For a restaurant to endure a 19-year run in Nashville is no small feat.
Christen Clemins
And while other restaurants have adapted by changing up their offerings or look, none seem to have embraced change quite like Virago.
Originally opened in Midtown in 2000, Virago has moved twice. Its latest iteration, inside the former Rosewall event space, captures the same swanky low-lit vibe and innovative sushi that Virago’s always been known for and updates it for a new audience.
Christen Clemins
A large bar anchors the front room of the space, offering more space to enjoy the restaurant’s signature Wasabi martini or the smoke-show that is the Exposure Effect, made with Suntory whisky, vanilla, strawberry, and bitters and a glass jar of smoke that’s released before you take your first sip. The lengthy Japanese whiskey and sake lists remain, too.
Just beyond the main bar, a wide, open dining room is rimmed on either side with balconies that offer more private banquettes. Quieter dining spaces line the walls, good for intimate group get-togethers.
Christen Clemins
The new space gives the Virago dining experience a new energy—the music is thumping and the lights are brighter, but there are still red-lit accents set amongst the blonde wood ceiling beams and in red-shaded lamps atop the bar.
To go along with the revamped space the menu has seen a transformation, too.
Now just a single, large-format page, it’s organized by the style or main ingredient of the dish. The menu is robust, with all dishes listed simply, which means it might take a few back-and-forth questions with the staff to discern what’s what, but they’re happy to offer recommendations. Half of the menu is full of composed plates, listed by Garden, Land, and Sea. The other half is sushi items: makimono, shashimi, and nigiri.
Christen Clemins
From the composed plates, you can’t go wrong with the signature V2 edamame tossed with togarashi and a sweet soy sauce, wok charred shishitos, or a pile of cauliflower tossed in a slightly fire-y Szechuan sauce and bits of peanuts. Under Land, go for the Samurai bacon, or splurge for the Stone Steak, which is an A5 classified slice of beef cooked at the table on a hot stone. From the Sea section, there’s a nose-clearing wasabi-crusted tuna, served in slivers with a soy dipping sauce on the side.
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Christen Clemins
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Christen Clemins
The sushi at Virago is still creative and inventive—the rainbow box is a rectangular play on the roll, and there’s a nod to sister restaurant Kayne Prime with a filet- and lobster-filled roll. But the nigirizushi, or composed sushi section, shows a chef’s touch with items like the sake saguro, which is sliced portions of salmon that get just a dab of lemon, sriracha, and sorrel. Temaki, or handrolls, might be filled with fried chicken bits or crab with tobiko aioli and fried shallot. There’s also an option for an omakase menu, which is a large platter full of a chef’s selection of nigiri and makimono rolls.
Where Virago has always had the most fun is late at night. Available from 10 p.m. until close Tuesday to Saturday, their late-night menu is full of crave-able deals like the Godzilla roll for $7 and $10 cocktails.
Maki-Sake Monday lives on, too, with half price maki rolls and two-for-one sake and cocktails. So even with a new location and sharp new look, the soul of Virago lives on.
Virago, 1120 McGavock St., 615-254-1902; mstreetnashville.com/virago