Morimoto, NYC

Remember a few weeks ago, when I published basically a photo-only view of our experience at Mira, in Toronto, because I lost my review notes, and the visit was in the midst of a business trip and I didn't have time to write it up right away?  Yeah, it turns out, this, uh, happens too me a bit too frequently.  I take the photos, I take copious notes, I'm far too busy with the actual reason I'm on the business trip to write it up then, I plan to write it up immediately once I get home and life calms down, then, life happens, and by the time I go to write it up ... those lovely notes are no where to be found.

Which brings us to this "review", of Morimoto in New York.

I was in town for a manager training week long extravaganza, and one night, they set us all up with curated groups for dining about at reasonably nice places.  The event had several hundred people, so to avoid doing massive group dining, they picked a variety of places, catering to all different cuisines and styles, within reasonable walking distance from the event venue, and let us sign up for our 1st/2nd/3rd picks.  Then, someone worked magic, and mostly managed to get us all our first or second choices.

One of my top picks was Morimoto, not just drawn in by Iron Chef fame, but, by the menu of the restaurant, and the fact that for this venue, they were not having us do a fixed menu, rather, we could just order what we wanted (within reason).

Awkward conversations with strangers aside, it was a great visit.  They handled our fairly large group astonishingly well given the free format of the ordering (I think we were nearly 30 people?), and I have fond memories of the food and drink, and the space, wow, the space was impressive.

And that, that is all I have.  Notes?  Nope, sorry, no more.

Setting

Even if you don't care about Morimoto the chef, the restaurant itself was a sight to behold.

Glass Entrance.

It looked fairly average from the street, but once you got inside ... it was massive.

Loooong Table.

Our group was all seated at one massively long table, in a semi-private area.  It worked better than I expected, except for when I did need to get up to use the bathroom, and was rather boxed in ...

Open Kitchen.

The space was huge, with high ceilings, including an open kitchen.  We were seated on this level, the middle of 3.

Upper Floor.

Another level above was quite open as well.

Glass Stairway.

Even the stairwell was interesting.

Lower Floor Bar.

The very bottom floor had a fairly stunning bar.

Bathrooms.

Bathrooms were down on that lowest level.

Bling.

Even that bathroom was interesting!

Drinks

Cocktail.

I remember liking the cocktails.  And the wine.

Dinner

Fantastic Meal.

My many course meal managed to hit basically all my favorites: uni, crab, foie gras ... fried stuff, excellent sauces, oh my.

Cold Appetizers

Most of us started with cold appetizers from the sushi bar.  All set the stage for the extraordinary meal that was to follow.

Sashimi.

Sashimi was fresh and clearly high quality.

Toro Tartar.

The presentation of the signature toro tartar (I think on the menu at all his establishments) was certainly a sight to behold, and I remember enjoying getting a perfect bite with all the elements.

"Yo-burrata" with black truffles 

"Dashi soy, fresh wasabi, grilled sourdough."

Mixed Greens Salad.

Yeah, someone got this ... not me.

Perfect little bites of oyster, foie gras, and uni ...

Hot Appetizers

The cold apps showed the clear high quality seafood, but the hot apps are where I focused.  I wanted nearly ALL of them.  Luckily, I had neighbors who felt the same, so we shared a pile of things.

Spicy King Crab.

"Roasted Alaskan king crab with tobiko, tobanjan aioli."

I love crab, and king crab is such a treat.  Paired with delicious spicy aioli ... yes!

Sauted foie gras & grilled eel.

 "Sake meyer lemon, asian pear, sansho pepper."

Oh be still my heart.  Foie gras and grilled eel in the same dish?  Always a fantastic combo, and this was all for me.

Rock Shrimp Tempura.

"Crispy rock shrimp tempura with gochujang, wasabi mayo and house made ranch."

A kinda fun dish, I wasn't expecting the two versions of tempura, one tossed with wasabi mayo and one with gochujang.  Both packed some heat, and the ranch was good to cool them down.

Pork Gyoza.

"Garlic chives, tomato, creme fraiche."

Even simple gyoza were impressive to see, with a perfect crust to break though.

Sushi

Uni.

High quality uni.  How could I resist?

Mains

Broiled Black Cod.

"Ginger soy reduction." 

A classic, done well.

Duck, Duck, Goose.

"Roasted & confit duck, tokyo scallion pancakes, gooseberry compote, pineapple hoisin, ginger scallion."

Not mine, but a rather cute dish.

Beef Sukiyaki.

"Wagyu beef, napa cabbage, tofu, shungiku, honshimeji, jidori egg."

Definitely not mine :)

Surf & Turf.

"Wagyu skirt steak, hamachi ribbons, okonomiyaki, crushed avocado, yuzu soy."

Such a fun play on a surf & turf!  I loved the inclusion of okonomiyaki.

Dessert

After such a feast, even I, dessert girl, was tempted to skip dessert. But ... others somehow still had space, so, dessert time it was.

More Noms.

Our table got a pile of things, I of course tried ... uh ... all of them?

Dessert Wine.

To get the dessert show started, I opted for a dessert wine, I think sauternes?

Shiro Choko. 

"Kinako dacquoise, white chocolate cream, passion fruit yuzu sorbet, marble meringue, sesame."

Kumo Beni.

"Okiniawa purple yam cheesecake, pineapple yuzu foam, coffee, kuromitsu powder, macadamia, coconut sorbet."

Hanabi Dama: after.

"Seasonal sorbet, dark chocolate, mascarpone cream, salted caramel ganache tart, rum."

This one was quite the show.  It arrived as a chocolate dome, but was set on fire at the table, so the shell melted and revealed the contents.