GENERAL INFORMATION
Japanese
Midtown East
213 East 45th Street
New York, NY 10017 (map this)
T: 212.867-5454
Website:
Hours:
Mon - Fri: 11:30am - 2:30pm
Mon - Sat: 5:30pm - 11pm
Sun: 5:30pm - 10:30pm
Theatrics and beauty play a huge part in the dining experience at Aburiya Kinnosuke.
Even the entryway is sexy. A subtle sign outside glows, but you can’t see into the restaurant from the street, just the wood-lined foyer.
Once downstairs, you’ll notice small intimate dining rooms with sliding doors and loose curtains that make up most of the restaurant. In the back, there’s a section of two tops and the bar seating around the open-kitchen robata, where bandana-clad chefs prep and cook right in front of you. If you’re lucky, you’ll witness their expertise as they filet a whole fish counter-side.
Be Brave
This is not Americanized California roll type cuisine. They cater to a Japanese crowd where even the daily specials are printed in Japanese characters. The menu, at first, can seem overwhelming. If your head starts to spin, you can opt for the prix fixe menu. During the day, $16 goes a long way with a prix fixe multi-course lunch. At dinner, there are usually two 8-course options with prices ranging from $45 to $60.
We recommend trying a selection of dishes on your first visit to fully appreciate the variety of what the menu offers. For many of the dishes, they are presented with not only a precision of purpose that you would expect, but a pizzaz and flair that gets you excited to experience the dish. Dried skate fin arrives with a table-top Shichirin (七輪) charcoal grill, Scottish salmon comes in a salt crust with a mallet for breaking the block, pyramid-shaped rice balls open to reveal the contents of choice (the itty-bitty sardines look like they’re trying to swim away). Homemade tofu arrives in bamboo baskets with three different salts for seasoning; yuzu citrus, wasabi, and sea salt. We loved the custard omelet. It was simple looking, but jumped with sweet and savory flavors. Another one of our favorites was the sea eel with lemon and fresh wasabi. The eel was grilled and served with a side of crispy, crunchy eel bones. Everything about this dish had us screaming for more - if only our stomachs could manage another portion.
Be Your Own Bartender
There is a full sake and shochu list and a small beer selection. But the wining presentation is the grapefruit shochu (the Japanese equivalent to vodka) cocktail. It arrives with a half-grapefruit and a juicer, which means you do the squeezing yourself. At least you know you are using fresh juice.
Lost in Translation
Dining at Aburiya Kinnosuke is like traveling to Japan, right down to taking a leap of faith when ordering - you’ll feel like you’re never quite sure what you ordered. But truthfully, it’s that authentic feel that keeps bringing us back.
WHAT
Traditional Japanese restaurant with an emphasis on grilled fish.
WHY
It’s like visiting Tokyo in New York City.
ABURIYA KINNOSUKE
December 10, 2009
MULTI-MEDIA
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