Morimoto's in Manhattan

[ulterior epicure]

Late to this thread... back to the topic...

I have been to Morimoto twice, and both times had his omakase. I'd have to say the first time was much more impressive than the second (although Morimoto was personally cooking for me the first time)... I would agree that his food is far from "authentic" Japanese... but he is certainly creative and that is very fun to experience! I would indeed be curious to see how his NYC bureau fares.

As for the rest of the Philly restaurants, I've done most of the old school institutions and am itching to try the new(er) biggies like Vetri and Striped Bass.

Studio Kitchen sounds absolutely a "must!" Thanks for all the reviews.

U.E.

[Leonard Kim]

I think I'm most in agreement with philadinings post and would add that

1) In all the publicity, there's not much we've heard from Mr. Morimoto himself, perhaps because of his somewhat limited English. However, in an essay he wrote for the Iron Chef book, he says the following, written before Morimoto NYC and even Morimoto Philadelphia:

What if I die five years later, amid all these congratulatory words?  Then nothing has come out of my being an Iron Chef.  The real battle for Masaharu Morimoto begins now.  I plan on opening my own restaurant in New York in the year 2001.  I plan to go as far as I can as a chef.  Do I have a chance?  Of course I do.  Failing in Tokyo is one thing, but I cannot afford to fail in New York.  I will succeed in New York.

I think these aren't words of a chef just attaching his name to a restaurant. I suspect that Philadelphia was, sorry, a trial run, a stepping stone, call it what you will, with New York always the intended goal. So it's probably not fair to view this as a Philadelphia export, at least from Morimoto's (if not Starr's) standpoint. Actually, given the fact that people's dining experience at Morimoto Philadelphia seems awfully well-correlated to whether Morimoto was actually in the kitchen, things may take a turn for the worse there.

I suspect Morimoto considers himself a New Yorker leading me to

2) Of course Nobu is the reference point. Morimoto was head sushi chef there. Reichl's 1995 review is framed by her interactions with Morimoto (which I find rather charming as this was before he became IRON CHEF MORIMOTO) and she uses him as the exemplar of the Nobu spirit.

In New York, Mr. Matsuhisa's spirit of invention lighted a spark in the kitchen, igniting each chef to new and increasingly daring feats. The fire started slowly; in the beginning the kitchen seemed lost when Mr. Matsuhisa, who spends only one week a month in New York, was not on the premises. But then the head chef, Shin Tsujimura, who spent many years at Hatsuhana in Manhattan, and the chefs who work with him began to seem excited by the possibilities of being liberated from tradition.

"Do you like my 'sorbet,' the head sushi chef, Masaharu Morimoto, asked one day, stopping by to introduce his latest creation. The little ball of white fluff looked like ice cream but turned out to be grated turnip with a single enormous peeled grape inside. On top, like the icing on a sundae, was a fan of marinated abalone. Each bite was clean, refreshing, delicious. . . .

Sushi lovers will find that no kitchen in the city turns out a more spectacular plate of raw fish. And sake lovers, having learned to love the flavor of the Hokusetsu sake, which trickles out of iced bamboo pitchers with the pure flavor of melted snow, will find it almost impossible to drink the stuff served in other restaurants. Even dessert, once the Achilles heel of the kitchen, has improved. Melon balls dance across slabs of slate framed by stars made of jellied fruits and chocolate. Grape sorbet arrives in a bamboo box. And what is this on top? A feathery toothpick that looks like no other in the world.

"Do you like it?" Mr. Morimoto asks, laughing with delight. "I carved it out of a fish tail."

And say wasn't Nobu itself an import of another city's restaurant? Here's Reichl again, in words that could be recycled, should Morimoto succeed:

But while you're waiting for these new ventures, let me suggest a visit to Nobu, a remarkable restaurant that epitomizes the energy of the city at this exact moment.  When Nobu opened last year, most people assumed that it would be a clone of its Los Angeles sibling, Matsuhisa. In the beginning, despite flashy digs designed by David Rockwell and management by the restaurant impresario Drew Nieporent, that is pretty much what it was. But the restaurant's instant popularity had a remarkable effect: as Nobu matured, it gained confidence and developed its own personality. It has grown into a restaurant that cannot be compared to anything else.

3) But this is 12 years ago, which is the point some of you are making with respect to the prospects of this restaurant "at this exact moment." And the other point is, taking away the hype, how good is Masaharu Morimoto really? Good enough to be head sushi chef at Nobu. And how far has he come since then? Where does that place him now among the city's Japanese chefs? Is it good enough for the success of Morimoto NYC? I have no answer to these questions, but it seems to me this is the way to approach the food question, and probably some of you can take a good stab at it.

