In recent years, Omakase sushi has claimed the fame it deserves. Michelin grade sushi chefs are celebrities in this town. Renowned places need reservations 3 months ahead, some even need to be prepaid. Omakase became another word for expensive fine dining. And the price, skyrocketed. Nowadays a 15 course omakase dinner is about $150 and up. The most priced place in NYC is about $800 before drinks and tips, which can almost fund a round trip ticket to Tokyo. One begins to ask, is it really worth the price, or is it just hype.
This once a weekly affair, now has become an occasional indulgent. Can’t afford to chase the stars, I search hidden gems for bargains. And I found one on Upper West.
If i have a choice, i would always chose counter seating in a Japanese restaurant. The counter eating habit is a culture itself. Not only we can view the whole process of the kitchen, it also let us cultivated a personal conversation with the chefs. It doesn’t need to be a verbal conversation, it could be a mutual admiration, a look, a smile and even a facial expression when we are enjoying the dish. A chef once told me that, that his biggest reward is not an award, a star or a great review; it is a satisfying smile on a patron’s face when they are truly happily enjoying his food. That is what make his day. The motivation for him to continue, or inspired. Japanese counter eating culture does not stop at sushi. Yakitori is another one, so is ramen. We have seen it extended it’s reach, or got adapted by other culinary mastermind. Our experience at chef’s table at Brooklyn fare is an excellent example. And it was well worth the money and the hoops i jumped thru to get a reservation. I mean, how often would you have a master chef cook for you, in front of you. We might spend the same or even more money at eleven Madison park or French Laundry, but do you know Daniel Humm or Thomas Keller is really in the kitchen, pouring his heart out on a dish? To me, it is not just a meal, or a fantastic dinner, it is an experience, then turned into memory, forever remember. It is personal, it is intimate.
Restaurant Ato is one of those night that is close to heart. It is a fairly new place in the west side of Soho. Right across the street of David Burke’ kitchen. A tiny store font with complete view of the whole kitchen. No backroom, no basement. We can clearly see everything from outside. There are room for only four person at the counter, the whole restaurant sits about 20. The bright little room cannot afford anything but minimalism. Light bond wood furniture blended into the white space, it is all very zen. On the night we went, this 6 months old restaurant was very quiet. We got to have the chef all to ourself.
The young chef is a vet of Jean-Georges, Morimoto, and Masa. Needless to say his background is French/Japanese cooking. The best description I can give about Ato is, it is a modern “French-Japanese” seafood focus restaurant, with a chance of sushi Omakase. Chef Shen incorporated both French and Japanese technique in his cooking, every dish is not only eye-pleasing, also thoughtful and with impressive flavor. So why a chance of sushi? The night we went, upon sat down, we were told the chef will not be making sushi tonight. They were going to focus more on the innovative menu than traditional sushi. Jaw dropped, shocking, we were disappointed. How could this happened…. I guess it was mistake on my part that I didn’t do my research before heading to Ato. From all the pictures I saw on Instagram, I just assumed this a sushi place. I was wrong, however, I was happy to be wrong. Ato’s modern French take on Japanese dishes definitely works. Every plate is a work of art, tastefully, visually. Maybe because I was able to watch each masterpiece being constructed, not only I enjoyed each bite, I certainly appreciate the hearts and efforts that’s put into it even more. The courses were actually rather small. Fifth course in, we looked at each other and share the same thought. We were still hungry, would this Omakase actually fill us? Would we go home hungry? The answer is absolutely NOT. Yes, each plate is small, but they add up, because the pacing of each course was actually rather quick, it didn’t hit us just yet. Warm asparagus salad, mushroom, pickle scallion
The frequently changing tasting menu is 17 courses. That’s right, 17. There were a lot of times we were hesitant when ordering the chef’s tasting menu, with a side of worrisome. We had been through quite a few long dinner, the longest record we had was 5 hours. An supposedly enjoyable night ended up being somewhat a pain. Real pain, cause my back and my bottom gave out before my main course arrive. Normally there’s no way to know how long an tasting menu would last, so we just have to roll our dice, and tough it out. Luckily that is not the case here at Ato. The 17 courses’ pacing was extremely well timed. There’s little to none wait time, just as we finished one course, after a sip of water of wine, the next one is ready. And since we are watching the performance of the kitchen, there is no dull moment. Fire fly squid with sesame dressing Sawara with truffle oil and honey Dijon Cherry blossom trout with Chinese black vinegar tomato
All the dishes are seafood base, except for the warm asparagus salad, and the seared mouth-watering A5 wagu beef. Supreme quality, perfect temperature, unbelievable flavor, so good that makes my jaws went sore.
