The Japanese word ten can mean “heaven", “above" or “celebration" and the dining experience at TEN modern Japanese restaurant is all of these things. The superior ingredients are the building blocks of inspiration and the plates are crafted to please both the palate and the eye. Superior products are used and the seafood arrives daily from fishing auctions in Japan and Hawaii. Beyond the incredibl
y fresh sushi, the menu features a variety of hot and cold ala carte items and offers many choices for vegetarians as well as non-seafood eaters. The bar menu boasts an extensive list of Sake, carefully selected in conjunction with specialty importers and a prominent Sake sommelier. Ten also features an extensive wine list, and specialty cocktails using unique ingredients such as the “Ten" which is comprised of sake, vodka, aloe juice, and sweet Japanese plums called momokochan. The restaurant's dining room was designed by Formwork of Charlottesville and is divided according to dark and light. The gently lit front room celebrates a twenty foot high ceiling and grand windows to create a space inspired by the night sky. Muted colors diminish perception and create a "boundless" spatial sense. The subtly reflective ceiling panels pick up a shimmering starlight effect from the dimmed “candle" sconces. The "night" space also includes the beverage bar, which is accented with luminous glass tube "bouquets" and other shimmering light effects. Intimate, high backed booth seating adds to the nocturnal mood of this space. The brighter "day" seating area is inspired by air travel, clouds. The sushi bar is rendered as a crisp white box, softened with a warm olive wood. Bright iridescent fabrics highlight the banquette seating and the relatively low ceiling is punctuated by twelve-foot high coffers at varying the "day sky" feeling of the space
