Archive
NYC: Takashi (Feb. 2013)
Author: Victor
Restaurant: Takashi
Chef: Takashi Inoue
Website: http://takashinyc.com/
Date: February 25, 2013
Notes:
I’ve wanted to try Takashi for a few months now, ever since I heard about it from a friend. The NYTimes summarizes it pretty well in its review: “[Takashi] specializes in raw offal and Korean-style Japanese barbecue.” The menu has a bunch of bizarre dishes and cuts of meat to try, and this is one of the few restaurants where I can see that I want to try the entire menu. (You can check out the menu here.)
Pretty much EVERYTHING on the menu looks amazing. “Calf’s brain cream tube”? Bone marrow–and–crawfish dumplings? Beef heart chili? Beef tongue, stomach, and cheek? Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, and YES. I wanted to try EVERYTHING!
As for thoughts of the meal, I thought everything was pretty good. Generally, the ingredients were high-quality, and most of the stuff tasted fresh. As for subpar dishes, the gyutoro-temaki sushi, bone marrow–and–crawfish dumplings, and testicargot really weren’t that great.
The food’s kind of pricey, so you should be willing to spend if you really want to try a good variety of the dishes—and I highly suggest that you order a lot of dishes so that you can try a lot of them. They all look really interesting! Also, definitely make sure to bring some friends who are willing to be adventurous!
Lastly, there was a ridiculous moment in the meal when we were just happily enjoying our food and my friend, for reasons unknown, randomly asked, “Can you imagine if we lit a cow on fire? How amazing it would taste?”
…Yeah.
NYC Kaiseki: Kyo Ya (Feb. 2013)
Author: Victor
Restaurant: Kyo Ya
Chef: Chikara Sono
Date: February 23, 2013
Notes:
-A lot of friends have been saying that Kyo Ya has pretty amazing kaiseki, so I’ve wanted to try it for a while now. However, I never got around to actually trying it until recently, when I finally found some friends who were willing to go with me.
-A lot of the ingredients in the meal were seasonal, and I definitely appreciate how Chef Sono tries to use the best ingredients available.
-Overall, it was a pretty great kaiseki meal! A lot of the courses and ingredients didn’t have flavors that were too strong, so I can definitely see why people see Kyo Ya as really authentic—many of the flavors were more subtle and nuanced.
NYC: Daniel (Feb. 2013)
Author: Victor, Monte, and Tad
Restaurant: Daniel
Exec Chef: Daniel Boulud
Date: February 18, 2013
Notes:
Victor:
-I’ve been wanting to come back for a while now, and Monday was a good chance to! The meal was great and better than the other meals I’ve had here before.
-The service was great except for one small issue. I asked for menus after the meal, and the server said he’d give us menus, but both of us forgot after the meal :(. Still, shouldn’t he write that down or something so that he can remember after the meal?
Monte: I had been here 2 years before and was far from impressed. However, this meal was outstanding all around – even the presentation, something I normally don’t care about, brought out a wow from me.
Tad: Daniel Boulud – the Donald Trump of the restaurant world. Although, when you are this skilled, you deserve to flaunt it. Our waiter was excellent, although a menu at the end would have been nice to remember all the dishes we had. The meal was unapologetically French, and I say that with sincere fondness and satisfaction. Excellent plating, immaculate technique. As you will read, there were a few missteps with flavor, but all in all, an excellent and memorable meal.
Monte
Victor
tadv3
Happy Noms 