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Kobe Club? oh.... Well, you asked for a Japanese steakhouse, so I'd say the best you can do is LAN 56 3rd Avenue, which lists an American Wagyu steak - アメリカン神戸牛リブロースステーキ 特製ソース添え American Kobe Beef Rib Eye 55 Because you will have a hard time finding other Japanese restaurants who even have american wagyu serving it as a steak vs. ishiyaki, yakiniku, shabushabu, etc. But it should be very good and a Ribeye is a cut very conducive to the Japanese style preparation. For instance, Kamui Den has a normal (I think it's prime) Ribeye that's pretty fantastic. Or an American steakhouse serving faux-Japanese beef, Craftsteak Wagyu Beef New York Strip (Gold) 12 oz, strube ranch, tx 102.00 Skirt Steak (Gold) 10 oz, snake river farm, ia 75.00 Plz report back!

Waldy was (and might still be) doing this at Beacon as part of the chef's tasting menu. ← Yes I've had his too - and it was very good and served on a big block of salt if I recall. But Nao-san deals with enough volume and is in the know enough that he tends to have the highest quality product and gives you a very good amount of it - kitchen counter's is more of a taste. He's also from Osaka if I recall... right down the road from Kobe...

I'd love to read that report, sounds fascinating. My info has been affected over the years by anecdotes of various Japanese chefs in NY, but my most important source of information owns 40 or so high-end yakiniku restaurants in Japan including a couple stateside, wagyu is a fixture on his menu so...the man goes through a lot of beef Re: Kobe Beef - As I wrote, it always was and continues to be American Kobe beef, which has cheapened enough that places make hot dogs and hamburgers out of them. In fact if there as any TRUE Kobe Beef in America, it would most likely be labeled "Wagyu" at this point.

<---- BTW click on my name here to see some serious wagyu action, primed for yakiniku/ishiyaki

Argggghh - Not this old red herring again..... Wagyu is translated as Japanese Cow Kobe is a region in Japan where the more coveted black cows originated. But it's really stuck in American culture because a few decades ago some smart cowboy cross-bred them with angus cattle and started raising them in American, creating "American Kobe" beef or "Kobe beef" as it's seen on the menu here. Real Wagyu has enjoyed some mad cow disease-related blackouts and bannings but now it's back. dagordon, where did you read about the 4 plants? I didn't know there was such a restriction. Which is why I asked you if you were looking for American or Japanese beef. Anyways, in Japan, the really good marbled speciality beef such as that from Matsuzaka (the best) Tottori or yes, Kobe, can get really expensive. Even more expensive when it gets here. So, it's pretty rare for the Japanese to serve wagyu as an actual steak - they don't have the appetites for beef the way we do, but for them it would be the same as serving a toro steak. It's a luxury and a pricey thing. There used to be an actual Japanese steakhouse in midtown, Seryna, but I don't know if they were serving American or Japanese beef. I think a 12oz there was $110. Maybe someone can remember and report back. The most common and honorific of such an ingredient is ishiyaki - literally stone grill/bake - so LPS and Sneak got it right - Sugiyama does a kaiseki + wagyu served ishiyaki-style - you get a plate of the beef, usually cubed, and some damn hot stones. sear, chomp... mmmmmm The other place that I was going to recommend was LAN in the east village - who has US Kobe steaks and then Wagyu Shabu-shabu- BUT they very much special in serving Japanese steaks. Shabu-Shabu and Yakiniku are the other places I traditionally get Wagyu, but, you get the point - it's best to enjoy this kind of beef not as a steak but as serving-size mini-steaks micro-cooked one at a time tableside to an unctuous rare/medium-rare You know what you might want to do, call these guys http://www.thewagyu.com and ask them what restaurants serve theirs in NY. They market to Japanese restaurateurs in the US. Let us know if they give you an answer...

American or Japanese? (Two digits or three...?)

I'd walk a few blocks north to Il Bastardo, it's on 7th but I think at 19th? 17th?

I think you'd be able to tell the difference between high-end Japanese in NY and the west coast - maybe not on execution, but certainly on variety - The right route through Midtown east or the east village will reveal as much as a town worth of a train stop back on the home island... the fact is that you ask 99 out of 100 Americans if they eat Japanese and they will respond "no because I don't eat raw fish!" which is the equivalent of asking someone if they like French cuisine and them responding "no because I don't eat snails!" Mitch, I'd love to try your molé, but LPS chimes in with my original contention, that you could do a lot worse than the high end in NYC for Mexican.... but I'll let you 2 fight it out!

OK I think it's finally time I burst my Kyo-Ya cherry (ducks), but would love to with some of you folks.... I'm sorry I haven't tried it yet, guys.... I was about to, then I booked my tix to Japan, and been crazed since... EMW set it up!!!

