My nephew culinary visit: day 5 / part 2: Dinner at Morimoto in NYC, New York

image of Morimoto in NYC, New York

On Tuesday night, we decided to go to Chef Morimoto's eponym restaurant as we really wanted Valentin to try some outstanding Japanese food. I suggested to him not to have sushi or sashimi because he would end up with probably some great seafood, but he would not experience what made Chef Morimoto famous.
image of Kitchen at Morimoto in NYC, New York

I love that place: modern decor with a dining room overlooking the kitchen where you can see the Chefs preparing the scrumptious food.
image of Kitchen at Morimoto in NYC, New York

We were ready for a feast, our chopsticks out for what would be another memorable dinner in this establishment.
image of chopsticks at Morimoto in NYC, New York

We started off with some appetizers that we shared. First was the Yu-burrata, the Chef's version of burrata, served with heirloom tomatoes, berries, cucumbers, with a sauce made with wasabi and sherry vinegar.
image of Yu Burrata at Morimoto in NYC, New York

The burrata itself was made with tofu skin. It was a fantastic dish: very fresh, the burrata was heavenly creamy and paired perfectly with the acidity of the tomatoes and cherry vinegar.

The second appetizer was the sautéed foie gras & grilled eel:
image of sautéed foie gras and grilled eel at Morimoto in NYC, New York

That was a succulent dish where the smooth texture of the foie gras complemented well the texture of the eel, rendering a nice version of surf & turf. It was served with some Asian pears for sweetness and sake Meyer lemon for acidity.

The third appetizer was the pork gyoza:
image of pork gyoza at Morimoto in NYC, New York

You would never think that it was pork gyoza there, but in fact, the six gyoza were under the crispy shell.
image of pork gyoza at Morimoto in NYC, New York

It was sitting on a bacon foam (I admit that I barely tasted the bacon), some tomatoes and the shell was nicely cooked and soft. 

Then came the entrees. This time we did not share...Jodi ordered the Ishi Yaki Buri Bop, similar to a Korean Bibimbap, it was yellowtail on rice cooked in a stone bowl.
image of Ishi Yaki Buri Bop at Morimoto in NYC, New York

It came with a raw egg and the waiter mixed the ingredients together. Et voila!
image of Ishi Yaki Buri Bop at Morimoto in NYC, New York

The fish was very good, flavorful and moist. The rice sat and cooked against the very hot bowl until forming a delicious crust.

I suggested Valentin to try the surf & turf that I tried the last time we went.
image of surf and turf at Morimoto in NYC, New York

The fish was Hamachi cut in ribbons, mixed with crushed citrus and avocado, prepared tableside.
image of Hamachi at Morimoto in NYC, New York

The turf side was Wagyu beef, perfectly cooked medium rare, with a nice char on the outside:
image of Wagyu beef at Morimoto in NYC, New York

The side was herbed potatoes:
image of herbed potatoes at Morimoto in NYC, New York

On my side, I decided to order the seafood "toban yaki", a sort of fish stew made with lobster, king crab, mussels, clams and diver scallops. The broth was made of red miso, butter and lobster. It was served with rice.
image of seafood toban yaki at Morimoto in NYC, New York

It was a succulent dish, packed in flavors and perfect if you are a seafood lover. The best part was definitely the broth that was fantastic with a nice bold flavor.

Of course, we could not leave without dessert! We first picked the Warm chocolate cake:
image of warm chocolate cake at Morimoto in NYC, New York

It was served with a blood orange-sake sherbet and truffle honey, that was fantastic. The inside of the chocolate cake was deliciously runny and a bit addictive, perfectly paired with the orange sherbet.

The second dessert was the mori-monkey bread, Chef Morimoto's version of monkey bread:
image of mori-monkey cake at Morimoto in NYC, New York
It was made of cookies similar to vanilla wafers, banana cream and chocolate. My favorite though was the banana chocolate chip ice cream, that was very creamy and tasty.

This was a fantastic dinner and for me, Morimoto is by far the best Japanese fine dining restaurant, far beyond Nobu!

Enjoy (I did)!


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And Remember: I Just Want To Eat!