NYC dining...restaurant and bar hopping in East Village

In the evening of the 2nd night (and the last night of this stay), I got together with an old friend of mine, who lives in the heart of East Village. She gave me a tour of her "hood" and we visited different places to eat and drink.

First stop was The Mer-Maid Inn, which was her recommendation for a happy hour stop. Super-fresh oysters on the half shells are only $1 each during their happy hour! We tried oysters from both East Coast and West Coast with some rose wine by the glass. What a great kick-start of the evening.

Then, we walked a few blocks to super popular Momofuku Noodle Bar. I expected there be a long waiting line for tables, but the restaurant was only half-filled when we got there. I thought maybe it was because less people were craving for hot noodles in the super hot evening of NYC. But, I normally enjoy sweating with a hot soupy dish in the summer, so it was perfect.

Pork belly buns were so juicy and extremely rich.

Momofuku noodles and cold grilled squid noodles. I was getting quite full.

So, we walked to Esperanto, a popular Brazilian resto, for a refreshing cocktail. I had a nice rum cocktail with freshly-squeezed passion fruit. They have live music every night.

The last stop was Bohemian, which is hidden behind a premium beef butcher (Japan Premium Beef). Bohemian is run by Japanese people and it has both dining and bar sections. We sat at a bar and had some drinks. Their dining menu looked very interesting with special Washu Beef items and modern Japanese dishes (smelled so good!). One of the cocktails my friend ordered had some super-thin cucumber, which was sliced with a truffle shaver. I admired their originality.

She was willing to take me to more places, but I had to wake up 4 am the next day, so we called the night after Bohemian. But, I would love to come back for more adventures in East Village with her next time.

NYC dining...Lunch at Ciano

On the 2nd day, a friend of mine took me to an Italian restaurant called, Ciano, on 22nd St. (near Eataly). The restaurant has a nice classy ambience.

I enjoyed rainbow beets with whipped robiola, watercress, and 12-year-old balsamico.

Fava bean and green garlic pesto pappadelle (hand-made) was quite nice, too.

NYC dining...The John Dory Oyster Bar

During this busy short stay in NYC, my first-night dinner was at The John Dory Oyster Bar at ACE Hotel.

Nice lively vibe.

Nice clean food. Long Island blue fish with crispy artichoke was quite good.

Our Donabe in NYC...WAZA Shop opens!

I was in NYC for 3 days last week. It was so hot and humid just like the summer in Tokyo.

In the heart of Manhattan, on the 2nd floor of Kinokuniya Bookstore (right across from Bryant Park), WAZA Shop opened this month! And, you can find donabe and Iga-yaki products by Nagatani-en from Iga, Japan!!

WAZA Shop specializes in a collection of top quality artisan products from Japan. You can find beautiful modern & traditional products made by different designers and producers from Japan.

When you are in New York, please visit WAZA Shop to check them out...the shop is open until the end of this year.

For more information, please check out WAZA Shop website.

Happy donabe life.

Donabe steam-fry kale, kabocha, and shimeji in shio-koji

This is a very flavorful dish in very easy preparation.

You can serve it as a side dish, or as a main dish with some rice.

The main seasoning for this dish is my homemade shio-koji. The flavor of the dish is so enhanced and becomes deep with just a small amount of this healthy seasoning.

For this dish, I use tagine-style donabe, "Fukkura-san".

You put 1/2 tablespoon of each sesame oil and olive oil, some minced shallot and garlic, one bunch of kale (ribs removed), and some slices of kabocha in Fukkura-san. Cover and cook over medium-heat for about 5 minutes.

Add some shimeji mushroms, 1.5 - 2 tablespoons of shio-koji, and 1 teaspoon of fennel seeds. Stir and cover again. Cook for 7-8 more minutes. Meanwhile, stir a couple of times. Remove from the heat and let rest for 3-5 minutes.

Simple steam-fry dish is ready. I like it on its own, or with some squeezed lemon juice. So nice.

Happy donabe life.

Ham Ji Park's Gamjatang

One evening at K-Town's Ham Ji Park, on 6th Street.

They make one of the best Gamjatang (pork neck and potato stew) in LA. It's always so good. I like to eat it with rice.

Their sauteed squid with noodles is a nice appetizer, but they often bring it after the main course. That's okay, because I like the taste anyway:-)

Sizzling donabe "dolsot" Bibimbap with donabe brown rice

With my homemade kochujang, my bibimbap (Korean-style mixed rice) tastes really great.

First of all, you need to make the best quality rice for the best quality bibimbap. So, I make rice with my double-lid donabe rice cooker, "Kamado-san". Here's my basic Bibimbap recipe with donabe rice.

This time, I would like to introduce my alternative bibimbap recipe. It's sizzling donabe bibimbap with donabe brown rice. It's sooo good. For the sizzling-style, I also use my tagine-style donabe, "Fukkura-san".

First, I make brown rice (2 rice-cups) with Kamado-san. (I like to infuse with kombu, but it's optional.) I also get all the toppings ready. I take a little over half of the rice and spread on the skillet of Fukkura-san, which was seasoned with some sesame oil. Decorate the rice with the toppings.

Then, donabe is covered and brought over medium-heat for 5-7 minutes (make sure you won't burn the bottom of the rice) until the rice makes nice crusty bottom. Remove the lid and add the eggs and some Gochujang (you can add the cooked eggs if you prefer) and start mixing all the ingredients with a large spoon very quickly.

The skillet is very hot, so be careful. Because of the reason, the eggs start to cook as you mix.

Sizzling donabe bibimbap is ready. You can serve with some thinly-sliced scallion and shiso leaves, with extra gochujang.

Wonderful power meal.

Happy donabe life.