RESTAURANT REVIEW: Oru

Adrian S

28 May 2026 • 6 min read

I've only had three #1 ranked restaurants in Houston in the modern era. First was the dearly departed Triniti, a progressive American masterpiece which sadly closed after our last Super Bowl in 2017. As something of a temporary placeholder I promoted B&B Butchers to the top spot, but was on the hunt for a true champion for ages, until finally dining at Neo a couple of years ago. This Japanese paradise easily grabbed the title and has held on, despite being closed temporarily for renovation (possibly because they were allegedly operating somewhat illegally out of their admittedly peculiar location in the back of a Montrose clothing boutique, though I am assured that they are reopening). Comma Hospitality, the responsible group helmed by chefs Paolo Justo and Luis Mercado, have since debuted Kira, a temaki spot in Upper Kirby, and very recently Toga, a yakitori-focused izakaya next door.

Between the latter two openings came Oru, located in a small bungalow in the northern Heights, featuring a 23-seat square counter with the chefs slicing fish and assembling sushi in the middle. There's also a tiny bar on the side of the antechamber at the entrance, with a large oval opening that peers into the dining area. Unlike the omakase stylings of Neo, here you are encouraged to choose your own adventure, with a variety of small hot and cold items available to build the perfect dinner.

You can't throw a yen without hitting a crudo these days, but surely these guys would make one of the best, right? Indeed, the Tuna Crudo, featuring deeply red thinly-sliced fish dressed with ginger vinaigrette and sesame, was an elevated variant of the small plate that is so ubiquitous of late. A bit of nuttiness offset the oil and acid of the broth, and I must be sure to mention the gorgeous tableware, its popping red/blue/green hues reminiscent of my favorite Ellsworth Kelly painting.

One staple of Kira that popped up on the menu here as well is the Tuna Donburi, a sort of small steamed rice bowl with a dollop of soft tuna, negidare (a green onion-based condiment) and furikake (a dry sprinkled mix with sesame seeds and seaweed flakes). Mushy in a very pleasing way, the rice soaked up the flavors of the seasonings, becoming rich with savory and umami notes. A dash of wasabi on the side was available to take things up a notch, if so desired.

Easily the most interesting item on the menu was the Wagyu Lumpia, sort of an inverted take on Beef Wellington, with a crispy egg roll filled with duxelles and wrapped in a thin layer of the highest-quality meat. The resulting cylinder was brushed with aromatized tallow and showered with chives, creating a beautiful specimen that popped against a striking black stone plate. I am notably not a mushroom guy (putting it generously), but this is primarily due to the texture of the fungi, so when they are finely chopped, as in this case (and as in Gordon Ramsay's aforementioned signature dish), I can actually appreciate the umami without being grossed out by the slimy consistency of larger pieces. If you're going to order one thing here, I would make it this. But they might not be too happy if you reserve a seat to literally just get one small item, idk.

Obviously a Japanese restaurant, especially one from the geniuses behind Neo, must have banging sushi. There are quite a few available options, so instead of trying to just wing it, we entrusted the experts to curate the Chef's Selection 5-Piece Nigiri tasting. On the night in question this included Ike Hotate (Hokkaido scallop), Suzuki (sea bass), Kinmedai (golden eye snapper), Ora King Salmon (New Zealand), and Ama Ebi (spot prawn). All smartly prepared with their signature rice sourced from Northern Japan and seasoned with vinegar and brown sugar, I actually enjoyed the prawn the best, as it had quite a spicy kick. If I had to rank them (and I obviously do), I'd go 5-3-4-1-2. But your mileage may vary.

We were in the zone at this point, so we decided to add on another nigiri, the impeccable Chutoro (medium fatty bluefin tuna). As expected, this premium cut was probably better than any of the above. And due to a very slight delay in service (I'm talking like two or three minutes), our waitress gifted us a couple of Uni (sea urchin) bites to compensate. So creamy and luxurious, I would never say no to this wholly unnecessary but highly appreciated gesture.

There's makimono (sushi rolls) as well, so we sampled the Yuzu Kanpachi version, with nori and rice encircling a decent-sized chuck of the fish, jalapeño, cilantro, and a bit of tamagoyaki, a Japanese rolled omelet. If I'm being completely honest, I didn't know what that last thing was beforehand, hence the reason I didn't immediately skip this one. Despite my hatred for eggs (why we didn't order the highly-recommended chawanmushi), this was a small enough piece that I didn't taste it too much. Otherwise pleasant, but would have definitely chosen the Spicy Tuna roll instead if I hadn't been so heavily leveraged in the tuna space already.

The closest things to main courses here come from the "Hot" section of the menu, and it was strongly suggested that the Seared Amberjack was the best of the bunch. I tended to agree, as a hunk of the gamefish was expertly charred on a charcoal grill resulting in a dark crispy exterior, and served with bok choy and cilantro over a spicy ponzu broth, which brought some sweet acidity and a touch of heat. I could have ordered another.

But the best of all was saved for last. The Taiyaki, fish-shape cakes made from a waffle-like batter, were not only absolutely adorable (just look at that photo below!), but also delicious. Not filled with red bean paste like some versions are, there was instead a ramekin of strawberry conserva and hazelnut cream in which to dunk the fish for some warm, buttery, sweet accents. We also got a scoop of Charcoal Ice Cream with Salvatore olive oil upon our waitress' recommendation, and, paraphrasing Andy Bernard from one of my favorite scenes of The Office: "if I may be so bold, it's a lot of fun to let the taiyaki take a little swim in the ice cream. Bon appetit". Such an enjoyable end to the meal!

From great service to a variety of delectable dishes brought to life by creative minds, I really loved Oru, enough to rank it among the best Japanese spots in Houston. The small, intimate atmosphere, where you can interact with the chefs, and impeccable service are clearly a hallmark of Comma Hospitality, and I look forward to trying Toga as soon as I can.

RANKING UPDATE: Medium-sized news! To accurately reflect the amount of excellent Japanese restaurants we have, I am creating a new category of Best Omakase on my Houston Restaurant Guide, allowing additional locations into the Best Japanese list. Oru places an impressive #2 on the latter, as seen below...

Best Omakase: