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stophs · 6 years

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stophs · 7 years

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DO go chasing waterfalls. Another epic visit to @lilianewyork. #AboutLastNight #SendNoods (at Lilia Ristorante)

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stophs · 7 years

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Kristián Mensa

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stophs · 7 years

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Uogashi, NYC

It feels like there’s a new sushi restaurant popping up in New York City every week these days, and Uogashi happens to be one of them, having opened their doors earlier this year. However, what separates Uogashi from most of Manhattan’s other upstarts is that here you’ll find one of NYC’s most respected sushi chefs, Kunihide Nakajima, formerly of Nakajima at Jado, behind the counter!

Uogashi is not a small shop, with a long counter serviced by no less than three separate chefs at any given time, as well as a number of small tables. Owned and operated by a Japanese fish monger, the restaurant gets some of the freshest fish available, both locally and from Japan, and are thereby able to keep costs down, offering affordable tasting menu options in the East Village.

Nakajima-san, or “Nakaji” as he’s known, personally works the six seats at the front corner of the counter closest to the entrance. But please note that he does not work every day, so if you’re making a reservation at Uogashi, confirm he’ll be there the day you want to go, and then specifically ask for the seats where he’ll be serving!

I dined with Nakaji on both of my last two trips back to the Big Apple and was thrilled to see he’s living up to the legacy he established up at Jado, which most critics almost unanimously agreed was the best sushi in New York at the time! Here’s a look at some of the masterful sushi and sashimi I was served on both my visits.

Sliced tako (octopus)…

Katsuo (bonito)…

Marinated tuna livers…

Ankimo (monkfish liver) sandwiched in narazuke (sake soaked radish slices)…

Mirugai (pen shell clam)…

Hotate (scallop)…

Iori ika (“squid”)…

Aji (horse mackerel)…

Kinmedai (red snapper)…

Kuruma ebi (tiger prawn)…

Uni (sea urchin)…

Akami (tuna)…

Chutoro (fatty tuna)…

Unagi (eel)…

Negitoro tuna roll…

The master at work…

Sazae (turban shell) from Itojima in Kyushu, Japan, and hotaru ika (firefly squid)…

Uni (sea urchin) from Kyushu…

Namako (marinated sea cucumber)…

Fermented squid “shiokara”…

Madai (sea bream)…

Aji (horse mackerel)…

(If you compare this piece of aji to the one earlier up in this post, you’ll see how similar they look. These pics were taken months apart, but consistency is the mark of all the best sushi chefs.)

Sakura ebi (small sweet shrimp)…

As for sake, Uogashi keeps a great list, available by the glass or bottle, including Urakasumi, one of my favorites from Sendai! Always make sure you share with the chef…

Tako (octopus)…

Kohada (gizzard shad) from Kumamoto…

And if you stay late enough, Nakaji breaks out the good stuff…

Incredible uni from Hokkaido…

Otoro (fatty tuna) from Nagasaki…

Shiro ebi (white shrimp)…

Unagi (eel) roll as the meal winds down…

Another piece of horse mackerel, which is always impeccable here…

Finally, Nakaji’s take on tamago (egg) to close us out…

And not only is Nakaji one of the best sushi chefs around, he’s also a huge Marvel fan!

From the quality of the fish, to the texture of the rice, to the pedigree of the chef, to the ambience of the restaurant, to the cost of your meal, Uogashi is a combination of winning factors that makes for one of the best sushi experiences you can ask for outside of Japan!

UOGASHI

188 1st Ave.

NY, NY 10009

212-253-0626

https://www.uogashinyc.com/

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stophs · 7 years

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A hero in more ways than one

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stophs · 7 years

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The Sandwiches of NYCC

I didn’t get to eat at too many new Manhattan restaurants while in town for New York Comic Con this year, but I did hit up a number of my favorite sandwich shops, both in the Big Apple and in Connecticut while visiting my parents. Here’s a look…

The chicken cutlet sandwich from Cafe Duke…

The sandwiches at Duke can be inconsistent depending on time of day and which sandwich maker you get, but this one was top notch!

The Cubano from Margon…

In my opinion, without a doubt, the best Cuban sandwich in NYC!

