Kappo Masa
“I heard they have an Omakase (Chef's tasting menu) on the opposite side of the lounge and want to try it out the next time I visit.”
“The Peking duck foie gras mini tacos where absolutely delicious and complemented quite spectacularly with an aged sake.”
Kappo Masa
Takes Reservations: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$$$$ Price range Above $61
3 reviews
Rate and write a review Cancel reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
This is a good, but expensive Japanese restaurant where the hype does not match the food. Three of us had a good meal. Standouts were the sushi and beef dishes, as well as the coco sesame and green tea thousand layer cake. However at a $200 plus per person tab including drinks and tip, one has to ask if it is worth the expense. Here the answer is a resounding "no". There are much better and less expensive Japanese restaurants in NYC.
The epitome of "expensive but worth it." The duck salad to start blew us away, only to be topped by the duck/foie gras tacos. The sushi wasn't unusual, but it was as fresh as it can get and the rolls were generously sized. We had a gluten free pasta made from fish that was unexpectedly delicious. The somm had great wine and bubble suggestions, and knew sake like nobody else. Fantastic and attentive service. Truly a special sushi experience.
Always hearing about the stupid prices at the well-known sushi bar Masa, I've never even bothered going. Now, with the new Kappo Masa opening, apparently a less formal, less pricey version, I figured it was a good chance to try Chef Masa's sushi.
After taking the elevator down from the Gagosian Art Gallery to the basement level, we entered the swanky dining room, with at least 10 men and women in suits to not quite greet us, but to stare at us as we wondered which direction the hostess's stand was. We finally spotted it through this sea of employees meandering around, and were shortly after shown to our table.
Once I quickly perused the menu, I thought about how ridiculous the supposedly higher priced Masa must be. Other than the $16 or $18 soups and salads, everything else on the first page of the menu was around $30 to $40. There was also the Seared Japanese Ohmi Beef Sashimi that our waiter made a point of recommending, which was $120.
The menu is enormous, with tons of choices in several sections spanning four pages. If there were no prices listed, I would have gladly ordered tons of stuff, but in the interest of keeping the dinner to a reasonable level, we just ordered a few things, at being careful not to order the especially ludicrously priced items:
– Beef Garlic Fried Rice ($28)
This was very delicious, but was still just a very tiny portion of fried rice that wasn't really better than you can get at many Japanese restaurants. The only difference was that this one was nearly thirty bucks instead of three bucks.
– Unagi with Cucumber Temaki Handroll ($34)
Not actually a handroll, but four small pieces of eel semi-wrapped in some seaweed with some rice. Again, $34 for these few small bites was just criminal.
– Spicy Tuna with Crispy Green Chili Roll ($22)
A good take on your typical spicy tuna, this was a delicious roll, with 8 very well-made pieces.
– Yellowtail with Scallion Roll ($18)
Also a very good roll, closest to a reasonably priced item, but still not quite.
– Toro Sashimi ($15) and Salmon ($6)
Each order of sashimi comes with two pieces, but they probably add up to the size of one decent piece. They were pretty good, but nothing better than some of the other top sushi places in NYC.
OK, sure, we got mostly white people Japanese restaurant type choices, but it was the only stuff that didn't seem too expensive to enjoy (who wants to order the Uni Risotto for $48? Or the Toro Toro Roll for $68?)
I understand that this is a restaurant in an art gallery on Madison Avenue, so the prices aren't going to be fair, but this just seemed out of control. The pieces of sashimi were so minuscule, and while good, were just hard to enjoy knowing what each bite was costing.
They were offering two desserts, a Miso Creme Brulee and Black Sesame Ice Cream, but I was too scared to order them since they weren't listed on the menu.
If I ever come into some money that I can burn for no reason, I'll be back here to try some more of that extensive menu. Otherwise, never again.