Featured Restaurant: Sushi Zen

Arthur Bovino — March 18, 2010

Clockwise from top: Seared Scottish Salmon Sashimi Salad, Chawan Mushi with Uni, Yellowtail Scallion Handroll, Bara Chirashi ‘Sushi Zen Style.’

On a red page in the Sushi Zen menu is a poem:

Tell me your long story,
Your journey may continue endlessly,
But today you have stopped at my place.
Welcome my friends, welcome.
Let us toast the wonderful evening.

The poem is slightly corny, but it’s also inviting. And when you sit down to a meal at one of the City’s best sushi bars it’s nice to feel welcome. We certainly did during a recent meal with the GutterGourmet.

Gorgeous Photographs of a Meal at Sushi Zen >>

AlwaysInvestigating: Canned Sea Urchin

GutterGourmet — November 17, 2009

Caviar de Erizo de Mar from Despaña Brand Foods.

Growing up with the Bumble Bee tuna jingle and the Sunkist ‘Sorry Charlie’ slogan, I have always associated canned seafood with what wasn’t good enough for the supermarket fish counter— stuff only to be opened post-nuclear holocaust. So, it was with great trepidation that I bought Caviar de Erizo de Mar (literally “eggs of the hedgehog of the sea,” also known as sea urchin). I love all uni dishes. So how bad could this be?

This 2.46 ounce can with the Cata label cost $22.00 at Despaña Brand Foods (view) and was imported from Asturias. It has a ring on top to make opening it easy. Peeling back the tin revealed contents that didn’t resemble the canned tuna of my youth as much as…cat food! Bumble Bee is tolerable, but Purina? One bite indicated this was a fair rendition of the delectable, light ocean delicacy I am addicted to ordering whenever I eat sushi.

There was no odor, which amazed me. “Sorry Charlie,” but only the best tasting urchins are canned in Spain. The Spanish, while perhaps not terribly talented when it comes to vocabulary (sea hedgehog?), are the universe’s undisputed masters of canning seafood. In fact, tapas bars in Spain often serve their customers uni straight out of cans they’ve just opened right in front of them.

This sea urchin would definitely work at home over a plate of spaghetti or a bowl of cold Soba. I will return soon to Despaña to try the canned bonito, mackerel, mussels and octopus. During a nuclear holocaust, there’s no question that this would be one hot item.

Top 5: Uni Pasta

AlwaysHungry — November 12, 2009

Sea Urchin and Pasta, the perfect combination.

Uni. Pasta. Two of our favorite things. Their marriage? Brilliance. The warmth of the pasta. The light, sweet, creamy smoothness of the uni. Their combination is enough to send us into panegyric hyperbole. We often ask chefs what they’re Always Hungry for. Here’s a dish that if it’s made well, no matter how many times we’ve eaten it, we can’t help ourselves. If we see it on the menu we have to order it.

Inspired by another bowl of the Uni Carbonara at Tocqueville, we recently set out to rank New York City’s best renditions. The factors that went into judging them? First and foremost is obviously the quality of the uni. Then there’s the amount of it and how it’s implemented.

Click here to find out AlwaysHungryNY.com’s Top 5 Uni Pastas.

Have an idea for a Top 5? We’d love to hear from you. Go to the bottom of a Top 5 page and enter your suggestion into the “Suggest a Top 5” field along with your rankings and your email address.

AlwaysHungry: 5 Courses of Uni

Jeff Zalaznick — October 19, 2009

From top left, clockwise: Tempura Fried Uni, Steamed Lobster with Uni Mousse, Uni and Sweet Shrimp Roll, and Uni Ika Roll.

There is no better barometer of how good a restaurant is going to be than the sea urchin that they are serving. When the Uni is sweet and creamy, I can be sure that the meal will follow suit, but when it is metallic and jarring it is a disaster and in most cases, so is the restaurant that serves it. My favorite uni experience can be found at 15 East (view) on a Thursday Night aka “Uni Thursdays.” They have live urchins in the shell, as well as their normal selection of Maine, Santa Barbara and Hokkaido Sea Urchin. Purity is key at 15 East, but it is a part of a larger, normally perfect array of raw fish.

