Tortilla Napoleon (crispy fried tortilla, portabello mushroom, goat cheese & red pepper w/ huitlacoche sauce)
by Cristy-Lucie Alvarado
July 28th, 2008
ITZOCAN CAFÉ
438 E 9th St
(1st Ave & Ave A)
212-677-5856
Lately I’ve been obsessed with the idea of finding the perfect date spot. What I’m looking for is a hole-in-the-wall, clean with tasty food and a charming atmosphere. And on a recent visit to Itzocan Café, I found myself on my ideal date, without even trying!
I visited the Itzocan in the East Village; there’s also a bistro on the Upper East Side. The chefs, brothers from Puebla, Mexico, keep their dishes native with ingredients such as huitlacoche and guajillo while always adding an elegant twist — creating a surprising marriage of French-Mexican cuisine. They serve brunch, lunch, and dinner, and offer a concise selection of beer, sangria, and wine. The cozy room houses eight tables attended to by one server. It was nice to sit and feel like I was having dinner with my date rather than the whole restaurant. The server was helpful with the menu and gladly explained the differences in dishes and the foreign ingredients used.
I started off with the queso fundido. A basket of homemade chips accompanied a skillet with two slices of Brie melted over a sauté of mushrooms, poblano pepper, and chorizo. The cheese was easy to scoop up with the chips, and the rest of the ingredients added different textures for a mouthful of flavor and spice.
My entrée was a special. The tortilla napoleon is a “lasagna” of crispy fried tortilla, portabello mushroom, goat cheese and red pepper surrounded by a thick pool of huitlacoche sauce. Huitlacoche, a woody-flavored mushroom found in Mexico, was renamed the Mexican Truffle in 1989 by the James Beard Foundation to encourage American consumption of it. The stack of ingredients properly complimented each other, all coming together with the savory mushroom sauce, which I didn’t let go to waste thanks to my leftover chips!
I was hoping to finish my meal with the blue corn dessert crepes, but they were out, so I went for the regular crepes and was pleased nonetheless. The two dainty crepes were drizzled with dulce de leche and disappeared in less than two minutes.
After dessert, we sat and sipped our red sangria and enjoyed the warm ambiance. I was thrilled to have found a precious little hole with delicious food and a welcoming environment. A Friday night with no wait-list, no reservation and no complaints!
Posted in Cheese , East Village , Mexican , Tortilla
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Super Omakase
by Celia Cheng
May 28th, 2008
KANOYAMA
157 2nd Ave
@ 11th St
212-777-5266
Kanoyama was a bit of a mystery to me. On the corner of 11th Street and 2nd Avenue, I had walked past it a million times, never taking notice as I thought it looked like a run of the mill Westernized Japanese restaurant packed with gaijin (foreigners in Japanese). But the reviews of the restaurant are consistently good so I decided to try it to see if it was as fake a Japanese restaurant as Japonica is. I ordered the omakase sushi set; large pieces of the most generic nigirizushi were served on a platter, along with miso soup and ice cream for dessert. This was “American sushi” and I was not impressed. I was also horrified by some of the large spicy handrolls that were being sent to tables from the sushi bar. Good fish doesn’t get chopped up to bits and obliterated by spicy sauces. If a sushi restaurant serves spicy tuna and other foreign inventions that are blasphemous to traditionalists, I run for the exit.
But when my sushi fanatic friend Jennie, who eats sushi at least three times a week and knows her fish, started frequenting the place and swore by it, I knew there had to be something I was missing. So I tried again. This time I ordered individual onigiri sushi from the daily specials menu, many of them priced at $8 to $12 a piece. The variety and quality of fish was good, but by the end of my meal, I still felt like I had had a mediocre experience for a very hefty price tag. And then Jennie told me the secret. You have to sit at the sushi bar and order the “super omakase,” in which chef owner Nobuyuki Shikanai composes the menu for you and hands you your sushi piece by piece.
Well then, I’d give it another try. While checking Kanoyama’s website for their phone number, I learned that they have a very comprehensive site, including fish facts, a great educational overview. I also found an FAQ entry that explains the different levels of omakase they serve. “Super omakase” is basically traditional omakase where you leave yourself in the hands of the sushi chef. The last sentence reads “with no price limit.” This was a bit daunting, and indeed, the first time I tried the super omakase, the tab came to around $150 a person. But I was blown away! This was the real deal. Chef Shikanai’s sushi creations were delicate and delicious. It was no longer just a myth.
