area.
The sashimi was divine. They were nice cuts of obviously fresh fish. I could have just ate the salmon sashimi and left satisfied. All the specialty rolls were really good too. I especially enjoyed the Lobster Tempura Roll. Surprisingly, after the Lobster Tempura Roll my next favorite dish was the Pork Cha Siu Bowl. I have fond memories of eating boatloads of just cha siu as a child and I was surprised to see it on the menu. The seaweed on the top was a nice touch and it would make for a great stand alone meal.
I powered through and tried everything. It was a lot! I cannot believe that they fed us so much. I didn’t try the drinks, because I had to run later, but I heard the beer and the saketini were delicious.
The servers were extremely efficient and really friendly. I saw some people having a little bit of trouble with the chopsticks and the servers were extremely patient. I was about to go to another table and pick it up for them so we could get the sushi faster :)
One of the best parts of the meal was the dessert, the green tea crêpe cake. It was fantastic and unique. It had matcha green tea powder on the top which gave it a flavorful green tea kick. I didn’t think I could eat another bite when it came and I ended up eating over half of it. That desert is on my list of all time favorite foods.
The restaurant itself is very open and bright. This is a bit of a shock, since most sushi places are a bit dark, but I enjoyed it.
I thought this event was fantastic and I plan to come back to Samurai Blue.

Ah, just another Sunday afternoon getting wined and dined at a private party — wonder what all the uncool people were doing. The party tempo was very low key, compared to other Unilocal bang outs — a welcomed soothing change. As usual, the most effort of the day was writing your name on the name tag — from there, you didn’t have to lift a finger, just your chopsticks.
In true hermit fashion, I sat myself in a booth furthest away from the socialization. Yet, I wasn’t exempt from Brett’s hospitality as he made his way to every table for a chat, such a great host! That’s okay, I made a new friend — Mr. Yaegaki Nigori Sake — and, he went down smoothly.
Everything was delicious and the staff were great. My favorites were:
— Hiashi Special: so spicy and so good.
— Crab Rangoon: this is meant as a one-​biter, right?
— Pan Seared Scallop with Udon Noodles: good news, scallops don’t make me barf anymore.
Congrats to Brett for his one-​year anniversary! You’re a beautiful person.
The only critique I offer is to my fellow Unilocalers: please un-​RSVP if you can’t make the event. To me, it didn’t look like we were at capacity and I know there was a long wait list.

Oh yeah, I don’t really eat fish and I don’t really eat sushi and I think it says a lot that I ate nearly everything offered at this momentous meal and enjoyed everything immensely.
My highlights were the rice pouch, the one roll with the eel (yeah, I’m super technical), the pork bowl and last but not least the matcha cream cake!
I think my fellow Unilocalers hit all the food, let me talk about the service. ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL. The service and ownership break Samurai Blue away from all other restaurants. They have earned my applause.
Can we do this again in 2014?

Wow, another amazing Elite event. Samurai Blue spared no expense and pulled out the stops for an amazing spread of offerings from the drinks to the appetizers, to the dessert.
My +1 loves sushi, so he was in sushi heaven. I, on the other hand, don’t care for cooked fish, so I was brave in even sampling a bit of the sushi dishes. I enjoyed the crab rangoon, simply amazing. The saketini I had was also delicious, and my chardonnay rounded out my meal. I loved the pork bowl over rice, along with the lobster roll. I sampled some scallops and sashini, but not being a sushi-​lover it’s hard for me to give any specific feedback as far as those. But everyone else was getting their fill and gave feedback praising the freshness of everything. I must say, their presentation of every single dish is impressive.
The green tea crêpe dessert was good if you like green tea. It was sweet and creamy and you could tell a lot of work went into it. The staff and servers here were amazing, and extremely attentive. They ran out of the sashini before it made its way to our table, and one of the servers brought us our own dish of it after having the chefs make more.
I have no complaints. The restaurant was clean and open, with a great atmosphere. We didn’t really get any Unilocal swag this time since it was scooped up before all the food was served, but there’s always next time to score some chapstick. ;) Thanks for organizing, Brett. Once again… It’s neat to be Elite!

