Ootoya - Chelsea
What's the first thing you think of when you hear the words "Japanese food"? Most likely sushi, tempura, or maybe ramen, all dishes that have proliferated across the West and americanized to please the public's palate. However, like any other culture, Japanese society is built upon the home cooking of mothers and grandmothers. As eaters, we often forget the importance of the food we grew up on, food that was both nutritious yet delicious, food that nourished not just our bodies but our hearts, food that we could always go back to and be reminded of home. In Japanese, this style of food is called "ofukuro no aji", or "taste of mom's home cooking". Unlike kaiseki restaurants that aim to impress diners with the finesse and artistic progression of a multi-course meal, places like Ootoya emphasize balance and health through the use of simple but good quality ingredients. Eager to try home cooking outside of home, we headed off to Ootoya's Chelsea location.
With its wood-paneled walls, mahogany screens, and clean layout, Ootoya immediately transported us into a setting that had the essence of a Japanese home. It was comforting, warm, and inviting, but exciting at the same time since we were seated at the bar and could see the bustling of the kitchen. As in most authentic restaurants, before beginning the meal, we were served buckwheat tea. Roasted and toasty, the tea helped us shake off the January cold.
The menu was quite extensive and first-timers may feel overwhelmed by the plethora of options, which ranged from homemade sobas, to rice bowls with meat or raw fish, to yakitori. There was also Silky Pork, grilled fish, Washu beef, sashimi, and even hot pot. All options could come as a set, or "teishoku", meaning the entrees would be accompanied with side dishes, soup, and rice. After much pondering and rethinking, we decided to go with cold Tororo Seiro Soba to share, the Shima Hokke (grilled Atka mackerel), Gyu Shio Koji (grilled sliced Washu beef), and Kaisen Don (assorted sashimi bowl). We ordered all of them as sets, expecting the portion size to be small compared to Western standards.
Except we were very wrong. The Shima Hokke set, for example, came with a large, thick filet of fish, a bowl of rice, steamed egg custard, miso soup, pickled vegetables, marinated squash, grated mountain yam, and some crunchy vegetable I could not name. The fish had been slathered with a sweet and savory soy-based sauce and grilled to perfection, giving it a nice caramelization on the outside, while still preserving the tenderness and moisture of the meat. The steamed egg custard was simple and similar to other Asian versions, but that did not make its warm, delicate texture any less comforting. To clean the palate after a bite of fish, I would suggest to eat a bit of the pickled vegetables and drink some miso soup. Surprisingly, one of my favorite parts of the set was the marinated squash, which I thought went nicely with the sticky glutinous rice. I wasn't exactly sure how to eat the grated yam, but it seemed to pair well with the fish.
For the Guy Shio Koji, the Washu beef slices had been marinated in a salt-marinated rice koji (a type of fungus). The meat was definitely tender, but it lacked a rich beef flavor and was overall not as impressive as the grilled fish. However, adding a dab of wasabi did enhance the taste. It was served upon a hefty portion of rice, with a scoop of mashed potato and a small side salad, and like other set, there were pickled vegetables, miso soup, and egg custard.
The winner of the night had to be the Kaisen Don, which was basically a bowl of sushi rice topped with assorted sashimi, including blue-fin tuna, Scottish salmon, uni, simmered sea eel, salmon roe, and egg. There was more than enough rice, but it had been seasoned so well that it was tempting to first stuff myself on rice and eat the sashimi later. That would have been a pity because all the fish were incredibly fresh and the uni was as creamy and rich as it should be.
Despite how full we felt, the cold soup soba noodles had to be tried. It came with grated mountain yam (the kind used in the Shima Hokke set) that was to be poured over the noodles. Though the broth itself was simple, it had great umami and the gooey yam puree complimented the al dente noodles.
Of course, is dinner really dinner without dessert? We decided to get the "Anmitsu", which consisted of green tea jelly topped with mochi and red beans, bathed in sweet milk, and drizzled with brown sugar syrup. Nothing too exotic but it really hit the spot.
Ootoya is definitely a restaurant I would visit again, probably to try some of their other popular dishes such as the breaded fried chicken with poached egg or one of their hot pots. I would also get the mini version of the Kaisen Don, which has less rice and is cheaper, but unfortunately lacks the uni. If you go with a group, get one of the entrees as a set to try the side dishes, but order everything else a la carte so you have more room to try different varieties.
With its wood-paneled walls, mahogany screens, and clean layout, Ootoya immediately transported us into a setting that had the essence of a Japanese home. It was comforting, warm, and inviting, but exciting at the same time since we were seated at the bar and could see the bustling of the kitchen. As in most authentic restaurants, before beginning the meal, we were served buckwheat tea. Roasted and toasty, the tea helped us shake off the January cold.
The menu was quite extensive and first-timers may feel overwhelmed by the plethora of options, which ranged from homemade sobas, to rice bowls with meat or raw fish, to yakitori. There was also Silky Pork, grilled fish, Washu beef, sashimi, and even hot pot. All options could come as a set, or "teishoku", meaning the entrees would be accompanied with side dishes, soup, and rice. After much pondering and rethinking, we decided to go with cold Tororo Seiro Soba to share, the Shima Hokke (grilled Atka mackerel), Gyu Shio Koji (grilled sliced Washu beef), and Kaisen Don (assorted sashimi bowl). We ordered all of them as sets, expecting the portion size to be small compared to Western standards.
Except we were very wrong. The Shima Hokke set, for example, came with a large, thick filet of fish, a bowl of rice, steamed egg custard, miso soup, pickled vegetables, marinated squash, grated mountain yam, and some crunchy vegetable I could not name. The fish had been slathered with a sweet and savory soy-based sauce and grilled to perfection, giving it a nice caramelization on the outside, while still preserving the tenderness and moisture of the meat. The steamed egg custard was simple and similar to other Asian versions, but that did not make its warm, delicate texture any less comforting. To clean the palate after a bite of fish, I would suggest to eat a bit of the pickled vegetables and drink some miso soup. Surprisingly, one of my favorite parts of the set was the marinated squash, which I thought went nicely with the sticky glutinous rice. I wasn't exactly sure how to eat the grated yam, but it seemed to pair well with the fish.
For the Guy Shio Koji, the Washu beef slices had been marinated in a salt-marinated rice koji (a type of fungus). The meat was definitely tender, but it lacked a rich beef flavor and was overall not as impressive as the grilled fish. However, adding a dab of wasabi did enhance the taste. It was served upon a hefty portion of rice, with a scoop of mashed potato and a small side salad, and like other set, there were pickled vegetables, miso soup, and egg custard.
The winner of the night had to be the Kaisen Don, which was basically a bowl of sushi rice topped with assorted sashimi, including blue-fin tuna, Scottish salmon, uni, simmered sea eel, salmon roe, and egg. There was more than enough rice, but it had been seasoned so well that it was tempting to first stuff myself on rice and eat the sashimi later. That would have been a pity because all the fish were incredibly fresh and the uni was as creamy and rich as it should be.
Ootoya is definitely a restaurant I would visit again, probably to try some of their other popular dishes such as the breaded fried chicken with poached egg or one of their hot pots. I would also get the mini version of the Kaisen Don, which has less rice and is cheaper, but unfortunately lacks the uni. If you go with a group, get one of the entrees as a set to try the side dishes, but order everything else a la carte so you have more room to try different varieties.
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