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Jewel Bako


mikeyrad

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Cabrales - Here's what happened with corkage. When I sat down and Jack (who I know from Bouley Bakery days) saw my bottles. he said that they usually didn't allow corkage but that they were going to make an exception this one time. While he didn't say anything, one of the people I was dining with told me that he had been there five times and he brought wine every single time without a problem. I took this to mean, they are trying to change their policy or, it was situational discrimination because they know me to be able to afford wines from their reserve list. In fact he pointed me to the reserve list when he was telling me about no BYO in the future.

As for the food, the appetizer plates might be better at JB then SY but they aren't as good as the appetizer plates at Nobu (or at Morimoto where I ate Sunday night.) All in all, for me, the schlep to 5th street from the UES to eat in a place where the sashimi is no better than equal, and maybe inferior to SY, and to eat in that cramped setting as opposed to the spaciousness of SY, makes no sense. Plus there is no ambiguity about SY's BYO policy.

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Well nobody said that JB wasn't worth the money, just that SY is better. I don't think anything tops the salmon or tuna tastings you can get at SY. They are outrageously expensive, but truly ethereal. But if you want to leave there stuffed, you can spend almost twice the amount of money you spend elsewhere.

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We're going to JB tonight - I've never been.  Any advice?

Just order omakase and you'll be fine, especially if you're sitting at the sushi bar.

By the way, does anyone know what happened to chef Kazuo Yoshida? Is he at another restaurant now?

"If it's me and your granny on bongos, then it's a Fall gig'' -- Mark E. Smith

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Thanks. They're doing a little something differently tonight - no $50 omakase, only $75, for which they're charging $85, and including some sake and/or champagne. (One can do the $100 omakase too if one wants). What are the significant differences between the $75 level and the $100 level?

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Man oh man. We were there 4 hours. I have not had such a lovely meal, on every level, in a long, long time. The food was exceptional. The fish was off the charts extraordinary. The service could not possibly have been better. We left ourselves entirely in the competent, charming hands of Jack and the chefs. The champagne, sake, and wine pairings were a delight every time. There wasn't a disappointing second the whole evening.

We left full and satisfied - all parts of us. An absolutely marvelous way to spend New Year's Eve.

If Yasuda's fish is better, well - I can't imagine the tiny increment of nuance that involves, or if I could even tell, quite frankly, but I'll try.

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The salmon was a mouthful of heaven. I was so full, but I had to get one more piece of it in. And oh my god, that fatty tuna. It redefined "melts in your mouth." The scallops were sweet and delicate and so, so smooth. One of the in between courses was a broth with fish balls - so simple, but defined its genre. The broth was so flavorful and kept creeping up in layers of flavor. We had some small pieces of white octopus which were instructed to dip in green pepper powder before soy - an incredible juxtaposition of flavors. The uni was gentle, creamy, delicious. And I'm a sucker for hirame - it was wonderful.

I don't think I put one thing in my mouth that didn't make me sigh or smile. It was *that* good. We ate a ton of fish. At the end, I asked the chef if there was anything we hadn't tried, and he said no. I was a happy camper.

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I don't think I put one thing in my mouth that didn't make me sigh or smile.

Ahem! ( it can't just be me and Wilfred giggling like schoolboys. Perhaps it is )

Anyway, glad you enjoyed. It was certainly one of my highlights of 2002 eating

I am assuming with you and partner, they issued the rest of the room with earplugs

just a thought

S

Edited by Simon Majumdar (log)
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  • 3 weeks later...

I am sad to report that a recent meal at Jewel Bako with an eGulleteer couple was disappointing. To be clear, the fish was as fresh as before for the sashimi and sushi. However, the balance inhering under the now-departured sushi chef in the appetizer dishes and the nice utilization of saucing or little additions to the sushi appear to have been compromised.

