NYC Restaurant Week: Morimoto

Morimoto
88 10th Ave
New York, NY 10024
Tel: (212) 989-8883
http://www.morimotonyc.com/

I've been wanting to go to Morimoto ever since..f-o-r-e-v-e-r! I remember talking about visiting the restaurant a few years back with a couple of friends, but our plans never worked out. SO! when the 2011 Restaurant Week list came out, I knew this was going to be my chance to get affordable (and good) Japanese food......ok, and mayyybe get a chance to meet the Iron Chef himself. 

Morimoto's Tuna Tartare

Coconut drink - A++!

The interior of the restaurant is really chic and modern - suitable for young professionals, students, as well as the elderly crowd. Since it was restaurant week, the place was (no doubt) bustling with people. Prior to our food, I ordered a non-alcoholic coconut drink topped with basil. Highly recommended for anyone who loves coconut!

Even though we wanted to take advantage of the restaurant week prices, we couldn't help but look through the menu at other available options. As an extra side, we ordered the Tuna Tartare which was cleverly presented and super delicious! The sauces were laid out nicely on a rectangle wooden tray which included: fresh wasabi, sour cream, seaweed puree, chopped up green onions, avocado, and little rice cracker balls. We certainly attracted a lot of wandering eyes when this dish came out. The tuna itself was very fresh and light. I really liked the combo of rice cracker balls and seaweed puree with the tuna.

The lunch prix fixe they offered came in an oversized bento box. We ordered the waygu and black cod bento box set. The set came with miso soup, fresh salad, fried tempura w/ some sort of creamy sauce, and sushi/sashimi. Unfortunately, the portions were a little tiny (I'll admit that I can eat more than the average girl, but believe me when I say the portions were definitely on the smaller side). I felt bad for the big hungry man across from us. Poor dude. The waygu beef was a little too salty, ordinary, and again...too small of a portion. The black cod on the other hand was great - with just the right touch of sweetness.

The dessert served was a Green Tea Coconut Panna Cotta with berries on top. Taste was good, but nothing spectacular. The service was great considering our waitress had many tables to juggle due to restaurant week. Judging by the Tuna Tartare off the restaurant's original menu (not restaurant week menu), I would come back here again to try their other mouthwatering dishes!

Overall: 3.8/5

The Last Supper...(at 5 Ninth)

5 Ninth
5 9th Ave
New York, NY 10014
(212) 929-9460

This was the only restaurant that had availability for reservations on a Friday night, and you would think that raised a red flag. Unfortunately, it didn't. The service was impersonal and the food for the most part, was lousy. Initially, the service was fine...until I was forced into ordering a rose champagne that I didn't even want!

The appetizers were good, but then again, who goes wrong with hummus and pita bread? The oysters could've been bigger too. We felt completely cheated when we saw two raw oysters the size of a quarter. Our third appetizer, "Pig's Tail" was interesting. I've never had pig's tail before so I couldn't make any comparisons, but it tasted like regular pork so no surprises nor complaints there.

There were mixed feelings about the entrees, the pork shank and strip steak were appetizing, but we couldn't say the same for the other entrees that my cousins ordered. The sea bass was gamy, bland, and uninspiring. The haddock entree was way too small to be called an "entree" and furthermore, a chunk of fish meat was undercooked. Regrettably, this was only the tip of the iceberg until we found out that the chicken was undercooked, too! Undercooked fish? Fine, we can overlook that as sashimi (actually, not really...), but undercooked chicken?! We're looking to have a happy stomach, not an upset one! Shocked, we called our waiter over, who then gave us a lame apology, followed by the most ridiculous question, "Would you like something else? Perhaps a burger?" Er, no...we did not come here for burger. That's what Shake Shack is for! In the end, we spent a couple of Benjamins w/ no discounts whatsoever off the chicken entree. I guess they never took Marketing 101 on "How to Retain Customers".

5 ninth needs to work on their menu as the choices on it were pretty limited. We had eight people and everyone ended up getting similar entrees! It's too bad the food wasn't up to par because the place itself was cute, romantic, and cozy!

Overall: 2/5