* epicurean discovery

Hakata Tonton / 61 Grove Street, New York, NY 10014
http://tontonnyc.com

One of my absolute favorite places to dine at in all of NYC, Hakata TonTon is a Japanese hot pot restaurant that serves specialty dishes from Hakata, a region in Western Japan - savory pork dishes, sushi, and more.  Regardless of the season, a steaming, savory and delicious “Hakata Tonton” hot pot (their classic stew dish), satisfies your hunger and pleases your palate.  It also warms your soul and the collagen broth is great for your skin!

The photos above are from a summer visit in August 2011 with my sister.  Featured are the classic Hakata Tonton hot pot with collagen broth, tofu, dumplings, vegetables, Berkshire pork belly & Tonsoku a.k.a. pig’s feet (good for two people), fresh Sapporo beer, homemade black sesame ice cream and special strawberry amaou (a Hakata delicacy) ice cream with wagashi (a Japanese traditional sweet). 

For first timers, and if you eat pork especially, you must order the Hakata Tonton hot pot. You can opt to add rice or ramen noodles to eat with the remaining broth.  It’s great if you’re a big eater or are craving either of the two. 

Hakata Tonton is a small, casual restaurant with great, friendly service that I suggest you make reservations for about a week in advance. The tables fill up quickly, but there have been times I’ve called them day of and was told to show up right at opening time, 6PM, and was lucky to snag two seats! It’s possible to show up without a reservation if you have to…with a small party (two), just make sure to be there 15 minutes before opening if you have to that or good luck waiting. 

All in all, I <3 Hakata Tonton, and I’m always in the mood to go and eat there! 博多トントン大好きだよ！

Cocotte / 110 Thompson St., New York, NY 10012
http://www.cocotte-ny.com  

A couple of weekends back, I came across this pleasant little restaurant on Thompson Street and was curious about it. It serves French food, French wine (mostly), and lovely desserts in a relaxing atmosphere, so one afternoon, I had to try it out.  I fell in love with everything and asked my friend Amy to dinner the following week.  I was hoping she’d fall in love with the place as I had, and I’m glad she did enjoy it as much as I did!  How could you not? 

Cocotte serves meat and fish dishes in tiny casserole pots also called cocottes as well as soups, salads, appetizers, main dishes and desserts. Raphael runs the service there and is one amazing guy!  He’s helpful, friendly, knowledgable about wine and recommends the perfect dishes for you to try.  The portions are just right for one person and will leave you extremely satisfied, not overstuffed.  The wine list sources great selections from France (Bordeaux, Languedoc-Roussillon, Loire Valley) and also from Spain and Italy.  

Featured above is my part of dinner enjoyed with my friend on a very, cold evening last week.  To start, my apéritif was a sparkling wine from the Loire Valley (should have noted the name), followed by a delicious butternut squash soup, and then a special tender pork cocotte with thinly sliced potatoes beneath.  I forgot to include the Bordeaux wine I enjoyed with the cocotte that was recommended to me by Raphael.  It was a refreshing choice that went well with my meal.  To end our meal, Amy and I had espressos for an evening booster.  Cocotte serve brunch on the weekends, and I’m looking forward to visiting then too. 

The atmosphere of the restaurant is intimate with calming yet energetic music and can be boisterous later in the evenings. The overall experience is EXCELLENT.  You’ll enjoy everything about Cocotte - from the food, wine, environment, and wonderful staff!  

L’Atelier De Joël Robuchon 

An unforgettable and a most remarkable dining experience at Chef Robuchon’s NYC L’Atelier!  I had dinner here in August 2011.  From the food, presentation, ambiance and service…everything was top-notch.  The partnership with the Four Seasons had to end, sadly at the end of June 2012, and this restaurant closed too soon for it to become one of my regular favorites, however it remains as one of the best dinners in my lifetime so far!  

Dinner as I can remember —

• An Amuse Bouche 
• Crab with Seafood Broth & Avocado (appetizer)
• Sea Urchin Gelee (appetizer)
• Quail & Foie Gras 
• Roasted Veal Cheeks
• Wagyu Beef Rib-Eye
• Peach Champagne Mousse (dessert)
• Chocolate Mousse with Gold Leaf (dessert)
• Joël Robuchon candy (complimentary)

Thank you, Chef. I’m awaiting your return to NYC.
 