Having returned several times now, I’ve learned how it works best. The super omakase is not just sushi but a combination of chef-chosen dishes from the kitchen and can include both sashimi and sushi. I usually do ask for both as, in my experience, ordering sashimi seems to bring the price down a little as, by the time I’m done with the sashimi, I’m halfway full. But it really depends on what’s good that day and how much it costs, hence “no limit.” Also, Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays are good as there’s fish coming directly from Japan on those days.
I know we are talking sushi here, but I must point out that the seasonal vegetable tempura selection for the spring was amazing and can’t be found anywhere else. On my last visit, I tasted the beautifully opulent angelica flower. It was bitter but paired well with fish. This was served between the sashimi and sushi courses, perfectly balancing the meal. But it’s out of season now, so I’ll have to wait until next year to taste it again. Until then, I look forward to whatever the chef sends my way in its place.
Dessert, which is complimentary with the super omakase, is a choice of chocolate soufflé, grilled banana, or ice cream (the first two are served with ice cream as well). The grilled banana, as simple as it sounds, is a lovely way to end dinner. Once flambéed, the rum evaporates and the caramelized banana is soft and sweet, and it’s a nice complement to the accompanying vanilla ice cream, or your companion’s chocolate soufflé.
Chef Shikanai looks young and is extremely congenial, which adds to the whole experience. Apart from the seven-seated sushi bar, the restaurant caters to those who like American sushi. But business is business, and as long as I know where to find good sushi, I don’t care what others are eating. And there’s no doubt that Kanoyama is bustling night after night, so their balancing act seems to be the secret to success.
Posted in East Village , Japanese , Seafood , Sushi
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Dim Sum
by Celia Cheng
April 16th, 2008
CHINATOWN BRASSERIE
380 Lafayette St
@ Great Jones St
212-533-7000
The more I eat at Chinatown Brasserie, the more I like their dim sum. It has to be some of the best in town. The prices aren’t cheap compared to Chinatown – ironically, the restaurant is not in Chinatown but in the trendier area of NoHo — but I certainly don’t mind paying for good food. Lately, when I crave dim sum or fried rice, Chinatown Brasserie is the first place that comes to mind.
I prefer Chef Joe Ng’s dim sum to the rest of the menu, because everything from the steamed dumplings to the pan-fried goods is just scrumptious.
I always start with the shrimp and snow pea leaf dumplings. The steamed roast pork buns are fluffy and the pork juicy. The turnip cake with ham and XO sauce is near perfection with just the right consistency of crispy on the outside and creamy inside. XO sauce is a Hong Kong specialty of dried seafood cooked in chili oil. It makes everything taste good, as proven by another dish, the seafood and pork fried rice with XO sauce. This gogi berry-topped fried rice is spectacular, as the rice stays white and silky smooth, while the seafood and pork add rich flavor and aroma. Plus it’s not overly greasy. The shrimp rice noodle rolls are a staple favorite, and even though I don’t eat the ginger that accompanies, some friends love it.
The highlight for me is always the crispy taro root shrimp. Taro has a neutral flavor but is starchy in its consistency like potato, so the Chinese use it for both sweet and savory dishes. This one is savory and comes in the shape of a bird, served four to a plate. A long, thin piece of baked dough acts as the head attached to the body of the bird. The body is a complex mixture of ingredients that work beautifully together: shrimp are split, stuffed with a shredded mushroom mixture, and then covered with a chilled mashed taro paste. When deep fried, the exterior of the paste turns lacy, like a thousand delicate shreds, which form the body of the bird. And appropriately, the shrimp tail is proudly displayed as the tail of the bird. The sweet mustard sauce is a good complement.
And for the finale, I swear by the custard bao. These tiny bite-size custard-filled buns are dreamy.
This is definitely one of those restaurants where the food is first and foremost. Sometimes I find the service to be a little vacant, but that’s easily overlooked because there are so many dishes I crave. Hooray for good dim sum!
Posted in Brunch , Chinese , Dim Sum , Dumpling , East Village , Rice
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Shiromaru Ramen
by Celia Cheng
March 31st, 2008
IPPUDO
65 4th Ave
(9th & 10th St)
212-388-0088
For ramen-crazed New York City, we have another newcomer. Following in Setagaya’s and Santoka’s footsteps, another Japanese ramen chain has ventured into the U.S. market: Ippudo.
A mere two blocks away from me on 4th Avenue between 9th and 10th Streets, I was excited to learn that I had another noodle option in the East Village.
