What You'll Get
A marriage between two cuisines is preferable to a marriage between two clones of Sylvester Stallone, a process that eventually results in a baby reared on raw egg and meat punching bags. Savor a simpler fusion with today's Groupon: for $25, you get $50 worth of Asian-Latin fare at Tamari on Butler Street.
Named Pittsburgh Magazine's Best New Restaurant in 2010, Tamari serves a taste-bud-buffering fusion of Asian and Latin cuisines. The extensive menu features tapas-style small plates fit for sharing, such as chipotle tuna tartar ($9), edamame guacamole ($6), peking-duck quesadilla ($8), and hamachi fish tacos ($11). Tamari also rolls and dices an unusual assortment of specialty maki, including the Spicy Vegan, a meat- and dairy-devoid combination of avocado, jalapeño, inari, and bibb lettuce ($13), and the Sexy Dragon roll, a titillating marriage of spicy tuna and crab topped with eel, avocado, and pheromones engineered to attract eligible lizard bachelors ($14). For diners having just conquered the spicy chile relleno or mole-roasted chicken (both $18), Tamari shakes and stirs a thirst-quenching selection of house cocktails, such as the Asian-pear sake-tini ($10) or the cucumber margarita ($9). The restaurant's ambience is casual and bustling, ideal for lunch on a brisk day or dinner with a brusque highwayman.
Reviews
Pittsburgh Magazine favorably reviewed Tamari and then named it the 2010 Best New Restaurant. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette also give Tamari favorable reviews. Yelpers give Tamari an average of four stars, and 82% of Urbanspooners recommend it. More than 980 Facebookers are fans.
- The food just keeps getting better and better. – Deborah McDonald, Pittsburgh Magazine
- My boyfriend and I shared an amazing dinning experience at this establishment. The intimate atmosphere was most welcoming and the staff was very attentive. The food was beyond amazing. – Muriel L., Yelp
The Fine Print
Promotional value expires Jul 4, 2011. Amount paid never expires. Limit 2/person. Limit 1/table, 2/table of 6 or more. Reservation required for Friday and Saturday nights. Dine-in only. Not valid toward gift cards or happy hour specials. Must use in 1 visit, no cash back. Tax and gratuity not included. Merchant is solely responsible to purchasers for the care and quality of the advertised goods and services.
About Tamari
Tamari takes its name from the Argentinean Huarpe people’s word meaning “to do everything with passion,” and the staff heeds it as a call to action. Executive Chef Roger Li expresses this joie de vivre through a bold menu of Latin, Asian, and European cuisine, uniting cultures through food like a model of the 1933 World's Fair made from fondant. Lobster-tempura maki tempts mouths alongside shrimp tacos garnished with yuzu-margarita foam and scottish salmon paired with chimichurri and ginger polenta. While dining, guests take part in a rich, interactive experience, sipping exotic açai mimosas and watching chefs prepare shareable tapas or custom-made menus in an open-pit kitchen. Altogether, the combination of unexpected flavor from the kitchen and unhindered elegance from the dining room has earned Tamari a great deal of respect. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, for instance, named it on its Best Dining: Top Dishes list, and CBS Pittsburgh ranked it at the top of its list of Best Outdoor Dining options.