If you enjoy a high-end Japanese tasting menu, Shuraku NYC is the place for you! With the finest seafood, meats and poultry from around the world, they prepare it all on their binchotan grill.
We recently had a delicious experience at the recently open Shuraku NYC, located in the West Village.
This high-end spot opened on mid November. “Shu” means place of gathering, but its small door and façade makes it a gem hidden in one of Manhattan’s busy Avenues. We love it, of course!
As they explained:
“Chef Joe and Head Chef Ryunosuke Satoh met working at Tori Shin. Chef Joe says, ‘We learned from the best. I went to my favorite Japanese restaurant in New York and asked for a job.’ They recruited similarly disciplined colleagues from Ushiwakamaru and began testing their menus in Joe’s home kitchen. The result is a shared vision that is at once very Japanese and very NYC.”
The front part of the restaurant hosts clients interested in having the a la carte menu but, the back room is where the magic happens!
To start, the private 12-seat wooden counter permits you to be inches from the chefs. The experience starts when you witness the magic happening in that small kitchen area.
But, don’t underestimate it though, for they make miracle charcoal-grilled dishes in that space.
“Our simple preparations are meant to enhance and complement the natural flavor of our choice ingredients.”
There, they offer their famous Tasting Menu, that changes seasonally.
The food is prepared on a traditional Japanese binchotan grill, and served on dishes made in Japan specifically for each item on the menu. Cool, right?
“Binchō-tan, also called white charcoal or binchō-zumi, is a type of charcoal traditionally used in Japanese cooking. The fineness and high quality of binchō-tan are attributed to steaming at high temperatures (about 1000 degrees Celsius).
Although it is often thought that binchō-tan burns hot, it actually burns at a lower temperature than ordinary charcoal but for a longer period, making it preferable by a number of chefs. Because it does not release unpleasant odours, it is a favorite of unagi (freshwater eel) and yakitori (skewered chicken) cooks.” ~ Wikipedia
Moreover, their current Winter Tasting Menu is an 8-course meal that will challenge all your taste buds with different textures, tastes and flavor combinations. The creativity is evident in all the dishes!
Take a look it:
- 1st course: Sakizuke – Oboro tofu with dashi soy & wasabi
- 2nd course: Oshinogi – Miyazaki beef sushi with nappa cabbage Ohitashi
- 3rd course: Zensai – Fluke kobujime with karasumi and mentaiko monfish liver with ginger soy sauce
- 4th course: Yakitori – Chicken oyster with lemon, Magret duck with Tokyo scallion and Yuzu kosho pork jowl with hibiki miso
- 5th course: Hashiyasume – Japanese turnip in white miso soup
- 6th course: Grilled Entrée – Washu beef (culotte) with cipollini onion, carabineros prawn with cherry tomato, hokkaido scallop
- 7th course: Noodle – Inaniwa Udon, Ume Tororo
- 8th course: Dessert – Satsuma sweet potato ice cream
Sounds amazing, right?
Well, we did try a few of these dishes during our visit and a couple additional ones! They were fantastic!
This is what we tried during our visit:
- Entrée dish with veggies
- Sakizuke – Oboro tofu with dashi soy & wasabi
- Edamame
- Grilled asparagus
- Marinated fried chicken – Karaage
- Hashiyasume – Japanese turnip in white miso soup
- Cipollini onion with sake and soy
- Sea Eel-Anago – white grill sea eel from Tsukiji
- Yakitori – Chicken oyster with lemon, Magret duck with Tokyo scallion and Yuzu kosho pork jowl with hibiki miso
And for dessert, we tried a bit of each option:
- Yazu cheese cake
- Black sesame ice cream
- Satsuma sweet potato ice cream
We definitely loved all 3 dessert options, but the black sesame ice cream is surely the most unique one!
The chef that took care if us, was Chef Sho, and he was fantastic! Super friendly, perfectly explained every dish and made us feel part of the experience – not only customers on the other side of the counter.
In addition, for their 1st Christmas Dinner they created another super unique tasting menu – the “Feast of the Seven Fishes” omakase.
FYI, “omakase” means a chef-curated meal, so the chef choses it all! Definitely a thrill!
“Christmas is coming, so in late December we’ll also let just a little bit of Italian-American heritage shine through. Chef Joe Conti’s Brooklyn Italian roots have inspired our Feast of the Seven Fishes omakase. Chef Sato and Chef Joe have put together a special 8 course tasting menu.”
So, take a look and ! Seating starts at 5:30pm!
For all other reservations, click here. If you’re organizing a Corporate Event, let our experts cater to your needs!
Hours:
Wednesday: 5:30pm – 10pm
Thursday – Saturday: 5:30pm – 11pm
Sunday: 5:30pm – 10pm
Location: 47 8th Avenue
Photo Credit: ©Behind the Scenes NYC and Courtesy of Shuraku
*Last Update on Feb/2020.*