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| - Sono resutoran wa totemo riipa desu ne?
It's a small space in an otherwise unassuming shopping center with several other restaurants, including a korean BBQ and Monta noodle house. Walking in, it's a relaxing space with lots of warm colored, glossy wood tables and intimate lighting. The decor is much nicer than you would anticipate from the surrounding neighborhood. They've recently received a bit of media praise and when we went there was only bar seating available despite it being after 1 AM. Our party of 2 had no problem with that and were seated by a cute waitress. It being the night before Halloween, they were all in costume! Fun! Plus, everyone was speaking REAL Japanese back and forth, from the waitress to the kitchen staff, not just pretending.
We were told we only had a half hour or so to order, so we gave the menu a run down and got to it. We started with a 10 oz bottle of cold sake. Our waitress suggested that we try Junmai Ginjo 'Dewazakura Oka', a cherryblossom scented sake with a clean, smooth floral flavor and slight hints of fruit. I also ordered a green tea, which was forgotten, but I'll forgive them since it was packed and she may have thought I just changed my mind when we got the sake. Our bottle was $18 and was enough for the two of us to share over our meal without becoming perilously incapacitated. Because sake is a sobriety ninja like that, it'll slap you silly when you don't expect it to if you're not careful!
The FOOD:
- Uni in seaweed soup: The uni was sublimely sweet and creamy with a warm exterior from the rich dashi-type broth. It was presented in an adorable wooden bowl with the uni nestled among the seaweed like eggs in a nest. The seaweed was well prepared, with a firm texture and bite. I hate slimy seaweed and this was definitely well prepared quality wakame. - $4
- Sashimi Salad: 3 types of sashimi on tender baby spinach leaves with a savory/sweet dressing, crisped shallots or bonito & a smear of a spicy paste on the side that could be mixed into the salad. It was light and refreshing, with sweet pieces of fish. When served, the waitress told us which pieces were what, a nice attention to detail that I appreciate. High spinach to fish ratio, but it's $9 and it was the largest dish we were served.
- Kobe Beef Filet with wasabi: J's favorite, for sure. I really enjoyed this! The piece was roughly 4" long and 1/2"x1" on a skewer with a thin line of wasabi along top. The meat was perfectly cooked and melted as I bit into it. I would go back for this item alone. At $9.50 for a relatively small portion of meat, it's not exactly budget dining, but it's a lovely option to have and still much more affordable than any of the premier steak houses.
- Kobe Beef Skirt with garlic: Also fabulous, though it's hard to say if I liked this or the wasabi one better. This had a different grain and so a different overall mouth feel, but still melted apart as I bit into it. The flavor was great, clean, quality beef with crispy pieces of garlic in a row along the top. At $6 it's a little more affordable than the filet, and I can see ordering many rounds of this item with some friends.
- Asparagus with bacon: 3 asparagus tips wrapped in small pieces of bacon and grilled. It's a simple idea and presented in a small portion. The asparagus still had a crisp bite and the bacon added a nice smoky flavor, but I don't know if I'd want to order this again. $2.50 for 3 bite size pieces of asparagus is a bit much for me.
- House Tofu, 1/2 hot & 1/2 cold: the cold tofu came out first. It had a consistency like mascarpone or creamy cheese, with a very cooling sensation in the body. It was served with lots of thin, flaky bonito, green onions and grated ginger as well as a small offering of sauces/salt that wait on the table. I enjoyed this dish a lot but the boy didn't. Definitely a different beast than the cubes of tofu you can buy in most grocery stores. I topped it with all the plated options and a drizzle of the umeboshi spiked soy sauce. Yuuuuum!
The hot tofu was fried, giving it an interesting textured skin and a creamy interior. The broth it came in was dark, with a rich mix of flavors. Orbs of ikura floating on top with a few baby mushrooms in the broth provided great textural interest, especially the briny bursts of flavor the ikura provided in contrast with the creamy tofu interior. I like it better than many of the agedashi tofus I've had elsewhere and it stands unique from it's peers. $10 for the two tofu dishes, but it was a lot of tofu! This was easily the second largest order we recieved.
- Kurobuta pork cheek: Skewered bits of crispy fatty meat. It has a different texture than some would probably like- with a texture that's an cross between gizzard [crunchy yet chewy, gristly, fatty] and bacon. It didn't taste greasy or heavy, and was recommended by our waitress. I liked it but it won't be the first thing I have to order upon returning. $2.50
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