We arrived promptly at 8 PM and were seated right off the bat which I loved. The hostess was super friendly which I wasn’t expecting from a more “upscale trendy” sushi establishment. The decor was really cool and modern, we were seated on the top floor which was a little crowded and loud but not too overbearing. The server was attentive, friendly and didn’t once rush us even though it was a crowded Thursday night during restaurant week.
I started with the lychee martini which was really just straight up chilled orange vodka in a pretty glass accompanied by two plump lycees on the side but at $14 a pop I wasn’t complaining. My girlfriend ordered the shisito pepper margarita with shisito pepper agave, alma tequila, lime, yuzu lemon foam and a pickled shisito pepper which was also on the strong side but tasty (minus the pepper…don’t bite the pepper)! Better left as decoration.
We both began our meals with the ginger salad that at first appeared boring and undressed, but was in fact delish! Crispy tempura on top a bed of green leafy lettuce in a ginger dressing really got the evening off to a good start.
The prix fixe menu came with a choice of 3 pc sushi rolls (spicy tuna and salmon avocado) or sashimi (tuna, yellowtail, salmon) and either the broiled sea bass marinated in saikyo miso or the NY strip steak with 12 year balsamic as your main dish. We decided to both get the sushi rolls and then one sea bass and one steak and share. Also on the plate you received a "bento box", a tasting of 3 appetizers including about four of the Spicy Crispy Shrimp with chipotle aioli, a steamed yuba dumpling which is a chicken dumpling with sesame tofu and a piece of Age Dashi Tofu which is crispy tofu in a vegetable soy broth. The crispy shrimp were AMAZING! So crisp and coated with the chipotle aioli sauce made it ten times better! The chicken dumpling was fresh tasting but couldn’t really stand up to the shrimp. I have to say I was not impressed at all with the dashi tofu…it tasted very bland and had an extremely weird texture I really wasn’t a fan of.
The spicy tuna roll was good…I usually don’t like the black seeds that cover your rolls on occasion but I thought it added some nice texture this time. The salmon roll also tasted very fresh which is a feat as I’ve had my far share of fishy salmon in NYC and that was not the case here.
The sea bass with the miso marinade melted in your mouth. So tasty with the miso marinade and perfectly cooked; my favorite part of the meal.
The steak was also prepared very well, served medium and was juicy and flavorful. It had a bed of steamed kale underneath that really added a nice touch to the essence of the steak.
For desert I was sold on the lychee panna cotta with a strawberry rhubarb compote…anything strawberry rhubarb and I’m there with bells on! I thought it was simple and creamy yet delicious with the compote.
My girlfriend ordered the chocolate meltdown with expresso ice cream and fresh cream. As you can see from the pic it looked lovely! I thought the ice cream was creamy with hints of expresso throughout each bite but the meltdown let me down…tasting a little dry and like I could have got it out of an Entenmann's box.
Overall Little Star gives Bondst 2.5 stars, I thought the food was good with some hits and misses, the service was great and I would go back for a restaurant week experience. However, for the normally price menu I don't think its worth it as a sit down dinner...perhaps for some rolls and drinks at the bar with the girls.
Happy Eating!
Little Star
oxox
Excellent review LS :)
ReplyDeleteDon't bite the pepper! xoxo