Our night at restaurant Ato is not just a dinner, it is theater. Every single piece of tableware and silverware are artfully crafted. We were told that each place is unique. The little dots on the plate represent an island in Japan. A small detail of the craftsman, but remind us where all these exquisite samples of sea are originate from. In between these artfully constructed tasty delicacies, we watched the kitchen staff carefully tender to sear a piece of fish, Chef Shen prepped and cooked and placed every masterpiece. Half way through the dinner, the house manager chatted us up and ask what is our favorite so far. It is really hard to put a favorite tag on one single dish. Every dish is a new experience, a new adventure.
Medai with lemon emulsionSanta Barbara uni with cuttlefish yuzu sauce and soy sauce Norway sea trout with carrot purée, funnel Hamachi with Diet Coke jelly and quinoa Red snapper, Japanese eggplant with crab stew Maine uni with soy reduction and fresh wasabi Cape cod scallop cured with sea salt and yuzu Kumamoto Wagu A5 beef
All the ingredients are familiar, but we are still amazed by the combination and use of sauce and seasoning. For example the hamachi with diet coke jelly and quinoa is really interesting. I would be happy to have the fire fly squid plain, but the sesame dressing is like frosting on a cupcake. Then there came the cherry, Chef Shen decided that he can make sushi for us. So, at the beginning of our dinner, the kitchen had made clear that Chef was not going to make sushi that night. Perhaps our disappointment on our faces, perhaps the night was slow, perhaps chef has a change of heart, either way, it was our gain. We have sushi!!! as imaginative and innovative as it is, Chef Shen said that traditional sushi is a thing he hold close to heart. Something that needs all the focus, and attention, one rather not make if not 100%. and really we were in for a treat. Chef Shen’s sushi is as good as any great sushi chef in the city. I did felt that the sushi rice need a bit of work. The first batch was a bit mushy, but the second batch was way better. But that is no fault on the kitchen. After-all, they were not prepared to make sushi that night.
special Hokkaido Uni Bowl
Everything was exceptional. But for a restaurant this young, and have some kinks that needs to work out. There were a couple dishes we felt the sauce was a hint too much, and then there were some that was so good, that we search for a “non-exitent” spoon. The miso egg drop soup was on the salty side, and I strongly felt we could have use a better soundtrack than listening to Rockabye or Rihanna’s latest hit on Spotifly. But overall this is excellent contemporary Japanese fine dinning that could be something extraordinary. I can’t wait for it to flourish and I can’t wait to go back. Matcha panna cotta with red bean paste
KazuNori, the so call original temayaki (hand roll) bar in new York city, a spin off from the LA based, highly popular Sugarfish, which also landed in NYC last year. Now I have not been to Sugarfish. I have to admit that the pictures of Sugarfish on social media are not very appealing. It is amazing how a few pictures could change our interest in a place. I am in no hurry to go to Sugarfish, but I thought I could try out the more affordable Kazunori first to get a feel what the Californians rave about.
I strolled into the counter only dining room in NoMad on a sunny afternoon, just passed 1pm. Cashier right at the door, there is no hostess, but a velvet roped line defining waiting area. Next to it is the menu stand, the handroll place offers an eat-in and a take-out menu with lightly different items.
The lighting was dimmed, almost dark, the place seemed packed and I couldn’t look past 1/3 of the long hall. I stood around looking for seats, and also at the menu. 5-10 minutes had passed, I thought I was waiting in line for an open seat. I finally walked up to the counter and waved at one of the servers to inquire about seating. Then he directed me to the deeper end of the bar. Turns out there were plenty of seats in the back. So, yes, it said seat yourself, but it would be nice that someone would tell me there were seats available. it was really too dark inside to know there were empty space …… Did they think I was standing there for something else?
I finally sat down at the deep end of the bar, since I had plenty of time to look at the menu, I was ready to order. But then unfortunely, I was informed that I was looking at the take-out menu. Well…. The two menus look the same…. Yes, I guess I should have read. Take-out menu (L) & Eat-in menu
Turns out there were no special on that day, snapper was sold out too. L instead of snapper, it was salmon instead. That helped me chose the 5 handroll set instead of the 4.
Where I was sitting gave me a full view of the prep station. Almost like a Chipotle counter, everything is already prepped, just scoop, scoop, andwrap. The toro looked like they were blended instead of chopped. All mashed, and that was the first one I was served. The toro had completed lost any texture at all. So mushed, I couldn’t tell what I was eating. It felt like some cold meat. If this was in fact toro, I am hurting for the tuna fish. It scarified for nothing.