Bagel with lox and cream cheese from Zabar’s…

The Torta Cubana special at Tehuitzingo’s…

This sandwich is no longer on Tehuitzingo’s main menu, but they do still have it some days if you ask. It’s piled high with salchicha sausage, deep fried beef cutlet, beef al pastor, ham, head cheese, queso fresco cheese, jalapenos lettuce and mayo. It usually has sliced avocado too, but they ran out by the time I got there.

The Prime Rib French Dip at Prime One Eleven…

A really nice sandwich at a new restaurant in Trumbull, CT. Their onion soup jus was excellent!

The classic crispy chicken sandwich at Duchess…

Never leave home without eating one!

And the bacon, griddled egg and cheese from Shake Shack in Terminal 4 at JFK…

Seven days, seven sandwiches!

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stophs · 7 years

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Morimoto Yakitori, Tokyo

Morimoto Yakitori is an old school, no-frills yakitori joint in Shibuya, down a small alley maybe only 100 meters away from the famous crossing there. It’s a “blink and you’ll miss it” corner shop that I must’ve walked by dozens of times and never noticed before until a friend pointed it out…

Inside you’ll find a counter that seats about 12 people and two tables for four people each. Morimoto unlocks their doors at 5pm each evening and stays open until they run out of food, usually before 10pm. They do not take reservations so you have to stand and wait in line, which can get a bit long…

I arrived at 9pm and there were about six people in front of me. I was hoping to get seated in front of Morimoto’s long-time master, whose white shirt gets charred from the time he spends in front of the hot binchotan grill each night, but got placed at one of the tables with three young women…

Morimoto serves a wide variety of yakitori, both meat and vegetables, but only make a limited number of each skewer nightly, so many of the chicken options sell out quickly…

Once you sit down, the waiter comes around with a coded board and tells you which parts are still in stock. The dashes you see below mean that those items are sold out, so I ordered one of each of the five remaining skewers…

First up came their famous tsukune, more commonly served as chicken meatballs, but molded into a more of a stick here…

Then it was on to zuri, or chicken gizzards…

Chicken livers…

Scallion…

And momo, or chicken thigh, grilled with myoga, or Japanese ginger…

I also got a side dish of sliced myoga topped with bonito flakes and soy sauce…

And lastly, one of the main reasons you go to Morimoto is for their chicken sashimi! Given my late arrival, they were already sold out of raw liver and hearts, but did have a few plates of breast meat left, one of which I gladly enjoyed…

Another specialty here that was sold out was the unagi, or eel, which I was bummed I missed.

So as I’m sure you have garnered from reading this, if you do chose to check out Morimoto, go early, don’t go with a group, and be prepared for some adventurous eating!

There’s no English spoken here, and they do not have English menus. Cash only.

MORIMOTO YAKITORI

2-7-4 Dogenzaka

Shibuya, Tokyo

150-0043

+81-3-3464-5233

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stophs · 7 years

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I had this dish at Shanghai Tang in Xintiandi this past April as part of a large Chinese banquet dinner, and have never been able to forget its taste and texture, both of which blew me away. Easily one of the best things I’ve eaten all year! The problem was, no one was able to tell me what the dish was, not even the restaurant staff. So after six months, just as I’d given up hope on ever identifying the ingredients, my ever-intrepid friend Snowing went back to the restaurant, found the chef and figured out what it was: a seasonal dish of Gorgon fruit from Suzhou (only available fresh for a short period of time) sauteed with diced cuttlefish, kale stems and wood ear mushrooms! I’ve already noted this on my calendar for April 2018 as I want to go back and eat it again.

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stophs · 7 years

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MOS Burger, Shanghai

Yes, it’s true, with no fanfare, promotion or online buzz, MOS Burger secretly opened here in Shanghai in the basement food court of the Apita mall in Gubei!

That’s how the name is translated into Chinese…

Their menu is a toned down version of the Japanese original, sadly and shockingly lacking the chicken burger…

Combos with fries and drink run about $5.50 US, which is pricier than McDonald’s or Burger King here…

I tried to order a Double MOS Cheeseburger as I always do in Japan, but was denied. No second patties allowed here in China…

The first thing I noticed about my burger was that the cheese here is yellow, not white, but that’s really the only difference I could find. The texture of the bun, consistency of the burger, chop of the onions, and most importantly, taste of the MOS chili, were all pretty much spot on compared to the original!