L’Atelier De Joël Robuchon
The Four Seasons Hotel
57 E 57th St.
New York, NY 10022

[My review on Yelp: http://bit.ly/U7WvSj]

JADIS

I always tease my sister about hanging out in the Lower East Side whenever she’s in the city. It seems like she happens to be there the times she tells me stories of her outings with friends. Coincidentally when I called her that Saturday evening, she happened to be there. She asked me to meet up with her and friend, so I went. On that one rainy day in October, I came to encounter the gem that is Jadis.

After an hour and a half of traveling from Midtown East to the LES via subway and taxi due to the usual weekend transportation woes, I walked past the wine bar twice as my sister and friend watched me, confused, try to find the sign and entrance.

Once I arrived at Jadis, and immediately I taken by its charming and cozy ambiance. The bacon-wrapped scallops were enticing, and without hesitation we ordered it.  From my own experience, meat, fish, cheese, and fruit wrapped in bacon will dazzle your taste buds, and make you believe that bacon is king. I feel that bacon possess the ability to  transform ordinary tastes into the extraordinary.  I exaggerate a bit.

Slightly hungrier than the rest, I tried the Quiche au Poulet.  It could have had more of a kick to it in terms of the taste, and the texture could have been firmer. Overall, I thought it was pleasant dish. 

To satisfy the last bit of hunger and close the meal, we ordered a Banana Chocolate Pudding, Creme Brulee, and a Chocolat Fondant; those were all the desserts on the menu that evening. We might have slightly overdone it with the desserts, but who wants to leave a void like that in one’s dining experience? Of the three, I thought the banana chocolate pudding was the best. The vanilla ice cream and strawberries were complemented the chunky consistency of the banana pudding ideally. The other two you can find them as standard selections on typical restaurant and cafe dessert menus.  The creme brulee and chocolat fondant were delightful though there was nothing phenomenal about them.

Wine.  How could I forget about thee? I spotted a familiar name on the wine list - Tempranillo. I’ve drank this kind before and was curious about the one Jadis featured. Taking the recommendation of our server, we chose the 2009 “Valderiz” Valderhermoso Tempranillo. This wine is similar to that from Rioja since it comes from the neighboring region of Ribero del Duero. That’s what the waiter/somm(?) told us. (It’s true!)  It’s versatile; it did not overpower the flavors or interfere with taste the foods we ate. Tempranillo is a full-bodied wine that I find easy to drink. I’d enjoy drinking it on its own.

The atmosphere in the evening was boisterous and not the least bit rowdy. Area-wise, there was warm and dim lighting - a small, single candle illuminated each table and nook at the bar. I liked it. The only downside was the lack of available wait staff. Considering it was a Saturday evening, the place was packed, one bartender and three waiters, (one of the waiters also played host to entering guests) aren’t sufficient to keep things running smoothly and in a timely manner.  Perhaps it was only that night that the service was sluggish, but that didn’t affect my mood negatively.

I’m already anticipating another visit to Jadis.  Their wine list looked promising!

After that evening, I told my sister that her “favorite” NYC neighborhood left me with a good, lasting impression. She may have been somewhat amused.

Jadis
42 Rivington St. (bet. Eldridge & Forsyth)
New York, NY 10002
(212) 254-1675

http://www.jadisnyc.com

EN Japanese Brasserie [ENJB]

If you’re looking for relaxed Japanese dining in a spacious, modern and comforting atmosphere, then you must go to EN Japanese Brasserie, or ENJB. From my experience, a good amount of places in New York aren’t authentic Japanese or have done Japanese fusion wrong. It turns out that ENJB is a 100% authentic with a modern approach by Chef Abe Hiroki. It’s actually an izakaya which is a bar-restaurant that primarily serves light, small, tapas-style dishes for sharing. ENJB is more on the upscale side of izakaya dining.

My sister is a huge fan of this place.  “It’s my favorite restaurant,” she always tells me.  When her friends here ask her for a recommendation on where to eat in NY, ENJB is the one place she’ll tell them about.  I’ve heard her rave about this restaurant for the longest time, so I decided to try it out when a friend of mine from LA came to town.

