Soto Sushi

Another sushi restaurant that has no spicy-mayo on the menu just opened in the West Village. Sushi restaurant Soto is named after the chef Sotohiro Kosughi who had a business in Atlanta for years and recently moved to Apple City.

They still don't have the liquor license (as of June 1, 2007) so we brought our own selection of sake. The interior is clearn, with furniture and linens uniformed in white and natural wood color. A girl from Eater.com commented that it had "absolutely no ambiance." But I really appreciate this clean, brightness because Japanese do enjoy the food with taste, smell and visual aesthetic. For sushi restaurants especially, a bright interior is the proof that their seafood is fresh. You don't want to drop a dim-light over fresh seafood and fine treatment and decoration of dishes. It makes the freshness invisible to customers.

Being my boyfriend's birthday, we wanted to have the best Soto-san could offer. They were not ready with their omakase course, so we asked the waitress if Soto-san can pick up some omakase dishes from the menu. Behind the counter, he happily agreed.

Dish 1 : Super-thin sliced fluke carpacccio (Garnish and flavor of yuzu citrus and kabosu lime matched really well with this fresh, sweet fish). Dish 2: Dobin-mushi (Traditional soup. Bonito stock flavored in a dobin (little tera cotta pot,) with seafood and mitsuba-green. Absolutely comforting). Dish 3: Chu-toro tartar (I personally thought they should use less ponze vinegrette and avocado. It was a bit over-powering the chutoro itself). Dish 4: Steamed bream/snapper with scallion sauce (This was probably one of my favorite that night. Jullianed scallion adds peppery aroma and cruncy texture to the sweet glaze with a hint of sesame oil.) Dish 5: Amadai Kabura Mushi (This is very authentic Japanese dish. Steamed fish ball with graded turnip soup). Dish 6: Langoustine with mushroom cream sauce (The mushroom sauce was really yummy, a touch of marsara or something.)

After all these appetizers, we're almost hitting the wall. But, in Sushi restaurant, gotta have sushi. So I asked the chef to make 8pcs omakase nigiri with less shari (rice). This restaurant doesn't serve extra soy sauce unless you ask. But please try as it's served if you seriously love sushi. They put the right seasoning, whether it's soy sauce or salt, for each piece of sushi.

At the end of the night, we're more than happy but I was worried to open the bill. It was little over $100 per person which isn't too expensive for all what we had. The chef seemed to care every customer is happy with his dish.