The Gallery by Odo

The Gallery by odo is a fusion of a restaurant and art space in the Flatiron area. It’s actually right next door to the odo restaurant and bar. I was easily able to make a reservation for 2 for 5:15 PM a few days in advance. When we walked in, I didn’t really think much of it as an art space. It does have some paintings of outdoor forests hung up on walls and also what appears to be a for-sale dinnerware selection on a table. We didn’t really look extensively as we were here for the food because my partner wanted to try out this place.

Ambiance & Service

The ambiance in general was very quiet and serene. The music was mildly audible, and the instant loud people come in and start talking, it overwhelms the space. Even though the ceilings are high, the acoustics don’t appear to dampen noise that great. Regardless, it felt like a very quaint dinner environment setup.

The menu was designed with different sections, and it had recommendations for a party of 1 or 2 on how many to order from each section. The food is definitely sharable, though I felt the portions were a bit timid.

The service was very speedy, especially for early dinner, because there weren’t a lot of diners as a whole. We were the only pair in the restaurant for about 20 minutes, and when we left, there were maybe 2 other smaller tables that were filled.

Food

The glass of “Mise De Printemps” Sancerre Blanc ($22) came from Domaine Paul Prieur, Loire Valley, France 2023. This Sancerre wine was dry, some touch of acidity, and noticeable green fruits on the tip. It had a vibrant minerality, and it matched well with some of the food I had today.

The Snow Crab and Asparagus, Shaved Karasumi ($22) came with olive oil and balsamic soy reduction. Karasumi is a Japanese delicacy of dried, salted mullet roe. With this on top, the snow crab was sweet and slightly salty leaning. It was juicy, though to share with more than 2 people would probably be somewhat difficult. The asparagus was crispy and fresh, but it is just asparagus.

The Japanese “Tacos” ($14) came with grilled tofu skin stuffed with chorizo, jalapeno, and cilantro. The tofu skin was very similar to any other tofu skin pouch out there. The combination of the chorizo, jalapeno, and cilantro tasted decent and plain. They do provide 2 sauces for dip, where the red is supposedly more spicy and the green is more mild. Either sauce was mild in spiciness.

The Japanese Style Potato Salad ($14) came with grilled salmon and ikura. This tasted like a typical well-constructed potato salad. It wasn’t overly sauced with mayonnaise, and it had a good balance of potato and egg texture. In general, it was good, though not memorable.

The Scallop and Squash Carpaccio, Osetra Caviar ($20) came with grated cheese and parsley. The scallop was perfectly cooked, and with the squash carpaccio, it gave it a slight crunch as well. The cheese was intended to give it some umami, but I found it overpowered the caviar and scallop a bit.

The Prawn and Kabocha Squash Gratin ($18) came with bechamel, parmesan, and parsley. My first thought eating this was it reminded me of Cheetos dusted over sweet potato mash. The prawn was crispy though unseasoned. Generally, I thought the flavors definitely leaned toward the blander side, as they were very distinct and compartmentalized. There wasn’t much harmony in flavors, and perhaps the prawn could’ve used some separate seasoning.

The Seafood Houbayaki ($24) came with scallop and white fish, bizansho sauce, grilled over Japanese magnolia leaf. The white fish and scallop both felt overcooked a tad. The scallop was a bit rubbery, and the white fish did not have much moisture in general. The bizancho sauce reminded me of a very concentrated black bean sauce, where it provided plenty of umami and saltiness. If the scallop and white fish had any marinade that was different, then this sauce simply overpowered it.

The Chef’s Special Futomaki ($18) came with 4 pieces of chef’s specialty roll. This came with very familiar flavors, such as tuna and salmon. As you can tell, this roll was rather uneventful. It tasted good and fresh, but pretty straightforward.

The Chef’s Seasonal Kaisen-Don ($32) came with chef’s selection of sashimi over sushi rice. This came with a medley of seafood, including unagi (eel), Hokkaido tuna, tuna belly, ikura, salmon, yellowtail, shrimp, uni, and many more. Flavor wise, it’s really not much different than other places that over a chirashi-style bowl. The rice was pretty good, and it had a slight vinegary dab into it.

Overall Impression

The Gallery by odo was a decent very-typical Japanese mid-tier restaurant. I felt the price was slightly on the expensive side, and the flavors were very basic. If you were interested in dining in an art space eating mid-level Japanese seafood, then this might be a decent spot. If you were focused on the food alone, I think this restaurant is not memorable and plain.

Yelp Jabs

Alert alert this is an amazing Japanese restaurant The Gallery on some many levels. Ok the food is absolutely superb OMG….. My Tuna pieces were sensational so fresh melted right in my mouth!!! The Uni was incredible indeed so creamy what an extraordinary experience to eat.

As I read Yelp for this restaurant, I gave some of these reviewers the benefit of the doubt. But now after eating, Elitists like these are very difficult to trust when there is an over-exaggeration of how fresh the seafood was. I truly did not find the seafood to be that much different than other mid-tier Asian restaurants. There were some that were soft, but nothing of the “melt-in-your-mouth” sensation that you’d experience in a high end sushi restaurant.

It was like getting robbed, and I rarely say that. Portions were rly small and nothing stood out. Fish wasn’t that fresh in rice bowl and wagyu udon was rly average. Premium kushiage was solid

We did not order the tasting menu, which included the kushiage. It just seemed a bit pricy for what it was, and I came into this restaurant thinking the portions and value was not going to be great. The udon bowls here are priced pretty expensively, and I just don’t think you’re going to get that wow-factor when looking back at this. The food tasted reasonably fresh, but the profile of the food is not very exquisite.

Revisions

1. Jul 11, 2025 - Initial revision.