A la carte was ordered on this occasion. However, I asked the new chef what recommendations he had for an appetizer. I was presented with a dual preparation of octupus -- one cooked and intended for sampling with a stark umeboshi salt, and the raw version served with the potential for tasting with matte green tea powder. However, this dish was much more akin to what might receive at a traditional sushi bar (leaving aside the green team powder, etc.) than what I had anticipated for Jewel Bako.

Our party had two bottles of Chateau Cabonnieux 1999. The dessert from Payard, a green tea concoction with fruitk, was nice. Subject to further evaluations, I believe there has been a deterioration in the cuisine. :sad:

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  • 2 weeks later...
1.  enoki mushroom caps in gelee, shiso leaf garnish

2.  salad of arugula, chives and greens, wild mushrooms, cha-soba noodles

3.  o-toro tartare, osetra caviar, avocado topping (radish and kirby cucumber garnish)

4.  wild herring roe sashimi, with seaweed (topped with bonito flakes); jellyfish sashimi, with seaweed, served in a cup (topped with gomasio)

5.  yuzu-infused broth, scallions, ground yellowtail dumplings (slice of yuzu floating in the broth)

6.  sashimi

7.  sushi (in no particular order):

Had dinner at Jewel Bako last night with a friend at the Sushi bar and had nearly the same meal that SobaAddict70 described above. Had the soba/greens/wild mushroom salad and toro tartare (the proportion of toro to avacado seemed normal, the green stuff was just icing).

We also had a variety of wild mushrooms cooked in a foil pouch with butter and yuzu, with fresh lemon we squeezed on at the very last second. this was great.

Next came sashimi. The last time I was there (early Novemeber) you had to choose whether your omakase came with sushi or sashimi -- you got both with the $100 version. Now $75 is your only choice and you get sashimi and sushi, which is fine by me. We were given four kinds of yellowtail, sweet shrimp, two kinds of white fish and, I think, mackarel.

The amazing, amazing soup with yellowtail "meatballs" followed. This was just wow. My friend and I both agreed the only way to improve it would be to get four yellowtail balls instead of two. The broth was perfection.

Sushi was next, with many of the varieties SobaAddict described. New to me was the sweet shrimp sushi that was a bit hard to eat (lots of noodly looking shrimp on the one piece, sort of fell off the rice), but very very good.

After the lichee sorbet we had a fruit-and-cream-filled cake/pastry thing that was quite good. Jack gave us a nightcap of this fruit-infused alcohol (which he described as being like grain, but not grain. pure alcohol) that smelled like scotch but tasted very smooth, mild and, well, fruity.

I detected no decline in quality from my previous four visits and the service remains excellent. Just a fabulous meal. We were there for nearly three hours but it only seemed half that long.

"If it's me and your granny on bongos, then it's a Fall gig'' -- Mark E. Smith

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Also, the "new" chef isn't really new. Tatsuya Nagata (I think that's his name) was there every time I've eaten there (I'm pretty sure) but seemed to be second fiddle to Kazuo Yoshida. The new new sushi chef seems to be more of an apprentice. He was showing the new guy a piece of sushi and telling him why it should be done the way it was done. They each took a piece, snuck down below the bar and came up chewing.

"If it's me and your granny on bongos, then it's a Fall gig'' -- Mark E. Smith

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Hi

I am dying to get to JB, but for the time being (as I live in Philly), I am scheduled to have sushi at Fuji (in Cinaminson NJ) and Morimoto in the coming weeks. How do either of these places compare to JB? I'm having the omakase at Fuji, not sure about Morimoto. I really want to focus on sushi/sashimi-- should I get the omakase, or one of the platters, at Morimoto??

Thanks

Food is a convenient way for ordinary people to experience extraordinary pleasure, to live it up a bit.

-- William Grimes

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hm, cabrales had a dinner at Morimoto last year -- I think in September or October, not sure when. If you take a look at the thread on Morimoto, you'll find her assessment of M as opposed to JB.

note that Kazuo left shortly after cabby's dinner at M, so another comparison might be in order. :blink:

SA

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  • 1 month later...
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