milla

My understanding of the menu and the circles is that everything is of the highest quality otherwise he would not serve it. The cirlces denote the items he is especially fond of, has small quantities of, or are incredibly seasonal.

Yes. Without question.

Those are higher than ADNY prices. That is Masa's price for walking in the door. You will not find sushi "just as good" as Masa at your nieghborhood sushi bar. Unless your neighborhood sushi bar is Kurumazushi or Yasuda.

Even with the ultra high price points of Masa he would still have to be full most, if not all of the time to be " the most profitable operation in AOL-TW". I haven't been but friends who have have not once reported a filled to capacity restaurant whether in the bar or Masa.

Duarte's Tavern in Pescadero. A cold and rainy late on a Sunday afternoon, drinkin' and eatin' in the bar...and finishing with olallieberry pie a la mode...

Yeah, second the shibucho recommendation, one of the best experiences I've had at a sushi bar and prices are reasonable to boot!!!! Very old school which is what I enjoy, he doesn't make any of those stupid dynamite blasting dragon rolls or whatever stupid variation is in the vogue these days. Check out this review I love reading it and reminisce my own experience... Shibucho review ← an excellent review. thanks for sharing.

I second the motion on Bocadillo's...

it is a shame about Ino sushi and Sundays. It is well worth it. One of things I love about Ino is that it is open on Mondays, a rarity for good sushi.

how about a photo of a cigarette?

Doug Psaltis left the French Laundry about 3-4 weeks ago. He is back in NYC with plans to open his own place in the near future.

they haven't updated their website in over 18 months. I continue to get messages that it will be updated soon.

From a mailer that arrived announcing the fall 2001 menu at ADNY that was received in September of thhat year: 6 first courses 4 fish 4 meat Compose your menu: Amuse, choice of 2 dishes from menu, dessert, friandises et gourmandises $145 Amuse, choice of 3 dishes from menu, dessert, friandises et gourmandises $160 Tasting Menu "Autumnal Themes" 4 savory, cheese and dessert $160 Shellfish Menu 5 Savory, cheese and dessert $250 I thought it was interesting to note the change in verbiage in the a la carte selections from "any two/three dishes on the menu" to the current "one appetizer, one meat or fish or one appetizer, one meat and one fish."

The restaurant is really hitting its stride it appears. FG, it appears the thread is growing also with lots of activity. a good sign also!

with parmigiano reggiano gratineed on top at the last moment...

Now there is a novel concept for the california thread...

In my view, it is not only worth the price but remains the benchmark fine dining establishment in NYC.

It is still a good idea to go to a restaurant and actually dine there preferably more than once, before commenting on the quality or experience of a restaurant. who would review a book without reading it?

Let him decide. It would not suprise me if there were alot of different stuff just from the end of September when i was there. Enjoy.

Thanks. A lot of it is personal preference. I think that Yasuda is a rice man and Kuruma is about the fish. Even though people regard sushi and sashimi as similar, one could argue that they are opposite ends of the spectrum in that sushi is primarily rice and the fish is a "condiment" to the rice. that is the impression i got in speaking with Yasuda. Kuruma is about the fish. I think it stands apart. The sashimi part of our meal was mind blowing. His rice is very good also but different than Yasuda, whose rice i preferred. But like I said in the thread, I think Kuruma purchases on a completely different level than most everyone else and that is reflected in the price. The question is, is the fish purchased at this uber quality/price that much different from the next level down? I think discerning sushi aficionados can tell. Viva and celebrate the difference and the styles...

