Sushi Bar Near Me in Wynwood: Uchi Miami's Counter on NW 25th

If you are in Wynwood and typing sushi bar near me, Uchi Miami at 252 NW 25th Street is the most polished answer on the block. It is the Miami branch of the restaurant chef Tyson Cole opened in a refurbished South Austin bungalow in 2003, and it arrived here in 2021. The room is big, but the seat that matters is at the 14-seat sushi counter, where you watch the crew slice, torch and plate everything that leaves the kitchen.

What separates Uchi from a classic Edomae counter is its blend of Japanese technique with bright, Texas-born flavors. Raw fish arrives dressed with citrus, chili and fruit rather than only soy and wasabi, and the menu splits into cool tastings, hot tastings, nigiri, maki, agemono and a nightly omakase. The online menu is stamped as updated daily, and the October 14 edition mixes Uchi classics with luxury cuts such as dry-aged bluefin, Westholme wagyu and Kaluga caviar at $95.

Start with the dish regulars call the signature. Hama Chili is $24: thin slices of yellowtail in ponzu with Thai chili and orange supreme, sharp and sweet at once. Hirame usuzukuri, paper-thin flounder with candied quinoa, lime zest and olive oil, is $23. For something vegetarian from the same section, kinoko usuzukuri layers king trumpet mushroom with shallot and yuzu sanbai zu for $19.50. Order two of these cool plates for the table before moving to nigiri at the counter.

Nigiri is listed at two prices, a single piece and a sashimi portion. Akami, big eye tuna loin, is $9 a piece or $25 as sashimi. Hamachi is $8 or $25. Sake toro, the fatty salmon belly, is $7 or $23. Dry-aged bluefin chutoro sits at $14 a piece. At the top, A5 wagyu nigiri with tamari and fresh wasabi is $22, and the gyutoro nigiri made with 72-hour Westholme wagyu is $16. Pace yourself; the counter chefs will keep suggesting one more piece.

The maki list is short and dependable. Zero Sen, a yellowtail roll with avocado, shallot and cilantro, is $17.50, and Spicy Crunchy Tuna with cucumber, avocado and chili is $16.50. From the hot side, chicken karaage with sweet chili and a seasonal pickle is $17, and shrimp karaage with rock shrimp, tobanjan and chive is $24. If the group wants a showpiece, the A5 hot rock brings center-cut strip loin and kizame wasabi with a heated stone for searing at the table, at $65.

Timing matters more than reservations here. Uchi serves lunch from 12 to 3 PM and dinner from 5 to 11 PM, and happy hour runs daily from 5 to 6:30 PM. That early window is the cheapest way in: the happy hour menu lists salmon nigiri at $10 for two pieces, salmon crispy rice at $12, a hamachi hand roll at $11 and oysters at $3.50 each. Arrive right at 5 on a weekday and counter seats are far easier to land than at 8 on Friday.

Uchi takes reservations and also welcomes walk-ins, according to the restaurant. Larger groups of 11 or more are asked to arrange their visit directly with the restaurant. If you want the counter specifically, say so when you book or ask the host on arrival, because the booking page has no separate counter option. The printed menu also adds a 20% gratuity to parties of seven or more, which is worth knowing before a birthday dinner.

The building was designed by Michael Hsu Office of Architecture, the Austin firm behind the Texas locations. Metal, brick and concrete are softened with walnut and white oak, cream textiles, bright botanical wallpaper and low accent lighting. The first thing you see is a towering block wall hand-woven with rope by Miami artist Vas Bets, built with local masonry and woodworking shops. It is a calmer, warmer room than most of Wynwood, which tends toward neon and loud speakers.

The kitchen today is led by chef de cuisine Diana Martinez, with Roi Ortiz as head sushi chef, both named on the restaurant's site. Tyson Cole, who founded Uchi and won the James Beard award for Best Chef: Southwest in 2011, still sets the style across the group. Hai Hospitality followed Miami's success with Uchiko in Sunset Harbour on Miami Beach in 2025, but the Wynwood room remains the place to sit at the bar and eat sushi.

Uchi keeps a busy calendar beyond the regular menu. On October 22 it is hosting a Better Together sake launch dinner with Brooklyn Kura, pairing an omakase menu with a new junmai ginjo house sake brewed for the group. The regular omakase, described as a ten-course daily tasting, is ordered at the table or counter, and there is also a somakase curated by the server and a six-course vegetarian tasting for diners who skip fish.

Come early enough and you can walk the murals before dinner. The Wynwood Walls at 2516 NW 2nd Avenue, a few minutes away on foot, is open daily from 10:30 AM to 6:30 PM, which makes it a natural lead-in to happy hour at the counter. After dinner, NW 2nd Avenue and the side streets around it stay lively late, with painted walls lit by street lamps, and the trolley stop is close if you are heading back toward Downtown or Brickell.

A few practical notes. The valet stand across the street is the easiest way to park on weekends, and rideshare drop-offs work well on the quiet stretch of NW 25th Street. Tell your server about shellfish or gluten allergies at the start, because the omakase changes daily. The vegetarian tasting and the kinoko dishes make Uchi workable for mixed groups. Lunch runs only until 3 PM, so a late-afternoon arrival means waiting for the 5 PM dinner and happy hour opening.

Uchi Miami suits couples who want a lively counter seat and creative raw plates, visitors who want one polished sushi dinner in Wynwood, and groups who like to share many small dishes. It is less suited to purists who want a silent Edomae omakase, or to anyone on a tight budget outside happy hour. Book a month out for weekends, ask for the counter, order Hama Chili first, and finish with one piece of A5 wagyu nigiri.