Amber - Upper West Side

The UWS is filled with pan-Asian restaurants serving an assortment of cuisines. Amber is one such restaurant but on this particular night, MM and I really went there for the sushi.  Although I’m not really a leaf eater, the salad was very tasty – and it wasn’t just the ginger dressing.

My appetizer was a very welcome dish.  Wasabi shumai!

OMG spice and shrimp in one dish. I’m sure I’ve been happier but this was definitely a very happy moment.  The shrimp was piping hot. The wasabi in the first bite I took went straight up my nostrils…and I loved it! Our entrée of two rolls was pretty impressive.

The Angry Lobster was my favorite!

Lobster tempura, lettuce, avocado, cucumber & spicy lobster sauce. The crunchy tempura lobster was a great contrast to the avocado. We also ordered the Triple toro.

A roll filled with tuna toro, salmon toro & yellowtail toro on top, spicy crunchy avocado and cucumber inside. This was an excellent meal for so many reasons, MM being only one of them. On that rainy night, Amber was the perfect place to be.  Their menu may not be the best but it is filled with lots of goodies.  The wasabi shumai alone is worth the trip!

Hungry yet?

Ichiban Sushi

Woohoo! I had a chance to visit my peeps last month so it was a wonderful weekend filled with great eats. First stop was Ms. G's lovely neighborhood in Bowie. We went to the town center to enjoy a variety of Asian cuisine that they serve at Ichiban. After a great sushi experience in Miami Ms. G is ready to try most things. We still decided not to get too adventurous so we started with a Rainbow Roll.

Pretty, right? Salmon, tuna, yellowtail layered on a roll filled with crabmeat, avocado, cucumber,  & asparagus. YUM! The asparagus was a welcome surprise, because most places don’t put asparagus in that roll.  We were quite happy with our sushi but we decided we also needed something hot.  We ordered Broccoli brown sauce with chicken.

Another great dish! The portion was large which made my stomach smile. The broccoli was fresh and they didn't overcook it so I could still get a crunch each time I bit into it. After all that you'd think we were done but we still had some room left so we ordered another roll.

This Salmon and Avocado roll disappeared quickly and we were finally full. The portions at Ichiban are perfect for sharing but you may still find yourself ordering more than you anticipated. The menu isn't particularly creative but each dish was well executed. I recommend stopping in after shopping in the town centre. It'll be perfect for refueling.

Hungry yet?

Matsuri NYC

Bestie is back!!! She arrived just in time for us to celebrate her birthday. We decided on Matsuri because the menu looked amazing and the Blackboard Eats deal was too good to pass up! Matsuri is a beautiful restaurant and I highly recommend you get a seat downstairs in the main dining room rather than upstairs in the lounge area.  We arrived promptly for our 7:30 reservation. To maximize our dining experience, we decided to order only a couple of dishes at a time.

We started with the Yellowtail which was very thinly sliced sashimi and served with a yuzu-green pepper sauce.

Wowee! What a great way to start our meal. The Yellowtail was so fresh it tasted like it was alive a few minutes before it arrived on the table. The sauce gave a nice kick to the dish. Next up the Crabmeat shumai.

Yummers! The shumai was filled with chunks of crab, ginger and edamame. Each ingredient was obvious but the crab was dominant. Since we were feeling that crab dish, we figured we should try our chances with the Soft Shell Crab.

Holy smokes! It was hot! I don't mean spicy, I'm talking about the temperature. It was served with ponzu sauce, but truthfully we didn't need it because the crab was so flavorful. We then had Grilled Scallops.

They were served on a bed of asparagus and accompanied by cherry tomatoes. The scallops were good but I think grilling was not the ideal way to prepare it. The scallops lost their delicacy and I lost my interest. Luckily, the Young Sea Bass, which I ordered on a whim came out soon after.

This was my absolute favorite dish! The waiter described the sauce as a Japanese cilantro - the menu called it a red yuzu pepper vinaigrette. Whatever it was, it was for sure amazing. We tore it up! We then moved to the sushi portion of our meal.

The Toro-cucumber roll was the least exciting item on our long list of dishes. It tasted like mushy pre-made store bought sushi. Perhaps my pallet is not refined enough but I think we would have been better ordering toro in sushi or sashimi form.  The Zuke Tuna was really good.

Tuna sauteed in sake and soy sauce. Yea I could dig it. The Sashimi Appetizer of tuna, yellowtail and salmon was even better.

The Shrimp tempura roll was also quite tasty.

Unlike so many other restaurants, it was very lightly battered so I could actually taste the shrimp! Bestie also ordered  Salmon sushi which she loved. Since it was her birthday, our server provided us with complimentary plum wine granite.

It was very sweet and reminded me of frozen icees in the summer! For dessert, Bestie ordered the Sakura Panna Cotta.

It was surrounded by cherries and kiwi. She really enjoyed it and although I wanted to sample, I cohort tear myself away from my Warm Chocolate Cake.