On a recent trip to NY I had successive lunches at Kurumazushi and Sushi Yasuda. Both offer stellar experiences yet are very different in ambiance and style. Both can be considered classical sushi with no embellishments. Both these restaurants serve very seasonal fish so one can go back at intermittent times and have a good selection of species different from their last visit. At sushi Yasuda we were treated to a grand parade of impeccable sushi and also had a fascinating discussion with him about the intricacies of sushi and his thoughts. We started off with “Aka Miso”, flavorful, rich and full bodied that was wonderful. Red miso, scallions and super sweet manila clams. Geoduck, resting on the slightly warm, perfect rice. Swordfish, a first for me, and the first time I have ever seen anything resembling a sashimi quality in this species. White Salmon, ivory in color and delicious. A texture of cellar temperature butter. Ikura, from Steelhead salmon and cured in house with a brine with salinity of sea water then a quick soak in sake. Uni, pristine and served without nori directly on the rice. Unagi, a stellar example of this freshwater fish, the best that I ever remember having. San ma. Pike mackerel, oily like mackerel and cured for brief intervals in sea salt and then rice vinegar. This fish denotes the end of summer in Japan as the first cold waters off the fall bring it close to be fished. Hamachi, very good. Toro, of excellent quality. Nori, black in color with great texture, that slowly softened in contact with the rice and fish to where it remains tensile and then takes almost a meaty like flavor. The rice at Yasuda is the best. Yasuda-san is a great host. He shared a lot with us and was frank in his opinions. He talked about how sushi is all about the rice. The fish actually takes on a secondary aspect to the piece. It is a condiment for the rice. Sushi and sashimi are quite different. Sashimi, unadorned, its beauty in its nakedness, the freshness and its place in the changing seasons is all about the fish. Yasuda-san is a rice man. He is proud of his rice and justly so. It was slightly warm, like body temperature. He talked of polishing his own rice, indeed, he is the only one who makes the rice at the restaurant. He mentions that 264 grains of rice that make the perfect sushi base and how a good master will grab within a couple of grains with each handful. All in all, a wonderful experience. I would go back anytime I had a chance. He talked about how some sushi chefs are rice guys, some are nori guys, and some excell at seasoning with soy and wasabi. The master at Kurumazushi is a fish man, pure and simple. We asked the chef to prepare for us, his choice. We elected to do sashimi followed by sushi. On two separate mounds of seaweed and daikon placed in front of us, we were given the following. O-toro, specifically from the belly and closest to the skin of the fish. Wild Hamachi, from the belly, once again sliced closest to the skin. Medai or Japanese Butterfish. Kampachi. Shima aji, with the skin left on and miniature slits breaking the skin for texture and to break up any chance of slight chewiness. Fluke sliced paper thin from the same fish but some from the back and three more slices closer to the tail. We were instructed to eat from one end to the other and note the changes in fattiness and texture as we moved along. Served with a special ponzu with fresh yuzu. Botan Shrimp with sudachi. Incredibly sweet shrimp, that were halved lengthwise and brushed lightly with a fresh sudachi that had been just sliced in half. Instructed to dip a small corner in soy. We then switched to sushi. Toro, unbelievable in its texture and flavor. Fluke fin from Japanese Hirame. Herring roe with seaweed ponzu. Crab roe from a Hokkiado spicer crab that was gently mixed with the crabmeat from the head.Extraordinary. Live Scallops with its roe. Moving and waving as if trying to get off the rice. Anago, sea eel, the best I ever had. Great sauce. Toro tartare mixed with Katsuboshi. We finished with Uni, which was just ordinary and the least distinctive piece. The price was $201 per person. We had 34 pieces of fish which comes out to about to just under $6 a piece. Comparing the two I think the ambiance is much better at Yasuda. And the rice is in top form, better than Kuruma. But I wholly believe the fish is of higher quality at Kuruma almost without exception. It sings. On this trip in was the most singular taste experience I had of any dining opportunity that I had. In the complex and stratified Japanese system of grading and pricing fish I get the impression that Kuruma buys at a whole different level than other places, including Yasuda. It is simply not the same. I saw the “chos”, the cleaned blocks of o-toro ready for slicing, at both places, and frankly there was no comparison. At Kuruma he told me it costs him $190 a pound. This is reflected in the price disparity that the two charge. Kuruma made my spine tingle, the hair on my arm stand up, and almost got a touch weepy with the three toro presentations we had. And though Yasuda might offer more variety, there wasn’t a dud at Kuruma except for the Uni. The Uni I had there back in June had maybe a dozen whole tongues in a single piece they were so small (size of a pinky nail) with various colors denoting no dyeing that usually takes place in the monochromatic colored urchin out of Santa Barbara. I look forward to continuing to visit both places and celebrate the difference. On to Urazawa next week in LA.

Wow, Ellen, you got more? keep 'em coming... FG, do these photos match up well with your private room menu?

Miss Pim, which one of the two Shalimar locations do you keep frequenting and recommend?

In the last of The Art of Eating" in the NY Restaurants issue, Edward Behr mentions Sripraphai as possibly having the best Thai food in the United States. He was quoting several Thai friends who have been around the States and know Thailand quite well, of course. If, in fact, that is even remotely true, would that not be reason enough to review it?

it certainly doesn't make one rush out to try it. It seems such a drastic change in the style of food there. I wonder what their reasoning for it was? it did say they gave the chef carte blanche though...

Could one say that a restaurant single-mindedly devoted to the pursuit of perfection and experience, damned all costs and possibility of profit, that Per Se and ADNY are "attempting" qualify them as a restaurant? I know that sounds silly but it seems as if it is almost a performance art piece that places it in a completely different category than a profit generating business with an eye on the bottom line i.e. staying open and offering a ROI. I think FG has it correct though with evaluations of these two ****+ places that Ducasse has the hotel value added in and Per Se is certainly equiped in the kitchen to run several satellites (bakery, chocolates, banquets, etc.) once they hit full long range and term stride. And,Ducasse has never been afraid of making money...