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| - Boku is short for ??? (Touhenboku; "idiot"; if related to the ramen franchise, is a whimsical reference to the owner's mixed heritage). My girlfriend and some friends came here on Valentine's Day for the first time. The dining space reminds me of a cross between an izakaya/sake bar and a beer hall with raised wooden communal tables.
Two of us ordered set dinners while my girlfriend and I split a boku maki, aburi flight, and wagyu aburi nigiri. It's clear that Boku places stock in aesthetics, with all orders arriving attractively plated. However ultimately, we agreed that the quality/taste fell short of their presentation, as well as the expectations set by the price tag.
Of note from my friend's set dinners, the tuna tataki was a pleasant little salad and a good opener. The lobster tempura felt rubbery and bland, relying heavily on the batter. The anago oshizushi was not bad, but we felt that the rice was too densely pressed and way too firm in the mouth.
Of the aburi flight, I felt the shrimp was the best in exhibiting the freshness of the protein. The salmon, mackerel, and hamachi were borderline above average, and the beef, unremarkable. Where we were truly disappointed was the wagyu aburi. It tasted like a well-executed medium rare steak with a good sear. However, for something marketed and priced as "wagyu" (whether true wagyu or otherwise) we expected an extremely tender chew bordering on melt-in-your-mouth experience, for which it fell sharply short. The Boku maki (for which carries the restaurant's namesake) was okay. Lightly seared, a bit too much rice, and too much sauce, but still enjoyable and well put together.
It's difficult for me to comment on whether I'd come back, as I hadn't tried the sake or any of the sashimi/raw nigiri. Overall for this particular experience, I can only say that there are many alternatives that come to mind, whose corresponding offerings at the same price point are of a noticeably higher quality.
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