Himitsu

I made reservations to Umi and waited for a good 30 mins to an hour to get in. I’ve never made reservations to a restaurant before and had to wait an extra 45 minto get in. Kinda ridiculous. The front bar/​lounge waiting area was packed so we decided to hang out outside in the cold /​drizzling rain. After a good 20mins someone that was walking towards Umi from a couple of doors down from the plaza asked us if we wanted to go to there secret waiting area. (Himitsu). We said why not and followed him down to the secret lounge.
Front door can only be opened by a keycard. The hostess is sitting there and asked what my name under the reservations for Umi was and then opened a second door for us to walk in.
The lounge was dark with loud music. There was quite a few people at the bar. We sat down at a little table and ordered drinks immediately. 15 mins later we still didnt receive our drinks and I get a text from Umi that our table is ready. I’m like ok if this place is connected with Umi I can just bring my drinks over there and get my table… nope. They are not connected so you have to finish your drinks there. So I had to down my drink and head back. I was a little annoyed by then because I was HANGRY and it was like 9 or 930. So now after reading the reviews of how this place is a secret lounge and you have to be on guest list to get in, or something… Lemme just tell you. It’s not that cool.
Whatever my drink was, it tasted good but not worth the price tag.

I had a slight annoyance with reservations here. I sent a few emails and finally got a response a week later. And per the email, you were to receive a follow up email which would include the door code and I never got mine. Luckily, we made reservations to Umi before Himitsu so I had to ask for the code. I understand that it’s exclusive but it was seriously too much work. What if I never went to Umi???
Despite all this, we were able to go in and we were immediately greeted by the first hostess. Then we were led through the second door which is the main entrance to this secret place. It was stunning. There are two floors and the bottom floor is more for dinner and the top floor is the lounge area. I can see why it’s exclusive… all your drinks are served in crystal glasses. It’s nice but honestly really heavy to hold LOL.
We ordered their specialties: Toryufu, Yuzu and a few others. I absolutely love the Toryufu, it was infused with truffle oil, all I needed was a side of french fries and I’m golden. We also ordered Moscow Mule and hands down, the best Moscow Mule I’ve ever had. They infused ginger and there’s also a huge slice of ginger in your drink, but it wasn’t served in a copper cup, it was served in crystal glasses. So fancy!
We also order a few appetizers and I think the tuna pizza with basil was probably the best thing I’ve never had before. It was very unique and refreshing and not a single hint of tuna in the after taste. It was absolutely impeccable.
Tom Ford soap??? Wow, if you want to feel spoiled, come here. Their state of the art toilet is ridunculous. The only complaint is that the door is so heavy to open. When you’re in 6″ heels, it’s a really big problem.
Great music, great ambiance, great drinks, great food and great company.
And the best part of the night was that we were lounging next to Jerome Bettis, the former half back for the Rams/​Steelers and Dr. Sanjay Gupta!!! I could not believe it!!! We took pictures with Jerome but we didn’t want to bother Dr.Sanjay. :)
All in all, I can not wait to come back here and I hope that my next reservations would be much smoother.

Himitsu is definitely Atlanta’s best kept secret. It’s a reservations-​only lounge that’s low-​key and glamorous all at the same time.
Japanese for «secret,» Himitsu is located a couple doors down from its big brother Umi in an unmarked storefront and requires a passcode to enter. Once in, it feels like you’ve stepped into a lounge that would fit comfortably in NYC or LA. The vibe is exclusive without being pretentious. It’s like you’re being rewarded for going that extra mile to get in.
The décor is dark and sexy. Hands down, the BEST cocktail program not just in Atlanta, but anywhere. I was blown away with how inventive and delicious the drinks are. My favorite cocktail. ever is the Toryufu made with truffle oil. Very unexpected.
The food is worthy of Umi’s master Chef Ito’s stamp of approval. Even the edamame is out of this world. Only slight miss was the box sushi which fell a part when trying to pick it up with chopsticks. The diver scallops were fresh and tasted like slivers of the sea.
Dessert included the most amazing mille crêpe cake that’s made from layers and layers of crepes stacked one on top of each other — so much attention to detail even in the littlest thing.
Lastly, even the bathrooms are indulgent. Tom Ford soap and even warmed toilets seats and a state-​of-​the-​art bidet.
It’s rare to find a lounge that succeeds on all the right elements — from the luxurious ambiance, killer cocktails and amazing food.

The degree of exclusiveness that Himitsu strives for is astounding. You have to be referred in order to get in, you enter a code at an obscure door and enter to be confirmed for the reservation. It’s a new experience for Atlanta and will likely fill in the gap in the market left previously by Prohibition bar that closed.
Interior is romantic, nostalgic and elegant. The glassware is crystal. The drinks are innovative. Food is a selection of the Umi menu and unless you’ve been living under a giant rock (Stone Mountain?), you will already know that it’s the best Japanese cuisine in the city. Himitsu will be one of my go to spots in Atlanta from now on, despite the heavy price tag.
There were a couple disappointments that occurred during the visit. I view mixology as an art form, however the art here was not to my taste. As a matter of fact, others at the table did not enjoy their cocktails either. I realize that it’s a matter of opinion and perhaps taste, but it did seem that it wasn’t just myself that found some of the drinks lackluster and others horrific. Even the ones that I did think were decent, it wasn’t anything to be blown away by in taste or presentation.
The other disappointment were certain service elements. The waitress was very nice, but not attentive whatsoever. She couldn’t notice that we are sitting without drinks for extended periods of time. I had to repeatedly turn around and look for her. It was a little annoying, especially given that this is a very small establishment. On a positive note, food did come out very quickly and was spectacular.
Himitsu wouldn’t last long in a city like New York or Chicago, but it’s a step in the right direction for Atlanta. The cocktails need to be reengineered from the ground up, the vibes are excellent and the service needs minor tweaks.

So, before your face enters the place you have to email your reservation request to an inbox then they email you back an access code that must be entered into a keypad to open the front door. Once the front door opens a very stoic yet attractive Asian man is standing in the doorway to greet you. We gave the hostess our name then she opened yet another sliding door and seated us at a two top. The first thing I noticed when I walked in was how dark it was, almost as dark as a night club. There was some lighting above the bar and they were candles at each table. There was beautiful artwork hanging from the ceiling and an interesting mural on the wall. Besides that everything was black or slate colored. Kind of coffin chic. We immediately ordered cocktails and were forced to order bottled water. The cocktails were overpriced which is to be expected in Buckhead but the taste didn’t really match the price. If I’m paying $ 20 for a cocktail I expect to be blown away by it. No one in our party was impressed. I personally sent back my first cocktail because it tasted like cough syrup. On a positive note the servers were very friendly and accommodating and knew the menu very well. Other then that one high note there was nothing that made this place engaging or interesting. It was honestly very boring and the 80’s music pumping through the speakers really didn’t help the cause. Perhaps when more people learn about this place and decide to visit it will have more energy. Due to the overpriced lackluster cocktails we will not be back. Was a total waste of an hour.