Guest Contributor

Last week, I was informed by a friend that my favorite bar in Dayton, Tender Mercy, had a new sushi restaurant located in the back part of it called Dozo. One of my favorite bars has contained an entire sushi restaurant in it for the past three months and I didn’t even know?! Obviously this could not stand, I simply had to try it.

The sushi portion is only open Thursday through Saturday, so I booked a 5 o’ clock reservation for myself on Thursday, and went in not really knowing what to expect. Of course, I love the bar already, so I had somewhat high hopes for their sushi restaurant.

Tender Mercy is an underground bar in what used to be a subway station. It’s dark, sleek, upscale, and basically just has the most immaculate vibes. But it isn’t all appearances and atmosphere. Tender Mercy also has some truly excellent service, as well as drinks.

After descending into the depths, I was led through the bar area to a back room that was completely empty, save for the two chefs behind the sushi bar. I was sat at the corner of the bar, and took this opportunity of being the only guest to photograph some of the seating:

It was cozy but in an elegant way. Intimate, but elevated. I really liked it!

After sitting down, I was met with a welcome card and a menu.

(Check out the hot towel in the corner!)

It was then that I learned the menu was a prix-fixe four course meal called “The Tour”:

This was so exciting to me, as I love curated menus like this, especially when they rotate seasonally. It just shows how much intentionality is put into each course.

As you can see, the four courses (minus the special add-ons), is $65. I also opted to do the sake pairing, which was $50. Despite being able to count the number of times I’ve had sake on one hand, I thought that this would be an excellent opportunity to try it again, and it seemed fitting given the setting.

The chef asked me questions, like what kind of sushi I typically like, and what kinds of things I didn’t like. I said I pretty much like everything, except spicy. I was well aware that there were some spicy-ish ingredients in some of the courses, but that’s the roll of the dice when you go somewhere with a pre-fixed menu. It’s not their fault I’m exceptionally weak to heat.

As I was waiting for my first course, the waitress brought out my first sake, the Wandering Poet. Apparently this sake is made with Yamadanishiki rice, which is considered the best of the best sake rice. Sounded like a good start to me!

The sake was very light, definitely more on the dry side but not overly dry. There was just a tinge of sweetness amongst the lightness that I found quite nice. I saved some for my first course, which came shortly after.

To start off The Tour, we have the Hiyayakko Tofu:

A generously sized block of silken tofu in a ginger-yuzu ponzu, topped with scallions, radish, and dried skipjack tuna.

Tofu has always been one of those things that I think gets way too much hate. People always say tofu isn’t any good, but they’re obviously just not preparing it right. This tofu right here is guaranteed to change any haters’ minds. The tofu was so silky it was almost creamy. The ponzu was bright from the citrus but bold from the ginger, with the bit of bite from the green onions on top. Each bite was so flavorful and a perfect example of cohesion in a dish.

Off to a strong start! I was really excited for the second course. This course’s sake was called Divine Droplets. The waitress mentioned it had notes of peach, and I love peach, so this one was sounding pretty good. It was another light one, with a subtle crispness. I actually did get some of that slightly sweet, fruit flavor, and overall it was a pleasant sake.

Course two consisted of four pieces. Blue crab temaki, madai (sea bream), kanpachi (amberjack), and hamachi (yellowtail):

I decided to start on the left and work my way down in order. I picked up the temaki and ate it like a taco. I absolutely adore crab so this was a great place to start. As a lover of crab, I have always wanted to try blue crab, and this was my first time coming across it. The crab was mixed with dill, parsley, daikon, and a lemon rouille (I had to look up what a rouille was). I could’ve eaten like a hundred more of these temaki, it was so good.

Now came the moment of truth. I was nervous because I am someone who pretty much only eats Americanized sushi, and fully cooked rolls that have things like cream cheese in them. I almost never eat raw fish or raw sushi. What if I didn’t even like it?

That first piece of sea bream took all my worries into a back alley and beat them into oblivion. My god. The sea bream practically melted in my mouth. The softness of the fish, the sweet, crisp Korean pear in contrast with the slight heat from the gochujang, it all made for an absolutely perfect bite. The chef asked me how I was liking it so far, and I expressed how ridiculously good it was. He explained that sea bream is usually a ceremonial fish, reserved for things like birthdays and special occasions.

Up next was the amberjack, a fish I’ve never even heard of. It was served with honey, miso, and ginger, which are not only things I really like, but things that I think go exceptionally well together. Another excellent bite! The ginger definitely had some bite in this one, but it didn’t overshadow the other flavors. I asked the chef about the amberjack, and he said it’s basically like a cousin to yellowtail.

