Kata Robata

If there were a perfect restaurant venn diagram, Kata Robata would be at the center. This sushi bar and izakaya in an Upper Kirby strip mall suits a bunch of different needs, whether you’re here for an omakase, date night, or potentially raucous group dinner. Kata Robata is always busy, because it should be. 

Dinner here runs like clockwork, if that clock were made of CBD gummies. No matter how packed Kata Robata gets, there is a remarkable calm. Regulars swing by the sushi bar and receive warm hellos and dreamy sunken booths teem with bachelorette and birthday parties. But the staff remains unfazed, methodically maneuvering through the amber-toned dining room. Before you know it, you’re lulled into a state of temporary bliss, where your every need as a diner is anticipated before you even think of it.

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Regardless of whether you order 20 dishes with your server all at once or take things dish by dish, the food somehow shows up at a steady, even pace. Lighter things arrive first, like the lemon-spiked octopus sashimi dotted with earthy enoki mushroom caps. Soon plates of nigiri arrive. The vinegar-sweet sushi rice is always slightly warm, and the expertly cut fish is always slightly cool. The yakitori dishes are as exceptional as the sushi. We would absolutely fight someone over the last few bites of the grilled hamachi kama with its buttery soft meat and subtle char. While we enjoy ordering a little bit of everything, the extensive menu at Kata Robata allows you to choose your own adventure. You can order nothing but sashimi, order nothing but yakitori, or just get what your server tells you to get. 

photo credit: Richard Casteel

photo credit: Richard Casteel

photo credit: Richard Casteel

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Whatever you’ve come here for, Kata Robata will deliver with cool, seasoned confidence. Whether it’s the sought-after omakase, a sake-fueled night out with friends, or a quick bite at the bar, you’ll be well cared for, because Kata Robata pulls off the center of that venn diagram of service, atmosphere, and food. 

Food Rundown

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Octopus Crudo

The slices of octopus are so thin it’s almost imperceptibly octopus. Every bite is acidic, crisp, and punctuated by the umami of tiny enoki mushroom caps.

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Uni Chawanmushi

The uni on top of this adorable little dish is not the most important, although it is delicious. The dense yet somehow airy egg custard is the best part. You’ll be digging at the ceramic cup with the cute little wooden spoon hoping to conjure up even more

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Nigiri

Temperature for nigiri is everything, and Kata nails it. There’s a harmonious balance between the warm, seasoned rice and the not too cold but still cool fish. Each piece melts instantly on your tongue. Order more nigiri than you think you want. Your future self will thank you.

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Hamachi Kama

We would go to Kata alone and sit at the bar and just eat this. Maybe twice. It’s simply grilled, beautifully executed, rich and buttery sweet fish.

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Wagyu Katsu Sando

It’s fried wagyu between toasted pieces of sweet, buttery Japanese milk bread slathered in fatty tonkatsu sauce. It’s like eating a little meat cloud. It’s also kind of obscene.