Exam week and diminishing funds have kept me cooking dinner at home lately, so figured I'd go back to my bountiful archive of food photos and pick out a few favorites. I love Japanese BBQ (most often referred to as yakiniku), especially because it allows you to be very hands on throughout the meal, it lets you eat at your own pace, and if the meat is over/under-cooked, you have only yourself to blame :P Just a couple of my frequented yakiniku spots (all in NYC):
This is a pretty large chain and they have locations all over the United States as well as across the globe. Though the bill can add up pretty quickly during regular dinner time, mainly because there are few carb-heavy dishes to really fill you up, their happy hour is not only extensive, but also extremely reasonable. Everyday from 11-6 (if I remember correctly), they have a huge happy hour menu where meat dishes go for as little as $3.50 a plate and all alcoholic drinks are 50% off.
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Top (from left to right): Tuna Volcano Crunch, crispy rice balls with tuna tartare on top; Sukiyaki Bibimbap, they come to your table and mix everything in a large bowl and allow it to continue cooking inside the hot bowl
Bottom: Just a few meat dishes from happy hour, I believe it was the skirt steak, beef tongue, and new york strip steak |
A somewhat hidden gem on the outskirts of St. Marks - most people usually go to Gyu-Kaku when they're craving Japanese BBQ, but the quality of meat here is definitely better. They also have daily specials (I always go on Sundays for the half price Kobe short ribs) which make the prices relatively reasonable. The only thing I stay away from are their special sets, as I have found that most of them are not worth the value. The first time we went, we had a $25 ribeye set, which came with maybe 5 pieces of meat and your typical sides of miso soup, salad, rice, and a couple veggies to grill. Pitchers of Kirin are also pretty cheap (~$9) during their happy hour, which fill about four glasses each. The service is usually not very attentive (they don't change your grill every 10 minutes like they do at Gyu-Kaku or check up on you throughout your meal), but I don't mind since it's pretty easy to flag them down if needed. Dessert here is worth skipping, mainly because the amazing tea/dessert house Cha-An is literally right around the corner!
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| Beef tongue with scallion - I usually love this dish, but the last time we came, it was unbelievably tough and not very good at all |
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| Five orders of the Kobe short rib - it comes out to be less than $40! This, along with the beef tongue, one other meat dish, and maybe an appetizer or rice bowl is usually enough to fill up two people |
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| Left: Pork jaw - I loved this dish but my dining companion was not a huge fan. It's very fatty and chewy, and the flavor is similar to that of pork belly, which I enjoyed |
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| Another shot of the Kobe short ribs, about a two or three-order serving during our first visit here; definitely try this if you have the chance, the cooked meat literally melts in your mouth |
Not cheap at all, and I have only been able to visit once, but this place is by far the best yakiniku I have had in the United States. It has an extremely tiny seating area with only a few tables and the rest being bar seating around the chefs (a bit like a sushi bar), but it's definitely an experience. Their appetizers are all amazing and the cuts of meat they serve are top-notch. If Anthony Bourdain says it's good, it's probably worth checking out at least once. Or, as many times as you can afford.
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| Most amazing appetizer ever, and totally worth the $24 price tag: Niki-uni, kobe chuck topped with sea urchin, all on top of a shiso leaf and seaweed. The flavors blended together are literally the most incredible taste explosion ever, and the shiso adds a very refreshing touch |
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| Top: Some sort of hot pot special where we cooked the meat in a broth (it was amazing) and two of our meat plates, I think it was the Ribeye and the "Tongue Experience", which offers multiple parts of the cow's tongue, all having very different tastes and textures |
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