Soto on the other hand takes uni passion to a new level. There are two things that you need to know about Soto (view), and Bruni said them both quite elegantly: “If you’re an uni lover and haven’t been to Soto, you must go. Just know that the sushi isn’t the restaurant’s strength, and is a waste of a visit here.”

Soto is not a sushi restaurant, it is an uni restaurant. To honor that I have assembled the ideal Five-Course Uni Tasting for one to have there. It is an elegant progression that hits on all cylinders: raw, soup, fried, warm, sushi. If you are an uni lover, this should certainly be your next order of business.

Click Here for 5 Courses of Uni >>

HungryChefs: StarChefs.com’s International Chefs Congress (Day One)

Arthur Bovino — September 21, 2009

Norman Van Aken, Charlie Trotter, Emeril Lagasse and panel moderator Clark Wolf.

AlwaysHungryNY.com attended Day One of StarChefs.com’s International Chefs Congress at the Park Avenue Armory on Sunday. Aside from tasty delights like “The Egg” by Le Bernadin’s pastry chef Michael Laiskonis, Rougié‘s seared foie gras, and a Leffe beer milkshake, there were noteworthy presentations. Events included panel discussions about food trucks and American cuisine, Chris Young and Dr. Nathan Myhrvold’s entrancing presentation of their upcoming book on modernist cooking techniques, and demonstrations by David Bouley (Sea Urchin Terrine), April Bloomfield (Pork Belly Roulade), and Pierre Gagnaire (Iron Chef-esque cooking challenge) among others.

Click for chef & food pictures from Sunday's StarChefs.com International Chefs Congress >>

AlwaysInformed: The Losses and Gains of Summer ‘09

The Hungry Goat — September 15, 2009

Dubbed by some as the Summer of Death, the 2009 summer season has certainly experienced its fair share of losses. Joining the dearly departed of the celebrity world are several beloved and well-respected, recently shuttered New York City restaurants. In their honor, AlwaysHungryNY.com has compiled a list of the dishes we’ll miss and why miss them. Of course, where something is lost there’s generally something gained. So with that in mind we included and annotated our favorite new crave-worthy dishes from restaurants that opened during the summer.

What We Lost

Clockwise from top: The John Dory’s Hangtown Fry, French Fries, and Oyster Pan Roast.

Restaurant: The John Dory, closed 8/29/09

The Hangtown Fry “The John Dory’s rendition has to rank up there with the city’s best egg dishes. Eggs are creamy. Bacon is substituted with a thick prosciutto that has the texture of tender corned beef. Slices of pickled jalapeño add bursts of a light vinegary flavor and heat also spread throughout the dish. The oysters are only slightly cooked. The pooled flavors lining the plate’s bottom when you finish are worth wiping up with the delicious Parker House rolls.” (read more)

Oyster Pan Roast & French Fries “Plump, warm, bathed in cream, I needn’t more than a bite to know this classic would be my favorite dish at The John Dory. A perfect bite is to dip a fry in the oyster pan roast. Incidentally, if crisp is an overused word by food writers, this is its definition.” (read more)

Click Here for the full list >>

Maintaining the Grade: Momofuku Ko

Arthur Bovino & The Hungry Goat — September 09, 2009

We lucked out and scored a coveted reservation for dinner last night at Momofuku Ko (restaurant page). Taking pictures of composed plates is still banned so we annotated the meal with grades in the Dish by Dish style of two AlwaysHungryNY.com meals there in February.

Click here for the course by course >>

Featured Restaurant: The John Dory

Arthur Bovino — July 15, 2009

Seared Stuffed Squid with Chorizo, White Runner Beans with Crème Fraîche and Cilantro

When I learned that April Bloomfield’s venture after The Spotted Pig was to be a seafood restaurant in the Meatpacking District it immediately went on my list of must-eat-there-soon restaurants. But when my French Culinary Institute classmate, Megan Griffin, left her two year gig as a Babbo linecook and climbed aboard The John Dory (restaurant page, my first meal there would have to wait until her culinary schedule would allow it to be with her. Last week, eight months after it opened, we took dinner and drinks near the window at the front of the blue-lit bar across from the famed fish tank with a few of her fellow cooks.

