Iron Chef Morimoto

Happy Thursday my lovely foodies!

September has been exceptionally good to me thus far. I was lucky enough to dine at 2 different Morimoto restaurants in ONE week. Over the labor day weekend, we rounded up a group of friends and headed out to Napa Valley with a delicious itinerary. Morimoto Napa is a must if you are in town! The lunch menu seems to be relatively similar to the dinner menu, excluding a few dinner entrees.

Although Morimoto Napa was the one to introduce me into the mouth watering world of the Iron Chef, Morimoto NY blew me away. In fact so much that we went two times!

New York brings restaurant dining to a whole new level. There is an undeniably chic ambience that I just can't resist. Upon entering, there are two automatic glass sliding doors that lead you into the restaurant where you face a sparkling lit wall. The first night we had reservations for a table downstairs. New York tends to have a club/lounge vibe with dimmed lights and happy people everywhere! The second night, we walked in for a seat at the sushi bar upstairs (always the best seats in the house IMO). Here, you get to see the selection of fresh cuts available as well as any special preparations being made. Sadly, we did not see the Iron Chef himself either of the two nights.

Now lets get to the good stuff! Morimoto NY has a slightly different menu from Morimoto Napa. The popular dishes like toro tartare, spicy king crab legs, and rock shrimp tempura are seen at both locations (no uni carbonara in NY, booo!). We decided to pick a bunch of things that we haven't already tried in Napa.

First things first, we ordered a carafe of the house daiginjo sake to accompany our meal. The live scallop carpaccio with yuzu emulsion and shaved avocado slices was to die for! The presentation was amazing, but the taste might have been even better...those sweet live scallops were divine. Next, we had the tuna pizza which to my surprise was also very good! Who am I kidding though? I have yet to be disappointed. The crisp flat bread with creamy tuna and anchovy aioli was like a match made in heaven. The dobin mushi is a traditional Japanese soup that is very delicate and healthful. It came in a cute little teapot with maitake mushrooms as well as the very special matsutake mushroom--only available during the fall season. We ordered a few pieces of sushi to finish off our appetizer round before getting to the entrees. I could go on forever! Always make sure to ask what special fish they have available that night.

The chu toro, mirugai, abalone, and baby kanpachi were the highlights. We saw our chef prepare some smoked bonito the night we sat at the bar and decided we had to have it also. Sadly, nothing will ever come close to 3 Michelin Star Chef Yoshitake's bonito in Tokyo.

The food at Morimoto NY brings it up a few notches and is arguably better than Morimoto Napa. How is that possible? The flavors are fresh and creative with a fusion flair. I do love the dessert that Napa has to offer though (try the panna cotta with mango caviar!). Nonetheless, both are good stuff and definitely worth a visit.

Well that's it for today folks. (Bathroom selfie!) Be happy, smile, and keep dreaming...and eating!

xoxo,
C