Ippudo officially opens on March 31st, but since it’s soft opening on March 24th, it’s been packed. I popped in at lunchtime yesterday to see if I could grab a quick bite, but there was a ten-minute wait and I was in a rush. Determined to have my Hakata ramen, I went back today and found myself sitting at a round communal table, full of strangers all equally eager to try this new joint.
Seating at Ippudo includes three large booths, a long rectangular table, a round table made out of a tree trunk, a bar-like seating that wraps around a pillar, and a hidden back room with tables that seems more like a lounge area. The atmosphere is that of a lively izakaya with modern décor and loud J-pop (Japanese pop) playing in the background. Both the atmosphere and the prices show that they obviously spent a lot more money on the place than their competitor, Setagaya. Also in contrast to Setagaya, whose wait staff seem to be mostly clueless, the all-Japanese wait and kitchen staff at Ippudo are polite and enthusiastic.
The man to my left speaking Japanese on his cell phone was saying that the ramen was overpriced and that it was targeted toward non-Japanese. He didn’t think Ippudo was going to survive based on the prices. Indeed, $12-13 for a bowl of ramen is high, and if you add any sides, lunch is easily over $20, which is pricey for fast food. Yet the restaurant was packed and bustling with activity. To my right, another lone diner stayed on his cell phone until his food arrived. I was annoyed at all the cell phone activity, but I suppose this is not a place that encourages true comfort since the ramen business is based on quick turnover.
Ippudo specializes in Hakata (Kyushu-style) tonkotsu (pork bone soup) ramen. The original flavor of tonkotsu ramen or Ippudo’s original version, shiromaru (white) moto-aji (original flavor), is served in a rich white broth with scallions, roast pork, cabbage and seaweed. They have two other types of ramen: akamaru (red) shin-aji (new flavor) that is even richer with a heavier umami flavor, and karakamen, which is spicy. At lunch, you can add a rice dish, such as mentaiko (spicy cod roe) rice or roasted pork rice, for an additional $3. I chose the former. Unfortunately, I didn’t find the rice to be that spectacular. According to their website, the overall menu has been modified to accommodate the American palate, but shreds of cabbage in the rice instead of the traditional Japanese pickles and seaweed just taste wrong. Like the side rice dish included in the lunch set at Soba Totto, these seem like afterthoughts and don’t really match in flavor with either the ramen or soba that they are meant to accompany.
Since my visit, Ippudo NY seems to have made other non-traditional modifications to the menu by adding shoyu (soy sauce) and miso ramen (both $12) and tsukemen ($16). These are not part of the repertoire at Ippudo’s Japan stores as they are not Hakata style ramen. My ramen fanatic friend Sarah told me that New York’s Ippudo is also missing all the table condiments that they have in their Japan stores, including karashi-takana — pickled leaf mustard with chili commonly eaten with Hakata ramen. How can they shaft us on the good stuff?! They need to get those condiments into the New York store! She’s also a stickler for katamen (al dente) and recommends getting an order of the kaedama (extra) noodles if you like your noodles extra springy.
You can read thorough descriptions of Ippudo’s history and philosophy as well as the history of ramen itself on Ippudo NY’s website. I hope they add their menu to the site soon; that’s what always gets my mouth watering. For the time being, here’s a look at the goods on the Japanese site.
All in all, the ramen and soup are good, and I’m sure, despite my neighbor’s comments about price point, Ippudo will do just fine. I’m glad it’s here, but for all this hype around it’s opening, I feel it’s just an ordinary neighborhood noodle shop.
Posted in East Village , Japanese , Noodles
Shio Ramen
by Celia Cheng
July 27th, 2007
RAMEN SETAGAYA
141 1st Ave
(St. Marks Pl & 9th St)
212-529-2740
On a cold rainy day, though mid summer, I thought it would be perfect to have lunch at Setagaya — a nice hot bowl of ramen really warms me and fills me up. This was my third visit to this new ramen shop in the East Village since it opened last month.
Setagaya specializes in and exclusively serves shio ramen. (The four most common flavors of ramen are shoyu (soy sauce), shio (salt), tonkotsu (pork bone soup) and miso.) Shio is a clear broth, and while it does have salt in its base, an outstanding shio broth must rely more on the complexity of its other flavors than the more distinctive flavors of miso, shoyu or tonkotsu. To do its shio justice, I think it best to quote from the back of Setagaya’s menu, which explains how the ramen broth is made: “Pork bone, chicken and chicken bone, Raus seaweed and Rishiri seaweed from Japan, dried mushroom, dried scallop, dried anchovy, garlic, ginger, cabbage, and red pepper are prepared separately and then combined together for our ramen soup.” The broth comes topped with dried scallop, which has been fried and ground into flakes, fresh julienned scallion, hotate oil also made from scallops and Aosha seaweed.
