Andy DevaneyAt Trump National Doral Miami, the post-round debrief has acquired another possible setting: a sushi counter where the chef calls the shots and there are 20 seats. After a day of choosing clubs, lines and excuses, surrendering control of the menu might have its attractions.
Sushi by Boū has opened a permanent restaurant at the Miami golf resort, with the largest omakase counter in its portfolio. It is the brand’s fourth South Florida location. More tellingly, it is a bigger version of a concept built around finding room in hotel and resort spaces that were previously underused.
For Doral, it adds another restaurant choice for guests, members and local diners. For Sushi by Boū, it puts its chef-led format in front of an established golf and hospitality audience.
A Return to Familiar Turf
Sushi by Boū is not arriving at Doral cold. It previously held dining activations at the property, including around the Cadillac Championship, a longstanding PGA Tour fixture at the resort. That gave the company an introduction to Doral’s guests, members and event community before taking on a permanent space.
The distinction matters. A temporary appearance can suit a tournament crowd; a restaurant has to be part of everyday resort life, too. The new counter is intended to serve both the golf visitors who already know the property and diners coming specifically for the food.
The Mathematics of Intimacy
Omakase is an unusually personal format. Diners follow a chef-guided tasting menu at the counter, with much of the appeal coming from being close to the preparation. Sushi by Boū has traditionally used that contained approach to turn relatively small spaces into dedicated dining venues.
Twenty seats may not sound like a huge restaurant. For this company, though, it is the biggest counter yet, intended to accommodate larger groups, golf outings and resort events while preserving the interaction between chef and diner.
That is the interesting balancing act. A group coming off the course wants somewhere to gather, but the appeal of omakase depends partly on not feeling lost in a crowd. How successfully the larger arrangement keeps that sense of occasion is something diners will have to judge for themselves.
A Very Deliberate Sense of Theatre
The counter is made from Italian Calacatta Viola marble, with burgundy and violet veining. A custom gold-leaf wallcovering, made in France and decorated with hand-painted koi, sits overhead. Low lighting completes a room designed to suggest a speakeasy rather than a conventional clubhouse dining area.
The surroundings are part of the proposition, as are the chef-guided tasting menus, cocktails, premium sake and rare Japanese whiskies.
The décor makes its point before the first piece of sushi arrives. Whether the experience lives up to it is the test that matters.
A Bigger Play for Golf Resorts
Sushi by Boū is already looking beyond Doral, with additional luxury golf properties across the United States part of its expansion ambitions. Chief executive Erika London sees the resort as an example of the sort of hospitality destination where the brand wants to operate.
There is an obvious commercial logic. A resort gains a specialised dining option for guests who might otherwise venture elsewhere after their round. The operator gains a place within a destination with an established golf audience and an events calendar. Neither proposition requires turning every meal into a golf-themed occasion.
Sushi by Boū at Trump National Doral Miami is at 4400 NW 87th Avenue, Doral, Florida 33178. Reservations are available through OpenTable via sushibybou.com/reservations.
The golf may be all about managing your own decisions. Dinner, at least, is now an opportunity to leave them to the chef.
