David's 18th birthday last night (and his girlfriend's 17th), took them
to Nobu (his request, he loves Asian food and especially Japanese- his
grandmother is Japanese). I realize Nobu is no longer considered
cutting edge, but I have to say the food was quite excellent overall. I
encouraged David to try the signature miso-black cod dish, he was
really amazed. The kids did order some more standard sushi (which I
think is a bit of a waste at Nobu), but really enjoyed it. I started
with a fluke sashimi/baby spinach salad, then uni tempura, and artic
char with amazing quick-fried spinach. Betsy had the Kumamto oyster
trio, rock shrimp tempura, and eggplant with miso. Every dish was
excellent (I didn't try the oysters, but Betsy said they were as good
as when we had before), except maybe the eggpant which was good but
unexceptional.

For a high end Manhattan restaurant, I thought the wine list was very
reasonable. Plenty of good choices in the $30-50 range. Betsy and I
shared a bottle of 2005 Les Heritiers du Comte Lafon Macon (either $38
or $40). I really liked this wine, a bit richer than a typical Macon
but with a nice snappy acidity and clean feel about it. Rich ripe apple
and pear fruit (I thought a little peachy after a while), light yet
gets your attention, with a steel/flint minerality to the finish. B+
(and A- for value in an expensive restaurant).

It went fine with with the fluke salad and the artic char , as well as
Betsy's rock shrimp. I didn't try the wine with the uni, but the (mild)
jalapeno tempura that accompanied it went fine. But as others ordered
dessert, I (the anti-dessert-person) got an ankimo pate as my
"dessert." Taking a sip after the pate, the Macon was suddenly almost
tasteless. Like it had been diluted 3 parts water to one wine. I
repeated, same result. I drank a glassful of water, and the Macon
tasted the same as it had earlier in meal. Now that's weird, not
something I had ever encountered before.

Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent
wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't
drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no
promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.

DaleW wrote:
> David's 18th birthday last night (and his girlfriend's 17th), took them
> to Nobu (his request, he loves Asian food and especially Japanese- his
> grandmother is Japanese). I realize Nobu is no longer considered
> cutting edge, but I have to say the food was quite excellent overall. I
> encouraged David to try the signature miso-black cod dish, he was
> really amazed.

Dale,
Miso-glazed black cod is one of my all-time favorite seafood dishes.
Am I to take it that Nobu is credited with its creation? I ask because
I first encountered it at the San Francisco restaurant Hawthorne Lane
back in the late-'90s. Was Nobu already making it at that time?

It sounds like a great night. David is lucky to get such treatment for
his 18th (and he sounds like the kind of teenager who could enjoy it).

Mark Lipton

The NYT says Nobu introduced this dish ca. 1995

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpag... 6C0A9679C8B63

Another source says he (Nobu Matsuhisa) had previously served it as his
famous tiny place ( Matsuhisa) in LA.

It's certainly considered the restaurant's signature dish. Usually the
one thing you can count on in the omakaze.

Actually restaurant says it opened in 1994, and the black cod has been
on menu. If anyone can get black cod (fresh sable), here's the recipe:

http://www.myriadrestaurantgroup.com/nobu/recipe1.html

Mike Tommasi wrote:

> I also recall this memorable dish from Hawthorne Lane circa 1997... is
> this place still extant? It was pretty hard to get in at the time.

It is still there, though no longer as popular (or IMO as creative in
the kitchen) as it used to be. In addtion to my mind-boggling piece of
sable, one of my dining companions had a steak that was without a doubt
the single best bite of beef I've had in the past 20 years. It was so
flavorful and distinct from the store-bought stuff that it really
deserved a whole new name.

Mark Lipton

DaleW wrote:
> Actually restaurant says it opened in 1994, and the black cod has been
> on menu. If anyone can get black cod (fresh sable), here's the recipe:
>
> http://www.myriadrestaurantgroup.com/nobu/recipe1.html
>

Thanks, Dale, both for the research and the recipe. I doubt that I'll
ever see fresh sable in these parts, but who knows? I can always hope...

Mark Lipton