What a perfect way to end the meal! The atmosphere was perfect and the meal as spectacular. Although the toro wad disappointing, everything else was amazing or pretty close. It was the perfect way to celebrate Bestie's return! I highly recommend Matsuri. If you're gonna do it, go for the three hour experience with slow ordering multiple dishes like we did. It's worth your time and your money.

Hungry yet?

KOI New York

As always on a Friday few things make me happier than a great meal! I know not that different from other days ;-)

A few Fridays ago, KOI was the location of the great meal. I must admit I wasn't thaaaat excited because I had heard that the NY location doesn't live up to the LA location's hype. Regardless, I figured it'd be a fun dining experience.  Our server tried to push Edamame on us before we evaluated the menu.  Never one to be suckered, I had no problem saying no.  Instead we ordered the Edamame Dumplings.

Delicious little pockets filled with edamame and served with a mix of black truffle, lobster and lemon-thyme sake butter.  (Apologies for the pictures still figuring out the settings on the new camera.)  We also happily ordered the Creamy Rock Shrimp Tempura.

I initially saw creamy and hesitated but the slightly spicy sauce was perfect. It worked well with the crispiness of the tempura and the freshness of the shrimp.  I was a little suspicious when the Crispy Rice with tuna arrived at the table.

However, one bite and I was hooked! Tightly packed rice deep-fried for a nice crispy shell but moist inside. Of course the spicy tuna was the star of the show topped with a small slice of jalapeno.  YUM!  It was definitely my favorite, but the Baked Crab came in a close second.

Warm pieces of crab with rice…I mean what could go wrong? Absolutely nothing. It was sensational.  The crab was well flavored and the warmth was a pleasant surprise.  The biggest disappointment of the night was the Koi Dragon Roll.

It looks messy which was my first clue that I wouldn’t like it.  Allegedly there was shrimp tempura and eel inside that big pile of rubbish.  However, all I experienced was bits of tempura dumped all over the roll. GROSS.  I had one piece and asked for a do over.  We were already full though so we ended up just moving on to dessert, which was much more pleasant. The Warm Chocolate Brownie Banana Sundae with Vanilla Ice Cream (sans Banana) was spectacular.

Quite the presentation and it tasted incredible.  The brownie was chocolate heaven and a bite of ice cream made it that much better.  Wowee. I also had to sample the Warm Molten Chocolate Cake.

The presentation was even better than the chocolate cake. I liked the cake, but was happier with the brownie. I think I’ve had a little too much cake these days ;-)

Overall Koi was a good dining experience but nothing spectacular.  Although none of the entrées really wowed me, I’d come back for a bite of the Crispy Rice and the Rock Shrimp Tempura.  The dragon roll was so disappointing the bad taste stayed with me for longer than I would like.  If you must go to Koi, skip the Dragon Roll and double up on the Crispy Rice. The desserts were great, but not enough for a return trip. The company was of course fabulous and totally made the dinner worth it :)

Hungry yet? 

Todd English Plaza Food Hall

This weekend was filled with out of town guests.  My RD was in town briefly and we met up at Sbarro in Times Square.  Alas, no food was consumed by me because I was still stuffed by the all-star brunch.  After wandering around Manhattan for more hours than I intended, VBRAT reconvened for a suuuuper late lunch (6:30!) because of our 10pm dinner reservation (more on that later).  I was surly because they were late, but once I ate everything was great.  I was excited about the prospect of eating at the Plaza Food Hall.  With so many options it was really hard to limit how much I ate considering the huge dinner that we would eventually consume. 

The Plaza Food Hall is pretty posh considering it’s a cafeteria, but then again it is The Plaza. There are different counter seating spaces by the cooking stations.  We were fortunate enough to sit by the noodle station.  I constantly wanted to jump over the counter and eat the food the chefs were preparing. Ms. A and I decided to order together since we wanted to sample a bunch of different dishes.  We started with the Chinese Chicken & Ginger dumplings.

They were served with lemon grass pesto.  I really enjoyed the dumplings.  They were light yet filling.   We watched the chefs make our dumplings and I may or may not have salivated when they were placed in front of me.  The dumplings also came with a side of Spicy Kimchi.

I usually shy away from kimchi because of the smell but this spicy one was really good! We also ordered a Shrimp Tempura Roll.

The shrimp tasted very fresh and wrapped with avocado and cucumber. I love seafood so even though we didn’t need the shrimp tempura, I had no regrets about ordering it.  Next up was the Classic Flat Bread.

It was basically a margarita pizza.  Roasted tomato sauce, mozzarella and basil.  The flatbread is incredibly thin so this was not as filling as it looked.  Ms. A and I definitely ate just the right amount and were satisfied with our meal.  Mr. S ordered Turkey Sliders.