Yeah but that statement is fundamentally flawed - NY is a melting pot and EVERYTHING here is non-indigenous. Japanese is so strong here because you have a relatively (relative to other cities worldwide) humongous population of NATIVE-born Japanese - unlike the huge populations in California or Brazil - so the local flavors keep getting cycled and rotated in. It tends to be office-workers on their company rotation so there is a lot on the high-end to fit that demand, and that breeds competition. Mexican is so much stronger in the Southwest because hell, that used to BE Mexico, but you have first, second, third-generation Mexicans filling the demand for the low to high end. NY's Mexican population, the vast majority are migrant workers so at the low end you will find places like Del Valle, and if you go out to the outer boroughs there are tons of places like that and they are even cheaper. But at the high end I believe there's a lot of BS but also a handful of places that are executing great nouvelle Mexican. Left-coasters just get pissed cuz good Mexican is everywhere out there and furthermore they have to pay a lot more at the higher end for what they had out west. Would a NY Mexican restaurant make it into my top 10? Maybe not, but if she's in the mood for those flavors I think you could do a lot worse than what's at the high end here. By Weinoo's statement, I would never eat Japanese outside of NYC. But sometimes you or your guests are in the mood for a certain type of cuisine. When I go to SF or LA I'll eat Japanese food; I know NY is "the best" so I gotta try a lot harder and ask around a lot more about where the really good places are.

Amy Ruth's - that's another great call. Sooooooo good. Get the Sharpton!

Yeah that's the position I'm writing from. So, while it's easy to deride Mexican in NY compared to Cali, Texas, or really the American Southwest at large, it has plenty of exciting neuvo Mexican, which I often find at places Sue Torres has worked or is now (How is Suenos?)

Yeah you know I have yet to have a great or even good meal at RUB and I've visited it once every couple years when someone convinces me to do so Hill Country, on the other hand... holy shit

So I guess "10 must-visit nyc restaurants" is the title of your article? See, that said, BLT Prime is fine but a lot of people might tell you to go out to Peter Luger's for steak. Rosa's great (and pricey!) but there's new places on the map like Toloache If money is no object, I would forego Soto for a Masa or Yasuda. And for someone coming from the UK, I might take them to Tsukushi or Aburiya Kinnosuke for places that are unique to find outside of Japan and therefore must-visit. I would definitely recommend a ramen lunch at Ippudo - you will not find such a bowl of ramen in all of Europe Don't go to Megu despite them having a sake sommelier. If that's what you're interested in, places like En and Lan do that. I mean if you're REALLY into that, go to Sakagura for sake and small plates, go upstairs to Soba Totto for dinner, and then go across the street for a sushi dessert at Yasuda. If you're coming from the UK to NY and nowhere else, you might throw a Hill Country or Daisy Mae's in there, as BBQ places that well represent a large swath of the southern United States right here in NY I would definitely do a Kitchen Counter @ Beacon and/or Momofuku Ko (if you can get a reservation to either) as it's tough to find that kind of quality time with that kind of a chef outside of the city, and is definitely a must-visit.

Any adjective or superlative that Danyelle Freeman uses on a regular basis

That's interesting. Joe's has a nice sweet sauce and a thin airy crust, if not remarkable breadwise... I do believe that they have to pull those pies our medium-rare because of the ever-present line, and if given the chance to bake a little longer they'd be much better... never thought they had too much cheese, but couldn't hurt to try it with less...

While the Shake Shack line can take that long - 2 innings, I've never waited on line at Blue Smoke for more than 5 minutes. Also, if you had gone back there Oak, you would have realized that there is a huge LED screen overlooking Danny's area, so you don't miss a beat of the game. It's a huge picnic area/party back there. And we're getting to halfway through the season and the food is still pretty much the same as what you'd get in Manhattan, it's just more inconsistent, which is what I'd expect from the level of staff and equipment they have access to there. I've been out to Citi about a dozen times, and i will be out for the Subway Series games tonight and tomorrow night. I have no desire to carry any food in (maybe some shochu to mix into my lemonade if the Mets are gonna cough another one up), in fact I'm going early to get my food and settle in before the game. While the consensus out there is that the concessions at Citi ARE that much better than those at Yankee stadium, I think it's also telling that I haven't gotten tired of what's avialable after quite a few visits.

I get, and got, that - an "Overpriced" thread would be a whole other list. I was saying Cookshop is not in the same category as some of the others in case others were making the same mistake And the funny thing is I can go to Cookshop because for whatever reason I never caught wind of all it's undeserved hype, and without it, I can go there and happily see it as a pretty good price/quality ratio.... I didn't know it was supposed to be the best thing since sliced bread so I was able to enjoy it for what it was

MEGU Tao, defo!! La esquina. What a clip joint! They take reservations and make you wait 2 hours, then overcharge you. I don't think Cookshop deserves to be on this list. It's not in the same category in price as a lot of the others.

Well, I'd expand on this a bit. It definitely pays to be a regular at Tsukushima. Sushi bars, it pays to be a regular. As a general rule, the closer you are to the person serving your food, the greater the potential hookup, but the rest really depends on the particular sushi chef or server. A far far greater asset is language...

