Best Japanese curry in the city. Berkshire pork belly cutlet curry is heavenly. Happy hour 4-7 pm.
Come for lunch on the weekend and there's no wait. For summer - the cold kimchi soba is revolutionary. Served with just-cooked egg, cool and filling and refreshing.
Best ramen broth in the city, but be prepared to wait. Go early, put your name in for a specific time, and come back when you're ready to eat.
Neighborhood gem, sexy and well hidden. Japanese meatballs are served with fried eggs, great sake and shochu selection. Pay attention to the specials.
Food so beautiful I gasped. Vegan Japanese resto where I didn't miss meat at all. That's saying something. Course tastings $50-$80.
Their takeout okonomiyaki is the best in the city. No place to sit, though, so plan to hunker down nearby.
A step up from the St. Marks chaos of Yakitori Taisho and Oh Taisho - darker, more grown up, better food. Crispy fried squid legs, ikura don, sake.
Expansive and a wee expensive. Really effing good cold tofu (housemade) and wagyu beef that dissolves on your tongue. $65 tasting menu available.
Give me the tuna roll wrapped in rice paper, some squid jerky, sake, and I'm a happy camper. Cute date spot.
Dark, sexy, food only so-so but a cool place to take a date who'll dig the grafittied walls and the Japanese punk rock bartender. If you must eat, dried stingray with Kewpie mayo a good bet.
I like picking up affordable, sushi-grade fish here - the salmon is usually quite decent.
Early bird special - $19.50 for soba dinner set 5.30-7pm. Daikon salad, tempura + soba, & ice cream.
Omakase all the way. Master chef prepares the omakase while his apprentices make the sushi for table service. Otoro melts in your mouth and that white shrimp is 👌!
There's no sushi bar seating so the omakase isn't served piece by piece. Still the best mid-range omakase in the 'hood (~$50 for 10 pieces) and fantastic kitchen apps
I've heard it called a poor man's Nakazawa which is awesome for me since I'm not baller enough to Nakazawa frequently. Kura has solid fish and entertaining service courtesy of chef. Get the omakase.
If you're looking to consume mass quantities of affordable sushi and imbibe some BYOB sake, this is the place for you.
One of the few NYC places you can find spicy tuna in crispy rice - which is pretty ubiquitous in the LA sushi scene. Pricey, though - great for client dinners
Salmon skin roll is the bomb. Great value for quality of fish. Show up right at open to avoid line.
The foie gras chawanmushi is delicate and rich at the same time. Colorado lamb Bolognese ramen a solid pick.
Three pieces from the omakase that I can't stop thinking about: perfectly seared salmon, scallop and uni, Maine uni. The sake somm is excellent.
Hand carved ice ball for your Yamazaki on the rocks. Forego the tasting menu but don't forget to try the foie gras soba. Branzino perfect for sharing.
These noodles are like a cross between the common udon we are familiar with and Italian linguine. The simplest, featuring fried bean curd or egg comes with seaweed or tempura (pick veg. or shrimp).
