The Urasawa Experience 6/6/2008

Urasawa is the most talked about restaurant in any foodie communities. As a foodie want to be, I feel obliegated to give it a try. What make urasawa so special is: 1. its humble price at $300 a pot, 2. it obtains 2 star michelin statues and is the best japanese/sushi restaurant on the west coast. 3. its sibiling restaurant in NYC recently receives its 3 star michelin rating.

I did not take any photo during the dinner such that I can fully enjoy the interaction with the chef. For photoed reviews please visit:
http://www.feast-blog.com/my_weblog/2008/06/urasawa---los-a.html

http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=4699639&blogID=401186794

And here is my Urasawa experience:

Urasawa is situated in the second stories of a shopping mall on rodeo drive. The lighting is bright and gentle. The shop isn't big, with only a sushi bar and two small tables.

Hiroyuki Urasawa is a very nice and humble person. With a smile on his face at all time, he truly loves what he does.

1. The dinner started with a Junsai salad - Junsai is known as "water shield" in English, and a summer delicacy in Japan. The plant is a member of the water lily family, and grows in clusters sometimes large enough to cover large bodies of water, hence the name. The most prized part of junsai is the slippery, gelatinous layer that covers young sprouts. Here, it was mixed with summer vegetables, shrimp, vinegar, scallions, and gold flake and was taken as a shot. The junsai had a slimy, yet crispy texture that made the dish slide easily down my throat. Perfect combination of texture and acidity, a great starter.

2. Next, I was served with "Nasu", a grilled japanese eggplant served below room temperature. Teh eggplant is soft with a clean flavor, and the cold temperature made the dish very suitable for the summer. The sweet soy dipping sauce is typical of japanese cuisine.

3. Next was 3 pieces of seared o-toro, topped with a bit of grated radish, a bit of wasabi. 4. Goma tofu, Kyoto-style - Tofu made from sesame seeds, stuffed with sweet Uni (urchin “roe”), topped with freshly grated wasabi and gold leaf, served in a light dashi seasoned with shoyu and mirin.

5. Yamaimo "Chawanmushi" - The egg custard here was served with uni, tai, ebi, eel, and gingko, all topped once again with gold. Though the ingredients are luxurious, it tastes like a typical chawanmush.

6. Tempura with shrimp.

7. A grill is served with beef wrapped vegetables on top, a bit of sake was poured onto the grill to give the dish a steam finish. The beef is very tender, the vegetable gave the dish a nice contrast.

8. The sashimi offering - Spanish o-toro, tuna, red snapper, and uni.

9. Seared fatty tuna - fatty tuna seared on hot stone.

10. Shabu Shabu--Foie gras, sweet shrimp, and Wagyu beef. Becareful to not burn your tongue.

11. pickled ginger

12. Nigiri Sushi: Toro, Seared Toro, Buri (similar to yellowtail), Tai (similar to red snapper), Aji (Spanish mackerel ), Shiitake, Uni, Amaebi (Sweet shrimp ), sea eel....
The nigiri sushi enjoys a perfect proportion of rice and toppings. Almost all sushis were brushed with yuzu and sweet soy. At first, the sweet and sour flavor woke up my palate, but as times gwent on, I got tired of the flavor and couldn't taste the fish.

13. Sesame ice cream with green tea

14. Tamago - Egg custard.

Overall, Urasawa is a good restaurant, and Hiro is a gracious chef. We exchanged lots of interesting conversations. For example, Masa does not like Jean George, and once charged him $8,000 for 5 guest. Hiro thinks the best chef in the world is Joel Robuchon. The food is overly dependent on luxury ingredients, so everything tastes like butter. Maybe because Urasawa is situated in a mall in LA, the connection to a japanese garden and japanese culture in general is lost. Urasawa is a good restaurant, but is limited by its location and customers.