Daisy Mae's BBQ, but only until freakin' Oprah did an entire show with Adam Perry Lang, and now the place is Exit 0.9 on the Jersey Turnpike.... In the Japanese category (of course I can't help myself), Soba Totto I feel is undervalued vs. Matsugen, Sake Bar Hagi in the izakaya category, because it's stoopid cheap and pretty good if you know what to order - altho this now falls into the category which LPS and FG have ruled out But when it comes to fine® dining and more expensive places, I think people now are far less willing to risk significant financial investment on a place that isn't packed or raved about, so those swimming are really swimming, and those sinking are REALLY sinking

I finally sat down and read your entire blog post - One thing that is particularly non-Japanese is Japanese chefs setting up temples to themselves in foreign lands. It's part marketing but as many can attest, some of these guys have bigger egos than Ichiro. Some of the very best chefs in Japan you will find tucked away behind nondescript sushi and dining bars. But hey, for Nobu, Masa, Naohiro, it's their piece of the American dream. And we're all subsidizing that! All they have to be is the best, or at least slightly better than the other up-and-comers. I thought it worth reposting your sushi course, which as you noted, brazenly starts rather than finishes with the Toro, but otherwise is a very good course in palette expansion. I was taught, or rather forced, into this aspect of Japanese cuisine at a very tender age, in my teens! by some particularly well-cultured and well-heeled Japanese nationals, and I'm really happy about that education, because I do think it enhances the experience, and not just at sushi bars. Some I knew would only drink tea at a sushi bar, maybe some sake later, nothing that might infringe on the delicacy of the beginning courses, represented by the whitefish, while dutifully displaying the subtle differences between the white fish species; a mushroom interlude followed by meatier, cooked, and cured seafood and fish, and finally "fisher" fare, as it were... and ending in a classic Negitoro, and a final accent of shiso - love it. It's a good guide to ordering a la carte at a sushi bar, and starting with shiromi (white fish) at the bar should clue the sushi chef into your plans....... otherwise, drink, be merry and fast-track that toro! “Sushi Course” Toro (x2) Sima aji (striped jack) Hirame (fluke) Tai (sea bream) Kinme (snapper) Shiitake (mushroom) Ika (squid) Amaebi (sweet shrimp) Suji (grilled toro sinew) Saba (mackerel) Aji (horse mackerel) Akamutsu (fatty deep sea snapper) Kuruma ebi (cooked shrimp) Anago (eel) Unagi (fresh water eel) Tako (octopus) Aoyagi (surf clam – actually, “orange clam”) Torigai (cockle) Kohada (herring) Uni (sea urchin) Negitoro Roll “Ume Shiso Lotus Wrap” Returning from Japan few days ago, I was reminded how much your palette CONTRACTS over there and how much more delicate the everday flavors - I had to spit out some birthday cake today, remarking how teeth-curlingly sweet it was, and similarly had the fumes of buffalo wings burn my eyes and nostrils. This aversion to fat- and sweet-tooth keep Japanese people slim! While you deride Masa for cultural approximation, you do have to give it credit for trying to expand and contract your palette within one meal. But at what a price! You'll see a lot of the places I like at least make an earnest attempt at this at one quarter the price. This is why Japanese dining is rarely the one-plate "entrees".

Europeans still don't know to tip? Their guidebooks and years of American movies don't tell them so? It's kind of funny that a Japanese restaurant, the #1 non-tipping culture on earth, would be the pioneers in forced tipping.

"Go to Japan" didn't I first exclaim that to you or in this thread a while back? Despite just getting back from Japan I'd still love to go to Masa, I just can't justify doing so because I know I'll be back in Japan soon and know that I can seek out something better for half the price. You can't put a price on not having to sacrifice 30 hours in Air travel to Japan and being able to hop in a cab, so it does make sense for certain people. While I love eating in Japan I don't normally travel to Japan for the purpose of eating, although it's one of the reasons I keep going back. I do think the service charge thing is disingenuous, especially since you are sitting at the bar and are engaging the chef directly. Japanese restaurants build such charges and a potential tip into all their prices. This results in a bit higher pricing but none of the awkwardness. The only place that might employ a service charge like that means your servers are arriving in panties, or something like that, as was popular in the booming 80s and early 90s in Japan. Even then tho, it's rare; again, it's usually built into the price of your drink or food or some seat charge. Some of the most profitable (and priciest) of NY's Japanese restaurants sell a semi-authentic Japanese experience with business practices of NY, effectively preying on Westerner's who don't want to protest the mystique of Japanese culture... Masa is a good example, so is Yasuda (!!) to a certain extent.

Ok, but given that I won't be in the Queen of Sheba neighborhood, is the village Meskerem *bad* or just not quite as good? ← I'd say just not quite as good... not sure if they make their bread with white flour, but if that's still the case, I guess it's best to avoid it. Sometimes when I crave Ethiopean, I get south Indian instead (look at a map and you see why they're so close), and get an uttapam or upma or something else on the fluffier side, cuz the vegetarian options are so much more interesting. Something to consider