Omni Hotels Launches 'Umami Sauce'

The word "umami" has been everywhere lately. It's that "sixth taste," the one that makes beef taste beefy and what makes the flavor of mushrooms and Parmesan cheese so satisfying. The word's been popping up in restaurant names, menu items, and even in soy sauce ads. But one place we haven't seen the elusive flavor captured is in a bottle. Omni Hotels and Resorts, in partnership with Red Kitchen Foods, recently did just that, though, and their Umami Sauce is now available in all of their locations.

The all-natural, gluten-free sauce is the result of six months' worth of work among a team of Omni chefs from Chicago, Denver, Orlando, and San Antonio, as well as Peter Mollett of Red Kitchen Foods. To nail that flavor, they basically combined every umami-rich flavor in the book into a mixture that really works well. Ingredients include tomatoes, vinegar, molasses, onions, mushrooms, garlic, coffee, tamarind, cloves, chile pepper, and yeast extract. Anchovies, which pack a briny "umaminess," are also included in the mix.

The sauce smells and tastes like a cross between ketchup, A.1., and Worcestershire sauce, but with a spicy, vinegary kick and more depth of flavor, likely from the addition of mushrooms and coffee. It's sweet (but not overly so), salty, sour, tangy, and might be a bit too spicy for those with a low tolerance for heat.

We can easily see this replacing ketchup (or for Brits, HP sauce) in just about every application, and would go especially well atop a burger. They also recommend pairing the sauce with eggs.

There are 50 Omni hotels and resorts across America, and this new sauce will be a fixture on tables in each of their restaurants. Fans of the sauce can also pick up a bottle at the hotels for $9.99.