Every so often I will give a list of restaurant recommendations based on notable and recent dining experiences I've had. These aren't reviews. No one I know speaks in terms of stars ("Babbo is so three star - you should go!"), so I won't either.
FULL REVIEW
Two friends and I had dinner at EN Japanese Brasserie on Wednesday evening. EN is part of the city’s new hip trend for big-box Japanese restaurants with Nobu-inspired menus. It is one of the pleasanter destinations in that genre. Our reservation was at 6:30, a time when the restaurant is still comparatively empty. However, we were impressed with the high ceilings and the wide spacing of the tables. Even at peak time, I suspect my companions and I wouldn’t have had to shout (as we did at the comparatively claustrophobic BLT Prime).
FULL REVIEW
EN Japanese Brasserie is known for its homemade tofu but what impressed me was their otoro, or the most expensive part of tuna: its belly. We had them two ways, sashimi and seared, and they were both exquisite. The sashimi was magnificent, like butter melting in your mouth. The seared otoro was served in garlic soy and tasted like perfect slabs of steak.
FULL REVIEW
TriBeCa is becoming the mecca for innovative Japanese cuisine, first with Nobu, now Megu and EN Japanese Brasserie. My companion and I had wanted to dine at EN ever since reading about their housemade tofu, produced on a movie-like schedule every night (6, 7:30, 9, 10:30 and 11:30 p.m.).
FULL REVIEW
Recently, my friend Julie took me to EN Japanese Brasserie as a birthday gift. We arrived unfashionably early at 6:00 in order to have time to catch an 8:30 movie. EN is housed in what can only be called a cavernous space in the neighb between Tribeca and the Meatpacking District (I hereby coin the name "Tri-tip" to describe that area. Pass it on!). Since we were eating at such a godforsaken hour, there were only 4 or 5 people in a space that could house a Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade float. We stepped up to the maitre d' podium and said, "We're two." The hostess asked, "Do you have a reservation?" and the cavernous space echoed,
FULL REVIEW
There are those restaurants that take your breath away upon entry, where the design is so spectacular, that you really don’t care what you are fed, as long as you can stay awhile, perhaps with a glass of wine, or even a bit of water. Spice Market, with its jewel-toned lanterns, and sexy Indian soiree vibe comes to mind, as does Public, in another more minimalist yet equally enthralling sort of way. And on a rainy night last week, walking through the heavy, tall doors and into EN, a new Japanese Brasserie that opened on a lonely stretch of Hudson Street a few weeks ago, I was hit by that sort of a design whamee. I honestly didn’t care what I ate that night as long as I could stay and stare at the space. It is stunning, but in a quiet way. Adam Kushner (Kushner Studios Architecture and Design) and Ichiro Sato of Age Designs are responsible for the restaurant’s breathtaking interior. Vaulted ceilings—palatial in height—with delicately carved wooden accents adorning the walls, candle light, Chinese lantern fruit strung up on bamboo poles, Japanese clay vases, and low, glamorous lighting create the magnificent Zen temple décor.
FULL REVIEW
LINK: http://www.blogsoop.com/nyc_rid_2968.html
Copy and paste this field to link back to this page.