I ceded menu selection (best to eat what cooks want to eat on their night off) and noted our railroad view of the action on the line— you’ve got to respect an open kitchen. We started with a sampling of oysters and clams on the half-shell: “Shibumi” (one of the staff’s favorite words to call back to the expediter), Skookums, Beausoleils, Plymouth Rocks and Littlenecks. They were served with a Cilantro and Jalapeño Chili Mignonette, Horseradish in Champagne Vinegar, Cocktail Sauce and Pickeled Ramp Vinaigrette. The first and the last were the only notable riffs on oyster accompaniments I’ve had in a while.

As good as the raw bar was, you’re not visiting The John Dory for oysters, but to see if and how Chef Bloomfield has applied her renowned gastropub touch to something as delicate as seafood. A sampling of crudos was the first exhibition: Kampachi with Ginger, Sea Bream Ceviche with Scallion Purée, and Fluke with Citrus and Avocado.

Click for more on the meal at The John Dory >>

A Tale of Two Dishes: A Toast to Uni Toast

The Gluttoness — July 08, 2009

El Quinto Pino’s Uni Panini made a splash as one of the best uni dishes, but recently, rather than sandwich their uni, several restaurants are letting their uni toast appetizers go topless. While the dish is small, it can make a megawatt impression when done right.

When the Sea Urchin Toast (above) at Aldea (restaurant page) was executed properly it was our favorite dish on their menu.

“It is rubbed with cauliflower crème, dotted with a few pickled mustard seeds and a pinch of wasabi,” explained Executive Chef George Mendes. “It is then warmed slightly and finished with mustard greens, sea lettuce and soy.”

At its best, the sea urchin was incredible, served atop a toasty sliver of French baguette. The sea lettuce emphasized the uni’s ocean essence and the cauliflower crème provided an earthy contrast.

As good as Aldea’s urchin toast can be, its sea lettuce and mustard seed garnishes are much more subdued than the luscious layer of lardo topping Marea’s (restaurant page) Sea Urchin Crostini. The Santa Barbara sea urchin was accentuated by a sprinkle of sea salt and the firm crunch of the crostini complemented the creamy topping. It’s an impressive juxtaposition of decadent ingredients from Executive Chef Michael White.

SEARCH: Good, Downtown Ramen for a Rainy Night

June 05, 2009

It’s miserable outside— perfect soup weather. A bowl of Ramen should do the trick. Just select, cuisine type: Ramen, neighborhood: Downtown, and Grade: B+ or above in our Very Advanced Search and you’ll be warming up your belly with AlwaysHungry approved noodle goodness in no time.

1. Ramen Setagaya 141 1st Avenue

Recommended Dishes: Shiso Ramen, Salt Eggs

2. Ippudo NY 65 4th Avenue

Recommended Dishes: Akamaru Modern Ramen (pictured), Chicken Wings, Pork Buns

3. Men Kui Tei 63 Cooper Square

Recommended Dishes: Gyoza, Edamame, Tonkotsu Shoyu Ramen

4. Momofuku Noodle Bar 171 1st Avenue

Recommended Dishes: Pork Buns, Momofuku Ramen, Smoked Chicken Wings, Rice Cakes

5. Rai Rai Ken 214 E. 10th Street

Recommended Dishes: Gyoza, Pork Fried Rice, Roast Pork with Scallions, Miso Ramen with Pork

AHNY ROLL CALL: Ushiwakamaru

June 02, 2009

The Setting: The AlwaysHungry Headquarters

The Caller: Hank “The Scumbag” Lihn

Hank’s Restaurant Advice Request: “I need a hip, yet unknown, sushi spot to take a ballerina on a date.”

The Suggestions: We gave Hank five sushi suggestions using three AHNY search terms (sushi, hidden gem, date place).

1. Sushi Azabu: It’s hidden under Greenwich Grill. Sit at the sushi bar and do an omakase.

2. Matsugen: It has a cool fish tank and also serves great soba.

3. Cube 63: Intimate BYOB place with inventive specialty rolls.

4. Omido: Bad location means it’s usually empty, but the AvroKO design is dark wood and sexy.

5. Ushiwakamaru: It’s sort of hidden on Houston and they have some of the freshest fish downtown. Go Omakase.

Hank’s Selection: Ushiwakamaru

Could Hank Seal the Deal? “Nope. Dinner was great, but she had to run home to see her mom, and by the time she got back downtown I was so drunk I could barely function.”

CLICK HERE FOR HANK’S FULL REVIEW OF USHIWAKAMARU