Location: 76 Carmine Street, New York NY 10014
Cuisine: Japanese Omakase
Cost: $$$$
Overall: A mind-blowing culinary treat that is sure to satisfy your foodie curiosity.
Anime and Manga fans know Toriko as a popular series in which the titular character is on a quest for the ultimate feast. For us, Toriko is a fascinating new eatery in Greenwich Village, featuring Omakase style service with a focus on Yakitori or skewered meats. An Omakase style service leaves your entire meal in the hands of the chef. The meal is usually divided into courses and each course is presented individually, allowing guests to finish one dish before trying the next. At Toriko, you start by selecting one of the levels of Omakase. The lowest level has the least number of dishes and the highest has the most. We chose one of the higher levels to sample as many of their items as possible. The decor is modern and industrial in cool tones. The best seat in the house is in the center main dining room, where diners can witness meal preparation and even briefly engage with the friendly chefs. The meal begins with an assortment of small bites and continues in that fashion leading up to the final entree and finally a dessert course. The food arrives at a reasonable pace and with each course, the waitstaff and chefs offer suggestions to enhance the flavors presented.
Seasonal Amuse Bouche
The first course is a selection of small bites to entice the palate. The bites consist of a slice of chicken liver mousse, smoked salmon over sushi rice, a morsel of grilled chicken in spicy sauce and snow crab over a shredded turnip. Our favorite of the bites was the chicken liver. The mousse is served with thin crackers for dipping. The texture was rich and creamy with just a hint of sweetness.
Fish Cake Chawanmushi
Chawanmushi is a popular egg custard dish. Toriko serves the custard with a fish cake and fresh salmon roe. The custard is light and surprisingly fluffy. The salmon roe added a pop of fishy oceanic flavor.
Toriko (Skewers)
Toriko is a popular street food all over Japan. Similar to kebabs marinated meat is served on skewers. For our dinner service, we enjoyed several pieces of chicken Toriko. Each skewer featured a different part of the chicken from the basic thigh to the heart, gizzards and even the wing.
Chicken Meatball
The chicken meatball is not any other meatball you’ve seen. It is an oblong shape and coated in a lightly sweet glaze.
Fried Tofu & Okra
In addition to the McNaughton of meat, we were treated to a few non-meat items. The fried tofu is filled with Mozzarella cheese and is a crispy cheesy bite. Despite our usual aversion to tofu, we found this delicious. The texture was crisp yet chewy like a toasted marshmallow but savory.
The okra was served with a generous helping of Katsuobushi or dried fish flakes. Steam causes these flakes to dance and move. If you act quickly you can capture this Instagram-worthy moment, movement slows and eventually ceases once the okra is cooled. The dancing flakes also provide a briny saltiness to the mild okra.
Wagyu Beef
We could have eaten tons of this magnificent beef. The outer layer had a beautiful crisp sear and the inside was juicy and tender.
Chicken with White Rice
Near the end of each meal is the final entree. The options are simple. Chicken and rice or chicken ramen. The chicken and rice are served with some of their delicious chicken bone broth. We treated the broth like a light gravy and poured some over the rice.
Chicken Ramen
The chicken ramen was superb, served traditionally with a soft boiled egg, fresh noodles, and veggies.
Cocktails
Toriko has an extensive global wine list as well as an assortment of specialty cocktails. We enjoyed the Shochu Sour a mixture of Shochu, Sudachi and lemon juice. The rim is dusted with Shichimi adding a peppery smoky flavor. Shochu is a distilled Japanese liquor and Sudachi is a Japanese citrus fruit with an intensely sour flavor.
For guests who would rather curate their feast, Toriko also offers an ala carte menu of items. This option is best for picky eaters or groups with mixed needs. However, to truly enjoy a one of a kind experience we recommend the Omakase style tasting service. For the tasting menus, everyone at the table must participate. Preferences and allergies are discussed with your server before the first course, ensuring that everyone will be satisfied and no one is served dishes they won’t be able to enjoy. Best of all with the tasting menu guests are seated at the chef’s table and can witness their meal being prepared by Chef Manabu Asanama (MIFUNE New York) and Sous Chef Irene Sy. Chef Shinji Odahara is the head chef in charge of overseeing the process. Chef Odahara is a master at traditional Yakitori with over 25 years of culinary experience. As a whole, the evening was an unforgettable success that more than satisfied our daring appetites.
For more information on Toriko NY, visit toriko-ny.com.
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