Restaurant in Boston, United States
OAD-ranked Japanese. Book without the battle.
Uni is one of Boston's most accessible OAD-ranked Japanese restaurants — easier to book than its recognition suggests, and a strong dinner choice for serious diners in Back Bay. Chef David Bazirgan's kitchen earned an Opinionated About Dining Top 345 North America placement in 2024. Dinner only, nightly from 5:30 pm, with extended hours on Fridays and Saturdays.
Getting a table at Uni is easier than you might expect for a restaurant that earned a spot on Opinionated About Dining's Leading Restaurants in North America list in both 2023 and 2024. Booking difficulty is low relative to its recognition level, which makes it one of the more accessible OAD-ranked Japanese restaurants on the East Coast. If you have been putting it off assuming it would be a hassle, it is not — book it.
Uni sits at 370A Commonwealth Ave in Boston's Back Bay, operating under chef David Bazirgan. It runs dinner service nightly from 5:30 pm, closing at 9 pm Sunday through Thursday and 10 pm on Fridays and Saturdays. There is no lunch service, so this is a dinner-only destination. For food and travel enthusiasts who want depth and context in their dining choices, the OAD ranking — #345 in North America for 2024, with a Recommended designation in 2023 , provides a meaningful external benchmark. OAD rankings are crowd-sourced from serious diners and independent of the Michelin ecosystem, which makes placement on that list a signal worth paying attention to.
Uni occupies a compact, dimly lit space that reads as intimate rather than cramped. The visual register is dark and considered , the kind of room where the plates draw your eye rather than competing with the decor. For diners coming from broader Japanese dining contexts, think less of the spare minimalism you would find at Myojaku in Tokyo or the ceremonial precision of Azabu Kadowaki, and more of an American Japanese restaurant with a confident, chef-driven point of view. The format is not omakase, which matters for how you should think about the experience: you are choosing from a menu, not surrendering to a sequence.
On the food: specific dishes and current menu composition are not confirmed in our data, so we will not guess. What the OAD placement tells you is that the kitchen is operating at a level that resonates with experienced diners who eat widely and critically. That is a more reliable signal than any individual dish description. Google reviewers back it up with a 4.2 from 853 reviews , a volume that rules out statistical noise.
For Japanese dining in Boston, the honest comparison is O Ya, which operates at the higher end of the city's Japanese restaurant market and carries its own serious reputation. If budget is not a constraint and you want the most ambitious Japanese experience Boston offers, O Ya is the harder booking and the bigger commitment. Uni is the right call if you want OAD-level quality without the full ceremony. For omakase specifically, 311 Omakase is worth considering as a distinct format. Uni and 311 Omakase are answering different questions , one gives you menu agency, the other gives you a chef-curated sequence.
Beyond Japanese, Boston's serious dining scene includes Agosto, a Portuguese-inspired tasting-menu chef's counter that appeals to a similar explorer-diner profile. If you are building a Boston dining itinerary, Uni and Agosto serve different cuisines but the same appetite for technically driven, chef-led cooking. For a full picture of what the city offers, see our full Boston restaurants guide.
Uni does not serve brunch or lunch , the editorial angle of a morning or weekend service simply does not apply here, because the kitchen only opens at 5:30 pm daily. If you are planning a weekend in Boston and want to anchor your Saturday or Sunday evening around a serious dinner, Uni's Friday and Saturday 10 pm close gives you more flexibility than the weekday 9 pm cutoff. Plan accordingly. For where to stay, eat earlier, or explore the wider city, see our Boston hotels guide, Boston bars guide, and Boston experiences guide.
Quick reference: Dinner only, 5:30–9 pm Sun–Thu, 5:30–10 pm Fri–Sat. Easy to book. OAD Top 345 North America (2024). 4.2/5 on Google (853 reviews). 370A Commonwealth Ave, Back Bay.
| Venue | Awards | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uni | Opinionated About Dining Top Restaurants in North America Ranked #345 (2024); Opinionated About Dining Top Restaurants in North America Recommended (2023) | — | |
| Neptune Oyster | — | ||
| O Ya | — | ||
| Sarma | — | ||
| La Brasa | — | ||
| Sam LaGrassa’s | — |
A quick look at how Uni measures up.
Dress in line with the room: dark, considered, and put-together. Uni's OAD-ranked standing signals this is not a casual neighbourhood spot, so business casual or smart evening wear fits the tone. Jeans are fine if the rest of the outfit matches the occasion.
Yes — Uni is a solid special-occasion call in Boston. It carries Opinionated About Dining recognition, the room is intimate rather than loud, and a dinner reservation is achievable without the months-out lead time O Ya requires. For a celebration where the booking itself shouldn't be the stress, Uni works.
Solo dining at Uni is a reasonable choice, particularly if bar seating is available. The compact room and focused Japanese menu under Chef David Bazirgan suit a single diner who wants a serious meal without the overhead of a full table. Confirm bar availability when booking.
Bar seating exists at Uni and is a practical option for solo diners or walk-in attempts. Given the restaurant's size and OAD recognition, showing up without a reservation on a Friday or Saturday — service runs until 10 pm those nights — is riskier than during the week.
O Ya is the direct comparison for Japanese dining in Boston and operates at a higher price point with its own awards pedigree — book it when budget is not a constraint. For a different angle entirely, Sarma offers Middle Eastern small plates in Somerville as a livelier, more group-friendly alternative. Neptune Oyster is the go-to if raw seafood rather than Japanese technique is the priority.
Dinner is your only option — Uni opens at 5:30 pm every day of the week and does not serve lunch or brunch. Plan accordingly: Monday through Thursday the kitchen closes at 9 pm, with a later 10 pm close on Fridays and Saturdays.
Uni's compact footprint makes it a tighter fit for larger groups. Parties of two to four are the format this room handles most comfortably. For groups of six or more, check the venue's official channels to confirm capacity — and consider whether O Ya's private dining options or Sarma's more flexible layout might be a better structural fit.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