[Sethro]

On the Buddakan NY note, I had a chance to see Michael Schulson's menu, and stylistically its on a way different level than Buddakan Philly. I think they're are indeed intending to compete with NY's most food-foward establishments.

As far as Morrimoto NY, my understanding is that we can expect to see something dramatically different there as well.

[KatieLoeb]

If you check Gothamist they posted some pictures of the interior. I can't tell if it's classy or gaudy.

I don't know much about the Philly restaurant, but is it good because it's an oasis in a desert, or does it really compare with top NYC Japanese restaurants?

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The former that's why he opened up in Philly first, it didn't take much to be the best.

However I do believe that he's going to be more creative in NYC than he has been in Philly.

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The reason Morimoto opened up in Philly first is because he needed to get out of Nobu's shadow. And because he had a restaurateur willing to put his name on the door and pick up the cost of designing a restaurant around him. It's easy to be a big fish in a smaller pond, especially when your backer owns Sea World, or the restaurant equivalent of it in Philadelphia. The idea of being Shamu, or the featured attraction, and then going back to NY a conquering hero is undoubtedly quite appealing. Besides, you can't miss someone unless they've actually left, right?

As to whether he's more creative in NY or in Philly remains to be seen, but I haven't been that blown away by any of what I've seen here. Some folks find the menu creative - I really don't. And it's outrageously expensive by anyone's standards. I have my own favorite BYO Japanese restaurant that's outside of Philly that I think is quite creative and a third of the cost. I'll keep going there happily and let others wait on line for expensive eats and overpriced drinks with moody phallic lighting.

[Vadouvan]

Agree with your point Katie.

In fact your key point of getting out of Nobu's shadow is exactly the reason they opened in Phila first coupled with the fact that cost are much more sensible here.

Morimoto phila cost 2.5 to 3 million, in comparison..Ny 10 to 12 Million.

Of course both numbers are severly inflated for PR purposes but back to the food.

All the food that was being served in the first 6 months of Morimotophila were basically out of the First Nobu book. Granted he was head sushi chef there but jeez, there just was no Imagination......... but you can get away with that in philly since very few people realise it.

If you remove all the fluff like shaved daikon and mountain peach, all the food at the phila outpost is basically more boring pan Asian. For all the money you spend, you can get those dishes cheaper or/and better.

Matt Ito blows them away on most cooked Items and Sagami definitely nails them on both Hamachi Kama and Nasu Shigiyaki. The oyster program is al NObu, creamy spicy sauce, aji panca. aji amarillo, maui onion ect ect.

Yes Starr did say they will fly in fish from Japan, lots of people do, Megu, Masa, Yasuda ect ect.

By the way, the best dish on the menu at philly morimoto is the ramen noodles soup.

[bpearis]

all i wanna know is, are they gonna be open for lunch?

[docsconz]

Agree with your point Katie.

In fact your key point of getting out of Nobu's shadow is exactly the reason they opened in Phila first coupled with the fact that cost are much more sensible here.

Morimoto phila cost 2.5 to 3 million, in comparison..Ny 10 to 12 Million.

Of course both numbers are severly inflated for PR purposes but back to the food.

All the food that was being served in the first 6 months of Morimotophila were basically out of the First Nobu book. Granted he was head sushi chef there but jeez, there just was no Imagination......... but you can get away with that in philly since very few people realise it.

If you remove all the fluff like shaved daikon and mountain peach, all the food at the phila outpost is basically more boring pan Asian. For all the money you spend, you can get those dishes cheaper or/and better.

Matt Ito blows them away on most cooked Items and Sagami definitely nails them on both Hamachi Kama and Nasu Shigiyaki. The oyster program is al NObu, creamy spicy sauce, aji panca. aji amarillo, maui onion ect ect.

Yes Starr did say they will fly in fish from Japan, lots of people do, Megu, Masa, Yasuda ect ect.

By the way, the best dish on the menu at philly morimoto is the ramen noodles soup.

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This doesn't really sound like a ringing endorsement or even a reason to not be skeptical.

[Vadouvan]

It's not a sushi elite ringing endorsement, my point is people trashing it saying the food will be mass produced and not as good as places like yasuda are preaching to the choir.

But just cause it's nothing new doesnt mean it's going to suck.

Besides I went to the restaurant before reaching my conclusions ...!

AHEM.

