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“Brushstroke”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	Asian	Tribeca	Break the Bank	Off the Charts

d. It made me wish I lived in Tribeca so we could bring Emily for an early dinner. She loves it at Hibino, and I know she would really love it at Brushstroke.

Actually, the dining room is also quite kid-friendly. An older gentleman, in a formal pinstriped suit that was probably handmade in Japan, was dining with what appeared to me to be his son, though my friend Steven thought grandson, who was all of 10 years old and in shorts, crocs and a tee-shirt. I assure you he was not eating cucumber rolls, but he was impressively enjoying same meal that Steven and I were eating, as the dining room offers only two options for dinner, both served Kaiseki-style in either eight ($85) or 10 courses ($135). You will do fine with either choice, and trust me, the price tag is well worth it.

A Kaiseki's chef skill is not only the artful meal he makes for you, but his ability to create different meals for you at every visit. So, if you were to dine at Brushstroke tonight and return (as I would like to) in a few weeks, the challenge would be first for your chef to recall your presence, and then to prepare a completely different meal. It's a major faux pas to repeat a course for a regular guest. It's a tradition that keeps the chefs on their toes, and assures the dinner guest a culinary adventure with every visit.

Our adventure, err, dinner, began with two jewel-like courses. The first, a couple of slices of alabaster sea bass wrapped roll-up style around field mustard greens (think a less bitter broccoli rabe) in a vibrant pickled plum sauce; the second a gold-trimmed beveled glass bowl filled with asparagus terrine blanketed with briny sea urchin in a puddle of cauliflower puree. It was like a brilliant thunderstorm followed by a rainbow.

Soup and dumplings were next: a soft, tender orb made from scallop, bster and mountain yam (of course) that I'd like, heretofore, to replace my matzo balls on Passover, please. In fact, all of my future commitments to chicken soup are hereby reneged as well; I'll take the sensational cherry clam dashi instead. I shamelessly gobbled up this course. While the food was elegant, refined, and delicate, I was not. I ate with gusto, as my friend Julie would proudly say.

Every Kaiseki meal also includes a sashimi  course, and ours included luscious slices of yellowtail and equally gorgeous toro: rose colored and marbled with pearly fat that melted in my mouth in the way I imagine warm c ... [more, click below]

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Posted: June 22, 2011

Other restaurants in Tribeca :
+ Lunchbox Food Company--Closed   + 66: THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED   + Ola-- Closed   + Bouley   + Dominic   + Landmarc   + Pace-- Closed   + EN Japanese Brasserie   + Centrico   + Cercle Rouge   + The Harrison   + Turks & Frogs Tribeca   + Devin Tavern   + Dani-- Closed Now   + Bacaro/Smith & Mills   + The Harrison   + Matsugen, By Guest Reviewer Kathleen Squires   + Forge   + Macao Trading Company   + Harbour   + Review text tbd...   + Mehtaphor   + Brushstroke   + Jung Sik   

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