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| - Really solid food, and excellent service thanks to Bart, our extremely genial waiter. I've been to Soba twice before for entrees (thank you, Birthday Club!) and been satisfied, but tonight's sharing plates + maki dinner had me downright impressed. The shishito peppers are delicious, and a nice foil to richer, porkier dishes. The Chilean Sea Bass skewers were very nicely flavored, though we were disappointed to not be served the skin--it's the tastiest part! We also got the Korean fried chicken bao (Vietnamese style slider), and while the chicken was very authentic in its sticky sweet glaze and crispy coating, we felt the buns were missing some spice and acid...a little gochujang would have made them much more balanced.
We also ordered both the double maki rolls, and they were tasty although the tuna roll didn't seem to have much of the spicy mayo. We were also tempted into dessert...I usually take one look at the menu and think "I could make that, and that, and that..." but Soba's dessert menu is quite thoughtful and creative. We got the banana split and the pretzel stack, and while both were quite tasty (the miso caramel was especially interesting), neither was particularly remarkable (the raspberry ice cream of the night clashed with the banana and caramel, and the stack needed a bit more crunch to cream). If you're into desserts, I would highly recommend saving room at least for a peak, because it's rare to find a restaurant that puts such effort into the post-dinner menu.
I would be remiss if I didn't give a fuller commendation to Bart, who jovially kept our water glasses filled, offered recommendations, and ensured that everything was prepared to our liking (even going so far as to sub out the coffee-flavored ice cream on the split). He struck the magic balance of being there every time we looked for him but nowhere in sight when he was not needed. Soba is lucky to have him.
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