Seriously Speaking

Someone brings Yutaka a pair of martini glasses, frosted and fogging from a deep, hard chill. He meticulously fills them with stubborn vegetables shaved into paper, and shellfish fanned and folded.

When the martini sunomono salad arrives, the glass is no longer frosted, but it is cold to the touch, keeping its contents crisp and fresh. These would be octopus, shrimp, fish, seaweed, pickled carrot, cucumber and crab. Real crab. It's assembled with forceful intent: ceviche elevated to uncommon loftiness.

Whole squid is spread across a long slender plate, the body sliced into thin loops, brown with a scorched exterior grilled into barely perceptible crispness. Tentacles are lopped off at the end, leaving just suction-cupped stumps. The meat is tender and chewy with a wisp of ginger creeping through the chewing rhythm.

The capstone Yutaka moment is a sampler of sorts, a daring one that is more space than edible substance. Dubbed Japanese antipasto, this sculpted appetizer is simple: slices of heirloom tomato interwoven with shisho leaf (Japanese mint) over dabs of balsamic vinegar reduction opposite a tiny Japanese mountain peach. Between these points is a simple tea-like cup holding a piece of pork with a pepper draped over the top. The small section of meat is like pulled pork, juicy with hearty fibers.

A row of baby octopus, lightly coated in a fried tempura batter, blooms like coarsened blossoms from a slip of paper spread on the plate. Their bodies taper, and the tentacles struggle from the tempura cloak like withering petals. The meat is firm but not rubbery. Flavor bursts through the crunch, soy sake being the culprit.

Kobe beef tataki is like cold cuts: seared ovals slipping from gray to pink to rose as the center is impeded upon. They rest in a brisk dressing with a Fuji apple and a micro-green salad. In the mouth, these ovals are smooth and creamy, delicate slices without a hint of sinew or cantankerous fat deposits. It's like eating cream.

This is the language of Yutaka; a serious voice that easily translates into what is among the finest restaurants in Dallas. Top three anyway.

2633 McKinney Ave., Suite 140, 214-969-5533. Open for lunch 11:45 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. Open for dinner 5:45-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 5-11 p.m. Friday & Saturday. $$$-$$$$