M Tempura, one of only a handful of true tempura restaurants on the East Coast, was named by Bon Appetit as one of the top 50 best new restaurants in the country in 2019. From Chef Mike Lee, who also owns M Sushi, M Pocha and M Kokko downtown, M Tempura is also home to Chef Savannah Miller, one of the 'chef-testants' on season 21 of Bravo's Top Chef.
reserved online with open table. you need to preselect your experience and put a credit card. Got the tempura experience for 75. it included several small dishes through you the night and a variety of tempura followed by a small rice dish, miso soup and ginger ice cream..
the first shrimp tempura was heavenly !!
overall the experience was really nice. it took around 2 hours to complete. we had our reservation at 7:15 and felt we had to rush at the end since they close at 9. maybe don't let people reserve that ?
other than probably from the best restaurants I had in Durham !
book this for your next date night or special gathering !
Paul Cray
Oct 17, 2024
5
Incredible 7 course omakase! All the bites were perfectly prepared and the soft shelled shrimp were very fun. The wine pairing went great with the courses. It did take a little time between bites and we were there for about 3 hours total. I think this menu is the best bang for your buck compared to all the tasting menu options across the m restaurants.
Phil Angelo Estrada
Sep 16, 2024
5
Phenomenal experience with the crew at M Tempura. We opted for the M Omakase tasting menu and blown away with the 7 courses. Each course was different and this restaurant puts a different twist on each plate. I highly recommend the tasting menu experience.
The staff and service is amazing. Shout out to Nubia!!! Our water was never empty for longer than 10 minutes. This restaurant is top tier when it comes to service and deserves more praise than what they receive.
Han Jang
Sep 9, 2024
5
Highly recommend the tempura tasting menu! I can understand skepticism around the fact that tempura is simply fried food, but tempura is best when “fresh”, so it was nice to have each piece plated in front of us straight from the fryer. This, along with the sides and great service were well worth the $38. We were stuffed before dessert! Would come back for their omakase or kaiseki.
Jordan S
Aug 20, 2024
4
This is definitely my second favorite out of the “M” restaurants (M Sushi takes the cake), but I must say, everything we had was expertly crafted. Typically you need 24hrs notice to do the M Omakase menu, but the chef was able to accommodate us last minute which was awesome. So many unique flavors and pairings (definitely worth the price and trip).
My only qualm with our experience was that it took an obscenely long time to get all our courses. We were in the restaurant for over three hours which really derailed our plans for the evening. The food and service were amazing, but I’ve been to plenty of coursed out fine dining establishments before and never had it take quite so long. However, I will say, we did not give them notice for the Omasake order so that could definitely have contributed.
Weirdly enough my least favorite dish was the tempura! Still delicious, but all the other courses really stood out to me. Can’t wait to try M Test Kitchen next!
Wenyi Zhou
Mar 9, 2024
5
What an amazing night! And a delightful surprise. I wanted to treat myself to M Sushi for my birthday but booked M Tempura by mistake. It was too late to change so I thought what the heck. I’ll go anyway. I always thought tempura was just fried battered food, but I was wrong! The M Omakase was so wonderfully done. I had a blast quietly enjoying the different textures of dishes. Especially memorable were the divers scallop, the lobster, the softshell shrimp, and the sea bass. The server got me a bonus glass of champagne as well, wish I really appreciate! I would definitely stop by again when my parents are in town. Five stars all the way for a phenomenal dining experience.
Update: I ended up checking out M Sushi’s Nigiri Omakase as well and have to say that I had a much better experience dining at M Tempura. The vibe is more intimate and the food is more interesting. I also ate at all the other M restaurants and I think M Tempura > M Pocha > M Sushi > M Kokko.
Yesi Hill
Jan 2, 2024
5
Excellent all around! The omakase experience was beyond my expectations. I also opted for the paired menu and it was delightful! The waitstaff is very knowledgeable and made our dinner even more enjoyable. Would love to return next time I am in the area! Highly, highly recommended!!
Bridget Mason
Dec 30, 2023
5
Had the kaiseki menu, which was a gorgeous, mouth-watering experience. Perfectly portioned, and a terrific progression of flavors and textures. My only constructive criticism would be, please consider an alternative to the fruity pebbles on the first dessert course. It's adventurous and creative, but not tasty. Everything else was superb.