Now that I have awakened from my food-​induced coma it’s time to write a review for this afternoon’s incredible Unilocal Elite event. Brett treated his Tampa area Unilocal Elite team to a FREE fantastic sushi meal at Samurai Blue in Westchase. This was the one-​year anniversary of Brett becoming our Community Manager, and he pulled out all of the stops for this event.
The restaurant was closed off for our private party, and they treated us like celebrities from the moment that we arrived. Special Unilocal menus were set out for all of us so that we could follow along as the servers brought out each course. We were offered sake, beer, wine, and mixed drinks off the menu, and the staff from Samurai Blue kept offering to fill our glasses as the afternoon progressed. Once we were settled with drinks the servers then proceeded to delight us with over a dozen different small plates offerings.
Samurai Blue showed off their culinary chops with a wide variety of appetizers, rolls, nigiri sushi, sashimi, tempura entrees, noodle bowls and rice bowls. One right after another, each one different in flavors and textures. Some were hot and spicy, while others had the cooling relief from cream cheese added to the mix.
We finished our culinary feast with a slice of Green Tea Crêpe Cake which was a layered yellow cake with green tea frosting. Very light and delicious after such a filling meal. Brett handed out the Unilocal swag, and we all went home with full bellies and some new Unilocal toys.
As always it was a lot of fun to be able to visit with so many nice and interesting people, and I thoroughly enjoyed visiting with everyone. Thanks to Brett and Samurai Blue for a great afternoon. It truly is neat to be a member of the Unilocal Elite!

I love making other people jealous with how awesome Elite events are. This one was no exception!
I was introduced to Samurai Blue when I first moved to Tampa 7 years ago, and to me, it sets the standard for all other sushi restaurants. Today I got to sample so many different menu items that I don’t usually order– and I can still stand by the aforementioned statement.
The menu was out of control– several appetizers, several raw sushi options, and then of course my favorite– the fattening tempura rolls. Everything was delicious and well presented. My biggest delight of the menu was the Green Tea Crêpe dessert… this is something I would have never ordered– but it was light and fluffy, and had a unique taste that I loved.
The staff was super friendly and helpful. My plus one and I arrived late due to work commitments, so we had missed the first couple appetizers– but they happily offered to bring them back out for us. The timing of the serving was perfect too. It wasn’t too fast that you felt overwhelmed with the food… and not too slow that you were wondering where the next item was.
Thank you Samurai Blue and Brett for a wonderful Sunday afternoon!

Samurai Blue is one of my favorite restaurants in Tampa. However, I always order the same things when I come here. I enjoyed getting the chance to sample items I normally wouldn’t try.
So.much.food. This was probably the most I’ve ever eaten at a Unilocal event (although I feel like I say that after every one).
We started with a variety of appetizers. The crab rangoon was the stand out of the bunch. Despite the gorgeous presentation, I wasn’t a fan of the raw scallop and uni appetizer (a little too fishy for my taste).
Next up was the sashimi and sushi rolls. We were presented with a platter of extremely fresh tuna and salmon nigiri and sashimi. Of all of the rolls, I particularly enjoyed the pressed sushi roll and the tempura lobster roll. The Blue Moon is my favorite roll at SB, and it didn’t disappoint as usual.
By the time the pork rice bowl and scallops with udon noodles came out, most of our table was too stuffed to have more than a taste but both were quite good.
The green tea crêpe cake for dessert was such an unexpected treat! I usually turn my nose up at green tea desserts, but this was such an interesting favor and texture combination. I couldn’t stop eating it despite how full I was.
This was probably the smoothest of all Unilocal events I’ve attended. Everything was timed perfectly and we were even given a menu to see the incredible range of dishes we’d be sampling. It wasn’t too crowded, too loud, or too chaotic. We were able to just sit back and watch all of the gorgeous offerings coming to our table.
Thanks to Brett & Samurai Blue for a lovely afternoon full of great food and company!

As usual, Brett does not disappoint with his orchestrating of the elite events, and Samurai Blue was no exception.
From the moment we arrived, everything was laid out perfectly. In fact, we even had a menu letting us know what we would be sampling.
To begin, I started off with a glass of Sebastiani Pinot noir and it was great (so great I had 2 glasses). The appetizers they were passing around were superb but I think my favorite was the crab Rangoon. To die for!
The people of samurai blue were great to us. We sampled, and when I say sampled, I left stuffed, various rolls and nagiri and sashimi. My favorites were the blue moon and the pressed sushi.
And to top off the event, we had a slice of green tea crêpe pie. It was quite unusual but so refreshing.
All in all, this event opened my eyes to the great sushi Samurai Blue offers-​we will be back.