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“Bar Masa”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	Asian	Midtown	Moderate	Good

BAR MASA

I went over to see what Stephan Trummer, the fabulous bar chef formerly of Citarella, was up to over at Bar Masa. Well, lots of good stuff. Sure, the sushi menu here is reason enough to visit, but Trummer’s artisan cocktails make food (sort of) unnecessary.

As you might expect, Trummer’s fresh-juiced creations are all worth a sip, so bring friends, order lots and have yourself a little cocktail party on the fly. I highly recommend the Kin Kan ($15), made with Ohayama sake, Grey Goose Orange, fresh kumquats and grapefruit, served in a clear crystal beaker, in a wooden bowl of ice to keep your drink cold. The bowl and beaker set come with these precious sake cups hand-crafted from light-as-air wood from Hinoki trees grown in Masa’s hometown in Japan. (To keep the wood fresh, the dishwashers must wash and hand sand these cups every night after service. I wonder what the ad on Craig’s List for that job reads like? Seeking dishwashers with artisan sanding techniques. Please bring resume and wood file?)

Another haute cocktail that deserves a slurp is the Asian Dawn ($16) a delicious sipper shaken from Tanqueray Ten, Shinokura sake, fresh yuzu juice, and grapefruit sorbet that gives the top of the drink a coating of slushy frost, like an icy lake starting to thaw in spring. The Basil Fragolini ($14), made from fresh strawberry juice, basil and champagne is like a bright taste of summer in a glass—a luscious balance of herbs and sweetness that wake up your tongue.

While the cocktails can certainly be dinner alone (Lord knows a liquid diet has many a night been my supper), after tossing back several, we decided to settle in for some chow and see what all the fuss about Masa’s was for ourselves.

Bar Masa—the Ready to Wear line to Masa’s haute couture nextdoor—is a narrow sliver of a sushi bar, a warm, minimalist space with a long bar, and a few cozy blond wood tables secreted behind sheer burgundy linen curtains. The menu offers diners a chance to taste chef Masa’s infamous sushi and sashimi stylings without biting the $300-$500 per person price tag of his flagship. I don’t get how he is going to keep those prices up, but hey, I am a freelance writer without the ability to spend a grand on dinner. But apparently there are at least ten people a night (there are only ten seats at Masa) who have one month’s rent to pay for raw fish.

The menu at Bar Masa is short but includes some very tasty mor ... [more, click below]

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Posted: April 21, 2004

Other restaurants in Midtown :
+ Lever House   + Aquavit   + RM   + Joseph's (formerly Citarella The Restaurant)   + Town   + Artisanal   + The Oyster Bar   + Geisha   + David Burke and Donatella Restaurant   + Riingo   + Amma   + Cafe Sabarsky   + The Stone Rose Lounge   + BLT Steak   + V, The Steakhouse-- Closed   + Bar Masa   + Cafe Gray   + The Bar Room at The Modern   + The Cafe at Aquavit   + The Cafe at Aquavit   + Bistro du Vent-- Closed   + Shaburi   + Xing   + The Modern   + Bar Americain   + Alto   + Park Blue   + Mainland-- Closed   + Nobu 57   + Quality Meats   + Dona-- CLOSED   + Daisy May's   + 7Square-- CLOSED   + Amalia   + Fireside   + Anthos   + Patroon   + BLT Market   + Toloache   + Mia Dona   + Park Avenue Summer   + Convivio   + The Oak Room by guest reviewer Julie Besonen   + At Vermilion by guest reviewer Elaine Weiner   + Lunching at Inakaya, by guest reviewer Kathleen Squires   + Marea, by Guest Reviewer Susan Kane Walkush   + Le Bernardin   + New York Central -- A Reason To Eat at the Grand Hyatt Again   + Pampano Botaneria by Dara Pollak   

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