Jeff Grossman
Jeff Grossman
MENU:
(click to enlarge)
CULINARY DELIGHTS:
Alas, I don't take flash photographs of my food, and especially not when the meal is an occasion.
SAKE:
Yanagi Junmai Ginjo - Fruity/floral nose, deliciously sheer and light texture, crisp acidity and a pure finish, this was excellent. I also had a taste of the Daigin-spoof-jo that was next to it on the list, which touted that it had been left a long time on the lees... heavy, sticky, cloying sweetness, a long finish but not one that I sought.
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To celebrate my partner's birthday we enjoyed a kaiseki meal at Kyo Ya, a fine and low-key restaurant in the East Village. I had hoped that the Spring menu would have begun but this is the Winter menu.
We did add one plate. One of the chef's specialties is bozushi, pressed and fermented sushi on seasoned rice. I chose mackerel, which came to the table very firm indeed, gently pickly, and intensely flavored. They presented it after the sashimi course.
All the plates were delightful to look at. Most of the plates were 2-3 bites. I won't bore you with words about all of them but here are some highlights:
= The sakizuke course was the most Spring-like (the concept was on my mind): the jellied crabmeat is served, millefeuille style, on a stack of rounds of lemony turnip, the gently citrussy nage playing against the minerally uni/roes.
= Tomezakana is a little salad served on a razor clam. The crunchy kale bits were distracting but I liked the interplay of the chewy clam, the crisp lettuces, and the long-cooked onion dressing.
= The oshokuji was quite smoky but addictive because the rice was also strongly-flavored with seeds, spices, and herbs. Not a dish for the faint of heart; they wrap the leftovers in a leaf and send it home with you.
= Certain individual ingredients were memorable: the potato tofu in the Owan, the wild yellowtail (oita?) and a perfectly-seasoned Totten oyster in the sashimi plate.
Very civilized and soothing.
We plan to return to try some of the a la carte dishes.
(click to enlarge)
CULINARY DELIGHTS:
Alas, I don't take flash photographs of my food, and especially not when the meal is an occasion.
SAKE:
Yanagi Junmai Ginjo - Fruity/floral nose, deliciously sheer and light texture, crisp acidity and a pure finish, this was excellent. I also had a taste of the Daigin-spoof-jo that was next to it on the list, which touted that it had been left a long time on the lees... heavy, sticky, cloying sweetness, a long finish but not one that I sought.
-----
To celebrate my partner's birthday we enjoyed a kaiseki meal at Kyo Ya, a fine and low-key restaurant in the East Village. I had hoped that the Spring menu would have begun but this is the Winter menu.
We did add one plate. One of the chef's specialties is bozushi, pressed and fermented sushi on seasoned rice. I chose mackerel, which came to the table very firm indeed, gently pickly, and intensely flavored. They presented it after the sashimi course.
All the plates were delightful to look at. Most of the plates were 2-3 bites. I won't bore you with words about all of them but here are some highlights:
= The sakizuke course was the most Spring-like (the concept was on my mind): the jellied crabmeat is served, millefeuille style, on a stack of rounds of lemony turnip, the gently citrussy nage playing against the minerally uni/roes.
= Tomezakana is a little salad served on a razor clam. The crunchy kale bits were distracting but I liked the interplay of the chewy clam, the crisp lettuces, and the long-cooked onion dressing.
= The oshokuji was quite smoky but addictive because the rice was also strongly-flavored with seeds, spices, and herbs. Not a dish for the faint of heart; they wrap the leftovers in a leaf and send it home with you.
= Certain individual ingredients were memorable: the potato tofu in the Owan, the wild yellowtail (oita?) and a perfectly-seasoned Totten oyster in the sashimi plate.
Very civilized and soothing.
We plan to return to try some of the a la carte dishes.