First dish - the wari-joyu tofu, served warm or chilled.  We opted for the chilled. It’s one of the top tips on Foursquare and Yelp, so we had to try it. It also had its own little section on the corner, so it had to be one of the restaurant’s specialties.  The tofu was so fresh.  Extremely fresh. Not only is it made in-house, it was carefully prepared and served with a light sauce, something similar to soy sauce but much lighter in taste and color.  A nice start to dinner as well a way to prep our palates.

Second dish - My friend selected the Saikyo Miso Black Cod. I believe seafood is a must at any Japanese restaurant unless it’s a  yakitori/yakiniku place.  It was an excellent choice. You’re able to taste to the delicate nature of the black cod with an even flavor of miso throughout. The cod wasn’t overcooked.  I thought it was perfectly done!

Nigiri sushi - This wasn’t exactly a “dish” (more like a tasting) but my friend saw the nigiri-zushi selection and was enticed to have the Kuroge Washugyu which was the Black Angus NY Strip Steak, so I took the next choice, the Toro Salmon Aburi which was the Fatty Salmon. The softness, and tenderness of the succulent fatty salmon was like a bite of heaven. Melted right on the tongue, and I savored every moment of it.  My friend ‘fell in love’ with the Black Angus NY Strip Steak nigiri-zushi.  “Best piece of ‘meat’ sushi” he’s ever had.

Third dish -  Chawanmushi, a steamed egg custard dish with seafood (usually) reminds me so much of the time I lived in Japan. My first encounter with this dish was when I was living in Nagoya. I went with a co-worker to a small, udon shop for lunch, and she ordered this for me, and I enjoyed it very much.  Seeing that ENJB had Black Truffle Chawanmushi on their menu as one of their seasonal dishes, I knew my friend and I had to have it.  ENJB’s chawanmushi was fluffy, airy, and very smooth. There was no seafood in it, mainly shrimp since I am highly allergic to it, so we were able to enjoy the full flavors of dashi, bonito and hint of truffle in this dish.

Fourth dish - Mochi Croquette. Anything with duck? Yes, please. Inside the croquette was Hudson Valley Duck and potato, and it was served in a savory, dashi broth. The consistency of mochi, and this goes for all of my mochi experiences, including sweet - mochi is sticky.  When cooked in a broth or soup, I think it becomes even stickier. That’s just how rice is.  I liked it, but it wasn’t my favorite.  Very flavorful but where was the duck?

Fifth dish - Mmm, Berkshire pork belly is great.  Here come’s the Kurobuta Kakuni - braised Berkshire pork belly in sansho miso, daikon radish, spinach with a hard-boiled egg.  The pork was tender and soft; the miso completed a well-balanced blend of all the flavors of the daikon radish and spinach.  The egg was a plus. Love eggs.

Dessert - Black Sesame Ice Cream.  If this is on the dessert list, I’m having it.  Everyone loves green tea ice cream (the boldness of the matcha flavor - a must), but I think I’m over it especially when black sesame appears.  I love the taste of black sesame. It’s another level of sweetness that differs from that of red bean.  It has a light, gritty texture.

There was a three for $18 sake tasting that night (from 6-8PM if I remember). I forgot to take photos of it.  Ask for the waiter’s recommendation.  Ours helped us out with the tastes we preferred. There were three shots. I remember two of the three we had, though not the names - one had hints of pear and was juicy, and the other was made with ocean water, and was slightly on the dry, salty side. The third was probably some other fruit, apple, perhaps? All very clean tasting, and not very strong.  I thought the tasting was a good value.  For those who are interested in sake or would like to get into it, I recommend trying the tasting. Also, there are bottles of sake, shochu, wine, beer and cocktails available.

Overall experience at ENJB - very, very good. The food, service, and ambiance were great. Our waiter was funny, helpful, and he gave us good, honest recommendations. It’s nice for a date or a group. It’s quite dark, and could be romantic. There’s a larger room that’s brighter and with communal tables from what I saw.  You have an excellent view of the kitchen there with the chefs at work.

EN Japanese Brasserie
435 Hudson Street @ Leroy St.
New York, NY 10014
(212) 647-9196

http://www.enjb.com