Lastly was the yellowtail, topped with a jalapeno and spicy mayo, and a slightly spicy seasoning. Before I ate this one, the chef asked me if I would like him to remove the jalapeno slice. I felt bad asking for him to modify it for me, but he said it was no problem, and took it right off. Did the piece still have some heat? Yes. Did I die from it? No. And actually, it was good! The spicy mayo and the togarashi provided a slight kick that didn’t hurt. The yellowtail was also more firm in texture but was still buttery.

All the bites of the second course were delicious. I was hooked. I eagerly awaited the third course.

The third sake was called Bride of the Fox. It was much more full bodied than the previous two, heavier and rich. It was even darker in color than the first two. I liked it about as well I liked the previous two, they were all on equal footing so far.

Onto the third course lineup. Spicy tuna temaki, sake (salmon), hon maguro (bluefin tuna), and unagi (freshwater eel).

Though the temaki was labeled as a spicy tuna, it really wasn’t at all! It also had tomato concasse (I had to look up what concasse was, but basically it’s just diced tomatoes without the skin and seeds), daikon, shallot, and serrano. This temaki was so light and fresh, and I would wager that the tomatoes had a hand in that exquisite summer-like freshness. Turns out I’m a big fan of temaki!

I love salmon, and this salmon looked especially good. Salmon is one fish I have had raw before, but I eat it cooked way, way more often than raw. This piece came with mascarpone and dill, which I thought was a really unexpected addition. It was also topped with ikura, which was undoubtedly the biggest caviar I’d ever seen. The dill was an interesting and flavorful component, but really good. The ikura was like a salty, briny popping boba. Another winner in my book.

Onto the bluefin tuna. The chef mentioned that not only does it feature the bluefin tuna (obviously), but also has toro and smoked skipjack tuna, so it was really like a triple decker tuna nigiri. Tuna is another one of those fish that I have had raw before, but again I’m much more likely to eat something like tuna salad than raw tuna. I mentioned to the chef that the salmon and tuna were exceptionally good compared to what I’d had before, and he said that seafood is pretty much always better in the winter. The fish are in colder water so they need more fat to keep warm. Everything becomes more plump and tender, and that was definitely evident here.

Eel is something I actually eat pretty often when it comes to sushi, because I love dragon rolls. This eel, however, was completely different from the eel I usually eat. This eel was not drenched in sauce, it was light, and unexpectedly herbaceous from the green on top. The waitress told me it was similar to mint and basil, and she was not kidding. This was a totally different flavor profile than I was used to, and it was great.

Third course was another total success.

At this point, the waitress asked me if I’d like to go ahead and do the dessert course, or if there was anything I wanted to add-on before then. I looked at the additions and decided I might as well try the wagyu, because why not?

The piece of A5 wagyu was torched to perfection and served with a chimichurri made right on the spot. Chimichurri is cool or whatever, but I thought it was kind of a strange thing to serve with wagyu. I figured it would be good no matter what, because it is wagyu after all.

Boy, was I wrong. It was not good. It was glorious. I could not believe what I was eating could possibly taste THIS delectable. The chimichurri made me reevaluate everything I thought I knew about it as a sauce. I literally do not care that it was eighteen dollars. It was fucking worth it.

Finally, it was time for dessert. The final sake was called Blossom of Peace. It smelled really good, had a dark color, and was so sweet and fruity. This was my favorite sake by a landslide, it was so yummy. And apparently it’s the cheapest bottle so maybe I’ll buy some later on now that I know I like it.

And here is the squash with a honey walnut glaze and matcha whipped cream:

The chef mentioned he doesn’t have much of a sweet tooth, and this dessert definitely shows that. The squash was tender, and the matcha whipped cream had that classic earthy-matcha-y flavor but was nice and creamy. Who would’ve guessed that whipped cream and squash went together? Plus, who doesn’t love Pocky?! What a fun addition to such a classy dessert. Honestly, I’m glad the dessert wasn’t a super indulgent, rich, heavy dessert. I think this was the perfect choice for this meal, and I really enjoyed it.

This meal was one of the best dining experiences I’ve ever had. I absolutely loved the food, the service, talking with the chef, the sake, and the price was great too. I will definitely be returning, hopefully soon because wow I need more sushi like this in my life.

Do you like sushi? Would you try this pre-fixed menu? Which course looks the best to you? Let me know in the comments, and have a great day!

This post, originally published on the Whatever website was written by Athena Scalzi, who lives in Bradford, Ohio and loves writing about local gems, as well as reviewing movies, video games, and media in general! When she’s not writing, she bartends at 21 Barrels Winery & Cidery, bake cookies, and read web comics.