This has happened to all of you: a glowing review appears in a local publication, friends confirm the assessment…and so you go, expectations heightened, taste buds primed. The result? Disappointment.

Not total, but near. Yummi Sushi already has the burden of its name to overcome, and with the arrival of the automatic miso soup, it seemed they might be up to something; served in a traditional, lidded bowl it boasted silky tofu and umami to the max. Next up, a grilled yellowtail collar (they call it “jaw”). The skin was nicely charred, the flesh almost sweet, the off-puttingly perfumy ponzu dipping sauce fortunately unnecessary. But then came the shrimp shumai, pasty and prefab, tasting like something out of Dunkin’ Dumplings. Only to be followed by three puny, baked mussels topped with “cab” meat (all too apt), “massago” (hard to detect) and eel sauce (even harder to discern). A downward spiral had commenced.

And it was reinforced by Sushi Dinner A—it gets an F. Good rice is the foundation of proper nigiri sushi, and this lacked both sheen and sapidity; the delicate flavor of rice vinegar was all but absent. The seafood draped atop the rice seemed fresh enough, but lacked bold color and firm texture; even the purchased eel wasn’t convincingly smoky-sweet. But most insulting was the spicy tuna roll; spice had taken a hike, tuna had turned to mush. A sweet and cloudy Nigori sake helped some, as did the dark and low-key setting—but not enough.