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“Ono”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	Asian	MeatPacking	Moderate	Great

s pouring drinks here and for all you women who know who I am talking about, you’ll want to go visit him at Ono. He is just as dashing as ever.) But anyway, they are all superheroes in my book because these drinks are amazing. We had three—The Blushing Geisha ($14)—a champagne flute filled with a lovely rose-colored combination of shochu, white grape juice, and prosecco, The Blue Yuzu ($14)—a neon blue margarita-like cocktail made from 100% Blue Agave tequila, lemongrass syrup, and Japanese Yuzu, and The Kimono ($14)—our favorite—an ethereal sipper made from Mandarin puree, 42 Below Vodka, and Prosecco.

After the cocktails, we entered (wobbling slightly) the loft-like dining room and were face to face with a vast space filled with deep red banquettes, glossy espresso-toned tables, and lit with discreet pinpoint spots and overhead chandeliers that resemble paper-lanterns. A grand staircase stands across from backlit walls lined with oversized sake bottles, and a long sushi bar stretches out to line one side of the restaurant, filled with mini icebergs displaying all manner of recently living seafood.

Once tucked into your banquet you will have to deal with the massive menu, which includes small plates, apps, soups and custards, noodles and salads, tempura, the robata grill (skewers and chops), nigiri, futomaki, o no rice rolls and o yes rice rolls, and finally a category called “very large plates.” A Power Point presentation would not be unwelcome at this point. Navigating this menu is tough work. Like China Grill, ONO is a wise choice for a large group of friends who like to share. This way, you can order a ton of food and taste a lot of dishes because the menu is really good and it would be a shame to leave out certain categories of food.

While we were figuring out what to order, we proceeded to put a major dent in our bottle of sake—the Wakatame, a fantastic daiginjo also called Demon Slayer. Needless to say, by the night's end, we were slayed.

The menu at Ono is in the care of a pair of two chefs—each one interpreting Japan through a different lens. Kazu Hashimoto, formerly of Megu and Brasserie 360, turns out a wild variety of nigiri, maki, and a slew of delicious items from the robata grill—open flame, bincho tan charcoal cooking (this charcoal is made from Northern Japanese oak). Chef Scott Ubert, who was most recently at David Burke and Donatella ... [more, click below]

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Posted: October 31, 2004

Other restaurants in MeatPacking :
+ Paradou   + Florent   + One   + Bivio   + Spice Market   + Ono   + 5 Ninth   + Fatty Crab   + Del Posto   + Morimoto   + Los Dados   + 5 Ninth   + Merkato 55   + Scarpetta   + The John Dory   + The Standard Grill   + Bill's Bar & Burger   

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