The nori was crispy enough, but the rice….. the rice was hot. Extreme temperature difference between fish and rice, the mashed toro was on the cold side and the rice was almost hot enough to have steam. Once the rice hit nori, all the crispyiness was gone. I was sad. Not only it lost the crunch, after the second bite, the nori was so mushy that I cant even seprate it with my teeth, ended up stuffing the whole thing in my mouth. And in the process, a handful of rice and fish mixed ended up in my palms. Yes, there were no back stop. So if you have to finish the handroll in 3 to 4 bites, chances are, your hand would be quite messy, as the rice fall off the back end. There’s not much you can do at that point. Eat off your hand, Or push it off to the plate and use chopsticks to try and pick up the pieces. There are no good choice here, and I hope you washed your hand. toro handroll blue crab hand roll baby scallop & yellowtail hand roll
Almost to the end of my meal, the “manager” look alike came up and asked how was everything. A routine gesture, just a polite thing to do. Normally I never really say anything. I don’t know what hit me that day, I spoke up. I guess he was surprise too. I told him my honest opinion about the rice being too hot, and totally “melted” the nori. He responded politely and said that it is something that their customers like specificity, the rice being warmer than room temperature. Well, I am impressed; I am impressed that he came up with a “logical” answer off the spot. It totally felt rehearsed. However, it still haven’t change my mind about hot rice, and I certainly wouldn’t call that “slightly warmer than room temperature”, it was not steaming, but it was straight out of a rice cooker.
Original or not, there are other hand roll bar in NYC. The price is attractive, but I don’t know if that could made up for the quality. I might actually defer to sunrise mart and have a couple boxes for the pre-made refrigerated rolls instead. But if you have to come here, try the baby scallop. Between the mushed toro and the heavily mayo’d crab, the baby scallop would be my choice.
Bessou means vacation home in Japanese. It is also a cozy hideaway restaurant in NoHo with charming white trimming french window underneath the little blue awning.
It was a very quiet night. The freezing weather might have played a part to that.
We sat all the way inside in the corner by the kitchen where the heat is blasting. Light smoothening music playing at a minimum level. It is comfortable and relaxing. There’s not much decor, very minimalist and chic modern. Light is warm and welcoming. The little water color picture on the wall resemble a little secluded beach we visited in Italy, but could have been any small fishing village in Japan. I can imagine Bessou being in one of those charming towns, nicely tucked away in a seaside inn on the quite end of the beach. Listening to summer waves, children’s laughters and wind-charm tingling in a far distance; but that is just my daydream. In fact, when we visited Bessou, it was absolutely freezing outside.
The drinks menu have various choices of wine and sake, all at a affordable price range. I chose the special of the night, a clarified Milk punch with pomegranate. The bubbly drink with sake pomegranate and fresh Brazil is extremely light and refreshing. More like a flavored water than a drink. And the lemon peel is an excellent addition. It brighten everything up. Take the refreshing sensation up to another notch.
Salad.— love the thinly sliced deep fried lotus root. The lotus root had a crispness of it’s own, after deep fried, it is like a perfect piece of potato chips but only healthier. There’s no sogginess ever.
Crispy Rice Onigiri with Maine uni, spicy tama miso, shiso, nori
Uni “toast”, this is what brought us here. Where ever there’s uni, it will be on our list, and we will eventually get there. Santa Barbara uni on top of a perfectly grills rice. A a smash of miso on plate. I feel that the miso was unnecessary. The saltiness was an attempt to balance the sweetness of uni or add flavor to the crispy rice. But neither need the help. They were perfect just as is. Really love the crunchiness of the rice. Perfectly cook and grilled inside out. Not mushy but just sticky enough to hold together. The outside layer is just crispy enough and it only breaks apart in the mouth. Perhaps the rice could be an even thinner layer.
The dinner menu only have 6 entrees but there’s a special. The night’s special is duck soba noodle, as it detaily illustrated on the lip chalk board outside the restaurant. We saw that when we were walking in. The duck noodle is surprisingly light, excellence balance. Then we had a bite of the clay pot braised fish, and were all enlightened. I never expect skate to be so silky smooth. This is excellent Japanese home cooking. Nothing oily, mostly soy base dishes, very comfortable light fare. Then all the sudden, one of us crave fried chicken, out of nowhere. The chicken karaage is wonderful, but not spectacular. However, the Japanese pumpkin (kabocha) sides was amazing. Cooked perfectly with a light graze on it to bring the sweetness out. I never like pumpkin, but i wouldn’t mind having a full bowl of this.
But truly, this is great Japanese home cooking, comfort a tried soul, especially in a freezing winter night.