I’m always suspicious of turkey burgers because I know that someone is usually trying to sneak some pig on there.  This time around, the sliders were served with grilled pancetta, whipped avocado, baby romaine and tomato.  I knew it! Grilled pancetta – hmmph.  Apparently it tasted good though because Mr. S cleaned it up.  He and Ms. G also ordered Parmesan Fries. I didn’t get a chance to sample or photograph it (because they ate it all!) and besides I was busy with my own food J Ms. G also ordered the flatbread special.

It didn’t photograph too well but that’s grilled portabello with spinach.  Apparently it tasted good, but it was not exactly what she was expecting.  Mr. K and his Ms. S (THEY’RE GETTING MARRIED!!!) were too far away and I missed the opportunity to photograph their lobster minestrone (yumm how good does that sound?) They also ordered the chicken dumplings though so I didn’t miss too much. 

Plaza Food Hall was the truth.  So much variety and all pretty affordable. I was very pleased and look forward to returning soon. We finished up at The Plaza Food Hall with our mission accomplished.  We had eaten, but we were still hungry for the super late dinner.  Tomorrow, I reveal the limited access birthday dinner.  Stay tuned…

Hungry yet?

Ocean Grill NYC

When Restaurant Week was still in its official phase, I took a break from a busy work weekend to meet with MM for dinner at Ocean Grill.  I was super excited because the menu had lots of great options and I knew it’d be a great time.  I had planned on ordering the restaurant week menu, but the Sea Bass was not available.  Drats! So instead we feasted on various dishes.

MM ordered the Chef’s Special Maki Roll. 

I wish I remembered everything that was in there.  I know there was seaweed and it was delightful.  I definitely had more than one piece.  I ended up ordering the Spicy Lobster & Hamachi Roll.

Oh lobster, you never fail to amaze me.  Especially when mixed with avocado, jalapeño, and topped with cilantro aioli.  YUM!!  I was actually surprised at how full I already felt after eating the appetizer.  Of course, that didn’t stop me from powering through to the main course.  The Oven Roasted Cod was spectacular. 

Cooked to perfection and served with shrimp wontons, hon shimeji mushrooms and thai curry broth.  The shrimp wontons were packed full of shrimp and soft but not mushy.   The broth was poured into the dish after it was served.  I’m a big fan of presentation so that was impressive.  Equally impressive was MM’s Thai Shrimp Salad with Blood Oranges & Green Papaya.

A wonderful mix of vegetables including edamame, fresh hearts of palm tossed in a chili-white soy vinaigrette. Food envy, much? I definitely had more than one bite.  MM also ordered the Shrimp & Lobster Spring Rolls.

They were a sight to be seen.  I didn’t love the spring roll itself but the chunks of lobster and shrimp were delicious and I happily picked them out of the shell.  After all that food, I was stuffed.  But by now you know my sweet tooth is no joke.  So of course I ordered the Orange Flavored Crème Brulee.

Since I’m a crème brulee connoisseur, I’m awfully picky about what tastes good.  This was pretty good. I wasn’t that hungry anymore though so I didn’t have as much as I probably would normally eat.  They also gave us some chocolately goodness.  I was definitely a fan!

Ocean Grill was another restaurant week success.  MM and I had a fabulous time and I couldn’t have been happier to get a break from the grind.  I will likely return, but with so many restaurants in NYC I’m finding it more difficult to repeat restaurants.  I know, I know, my life is so hard J

Hungry yet?

Uni - A Sushi Place

The great part about staying near Dupont Circle is the wealth of dining places in the area…almost feels like being back in New York.  When HG suggested that we meet up at Uni, I was thrilled! After all, it’s located across the street from Hotel Palomar.  After spending over 15 minutes chatting it up we finally placed our order.  We started with Edamame.

It was pretty unremarkable.  Some pieces tasted a little less fresh than I would have liked but it was certainly well salted.  Our sushi arrived pretty soon thereafter.  By far the best thing we ate was the Red Dragon Roll.

Lobster and tempura flakes wrapped with tuna.  YUMMERS!  It was really delicious and I was sad to see the 6 pieces disappear so quickly.  We also ordered the Rainbow Roll.

Shrimp and cucumber wrapped with tuna, salmon and avocado.  It was fresh and while it wasn’t the best rainbow roll I’ve ever had, it certainly did the job.  Our S&S Roll was nay the best.

Fresh salmon, crispy salmon skin, cucumber, and scallions.  The crispy salmon skin initially tasted good because of the contrast but after a couple of bites we were over it.  We then requested that the chef make a salmon and tuna combo roll for us.  Our server was initially confused about why we would want salmon and tuna together.  Luckily the chef obliged and soon we were enjoying our roll.

It was definitely a good call by HG.  The specialty roll washed away the taste of the S&S roll and left us with a smile.  Uni is indeed a sushi place.  It gets a solid rating from me.  It’s the perfect place to grab a bite to eat when you’re in the mood for some quick good sushi, but if you’re looking for great sushi, this is not the place to find it.  But sometimes, good will do.

Hungry yet?