To simplify things, you only have the choice of shio ramen or tsukemen. Both are served with shio broth, but the shio ramen is traditional ramen in which all ingredients are served in one bowl, while tsukemen involves dipping the noodles into the broth as the two are served in separate bowls. Other side dishes are available, which are simply repeats of ingredients included in the shio ramen: cha-shu (roast pork), menma (bamboo shoots), and salt egg. Some rice dishes are offered as well, like oyakodon (egg and chicken over rice), and toridon (chicken over rice); also on the menu are appetizers like edamame, oshinko (Japanese pickles), and seaweed salad. All in all, the menu is really limited, as the true focus of the kitchen is on its signature ramen. Many items on the menu were whited out during the first week of business, which is a sign that they would be implemented over time. Some of these items are now served, but the menus have been reprinted, and, to my disappointment, they’ve removed gyoza altogether. How can a ramen shop not serve gyoza?! Let’s hope that’s just temporary.
The shio ramen is good: the flavors are rich even though the broth is clear. The salt egg is half of a pickled, hard-boiled egg with the yolk only slightly runny — the perfect consistency! The cha-shu is fatty, tender, juicy and stands up well on its own as a meat dish. The noodles are thin and have that perfect springy consistency. The menma, a staple in ramen, is nothing special to speak of. In addition, there are chopped onions floating in the broth. Watching the Japanese food show “Seventy-seven Best Ramen Restaurants in Tokyo” (which plays repeatedly on the large LCD screen in the restaurant) I learned that at the Setagaya ramen shops in Japan, you get an entire bowl of chopped onions to use as a condiment, so that you may add as much as you like. We don’t get that option here.
The tsukemen is also served with a shio broth, but the noodles are wider, like a much springier tagliatelle, and the cha-shu in the broth is sliced up, which dilutes the full-flavored, fat laced pieces of meat. There are chunks of dried scallop in the broth, which are missing from the ramen, giving it much stronger hints of seafood aroma. Unfortunately, the dish comes with no egg or menma, though you can order them as side dishes. Another problem with the tsukemen is that the noodles get cold quickly, as does the broth, so only a few minutes into my meal, I was sadly dipping cold noodles into lukewarm broth. Overall, I preferred the thickness of the noodles used in the tsukemen but the ramen was a better meal.
Service, on the other hand, was atrocious! On all three visits to Setagaya, I found the staff to be utterly clueless, unprofessional and downright dumb. The restaurant suffers from a total lack of management: it’s like the blind leading the blind. Besides the ramen chefs, who are busy cooking behind the counter, most of the servers are not Japanese, or knowledgeable about their product (or anything else, I imagine). There’s generally no line at lunch, but the restaurant doesn’t seat more than thirty, and a queue forms outside the store during dinner. When a line is this long, turnover is key, but the servers here are clearly incapable of managing the flow of customers. The staff is so inattentive, that on my second visit, we spent ten minutes trying to get the check from our waitress, even though we had been done with our meal longer than that and there was a long queue.
During my most recent visit, the waitress, while trying to pour broth for my tsukemen from a thermos, spattered broth into my eyes. In accordance with Murphy’s Law, I wasn’t wearing my glasses that day. The broth wasn’t piping hot, but this is not something I am typically thankful for. With the level of incompetence here, I couldn’t see the point in getting upset, but I do think that if the staff’s training does not improve, the restaurant is a lawsuit waiting to happen.
Since Chikubu closed I hadn’t had a favorite ramen in town, until now. Even though the management needs improvement, I like Setagaya for its overall authenticity. Just in case you are wondering how I feel about some other ramen joints in town, here’s the skinny:
Rairaiken — it takes talent to make food that has “No MSG” in it taste like it’s laden with MSG
Minca — good (but too rich for me!)
Sapporo — mediocre
Menkuitei — below mediocre
Menchankotei — I prefer the menchanko to the ramen but overall the tonkotsu ramen is not bad
Speaking of ramen comparisons, I was reminded that I might need to venture outside of Manhattan if I really want to find the best. I’m finally going to try Ramen Santoka in Mitsuwa (Edgewater, NJ) next month, something I’ve been meaning to do for a couple of years now! Ramen Santoka is another famous Tokyo-based ramen shop, and my friends Sarah and Henry who also lived in Japan are fanatic about it, so I know it has to be delicious. I’ll keep you posted!
Posted in East Village , Japanese , Noodles
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