[docsconz]

It's not a sushi elite ringing endorsement, my point is people trashing it saying the food will be mass produced and not as good as places like yasuda are preaching to the choir.

But just cause it's nothing new doesnt mean it's going to suck.

Besides I went to the restaurant before reaching my conclusions ...!

AHEM.

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Thing is, I haven't reached any conclusions yet. Nor has anyone else that I have read. Skepticism is just that...skepticism. There is a big difference between saying that one has doubts about whether a place will be worthwhile and saying that it is no good. If a person were to make a comment that any restaurant sucks without having personally experienced it I would agree with you. I have not seen that to be the case here, although plenty of people, including myself, have expressed doubts.

[docsconz]

BTW, my doubts have nothing to do with the fact that these restaurants originated in Philadelphia (or if they had originated anywhere else for that matter).

[ulterior epicure]

Thing is, I haven't reached any conclusions yet. Nor has anyone else that I have read.

Nope, not here either!

Skepticism is just that...skepticism. There is a big difference between saying that one has doubts about whether a place will be worthwhile and saying that it is no good. If a person were to make a comment that any restaurant sucks without having personally experienced it I would agree with you. I have not seen that to be the case here, although plenty of people, including myself, have expressed doubts.

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In fact, I'm more curious than skeptical!

U.E.

[Lreda]

Anyone go tonight? Curious how it went. Was if Philly a couple of years ago. Bad spot on the Today show. Looked like Belushi on SNL, Roker didn't help him with his samari act. I feel for all the chef's who appear at the end of the 9am slot. Only The Scotto's look good here. I need to be adopted by this family.

[Bux]

Anyone go tonight? Curious how it went. Was if Philly a couple of years ago. Bad spot on the Today show. Looked like Belushi on SNL, Roker didn't help him with his samari act. I feel for all the chef's who appear at the end of the 9am slot. Only The Scotto's look good here. I need to be adopted by this family.

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I like Al Roker. I really like him and he has a strong interest in food. I remember the time he traded places with Daniel Boulud. Chef gave the weather report and Al worked the pass in the kitchen, sort of--in both cases, but in a good natured bit of comedy. It's a shame however that all too often Roker plays the clown when there's a chef on camera and in doing so, undermines any chance the chef has in communicating what he's got to offer. In general, the media panders to the masses. TV and newspapers seem to offer us more than ever, but it's an illusion. Actual content is decreasing.

[oakapple]

A copy of the menu is here. It shows:

Cold Appetizers: $18-33

Hot Appetizers: $11-23

Soup & Noodles: $12-16

Mains: $23-48

Sushi-Sashimi: $4-10 per piece

Maki: $6.00-13.50

Chef's Combination of Sushi/Sashimi/Maki: $30, 100, or $150

Omakase: $120

[ulterior epicure]

anyone have a clue how many courses are on the omakase?

u.e.

[BryanZ]

This menu barely excites me and, at points, even scares me. Japanese "antipasti" seems a curious menu description. The "Iron Chef" chicken noodle soup and duck, duck, duck also has me raising my eyebrows.

But then again, I haven't eaten there.

[docsconz]

The menu generally looks ok, although $21 for 6 kumamoto oysters strikes me as being a bit steep. How does this compare to the Philly Morimoto?

[rlibkind]

In general, the media panders to the masses.

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That's why they call it "mass media". Started out in the 19th century with the invention of the powered rotary press and "penny papers". Hasn't changed much since then, even if it's distributed via electronics rather than wood pulp.

[philadining]

... The "Iron Chef" chicken noodle soup....

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I know, hard to get excited about, but if it's the same as the chicken ramen soup in Philly it's really good...

[Lreda]

I agree, the chicken soup at The Philly location was part of the omakase and was spectaular.

[MarketStEl]

... The "Iron Chef" chicken noodle soup....

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I know, hard to get excited about, but if it's the same as the chicken ramen soup in Philly it's really good...

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$14 for chicken ramen noodle soup good?

Those had better be some damn good ramen noodles.

[oakapple]

Photos of the food & setting here and here.

They've even got aged soy sauce—10 and 20 years old. I have never heard of that.

[BryanZ]

Uni risotto with truffle and nori paste, while not traditional, sounds delicious.

[docsconz]

Maybe it won't be so bad, but I must say those tables don't provide a very appealing photographic background!

[ulterior epicure]

Maybe it won't be so bad, but I must say those tables don't provide a very appealing photographic background!  

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hey, if the food's good enough, i'll eat it off the floor!

u.e.

Edited February 3, 2006 by ulterior epicure (log)