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Zama in pictures
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Zama in pictures
With its avant, one-of-a-kind maple-wood-laden design, handled by Jun Aikazi of creme design (Jose Garces' go-to dude), Zama (128 S. 19th St.), which opens this Saturday, Dec. 19, might catch you a little off guard. We kinda think that's the point, though. Chef/owner Hiroyuki "Zama" Tanaka, who's finally realizing his dream of owning his own spot after working for Stephen Starr (Pod, Morimoto) for years, is far � and we mean far � from your average Tuesday night California roller.
Tanaka's still-being-finalized menu will be fiercely seasonal in terms of what seafood will appear � sustainable farming practices means you can get pretty much anything you want year-round, Tanaka explains, but he feels it's important to celebrate and showcase the freshest fish, oysters, etc. at their natural peaks. Entr�es featuring pan-seared or steamed fish are described vaguely on purpose, as the centerpiece product will likely switch up weekly. "I think people will say, "He's paying attention to the market,'" says Tanaka.
He's still got some pet dishes to highlight, though, including a sizzled whitefish roll (striped bass, citrus-soy, finished with a drizzle of incredibly hot sesame oil), tofu prepared tableside in a hot pot and served with a white mushroom sauce and a New York strip steak served with a trio of green tea, smoked soy and wasabi salts. A roll called "Bullish!" � "no, not 'bullshit,'" Tanaka reassures � will consist of seared kobe atop sushi rice, paired with all manner of flavor-enhancing accompaniments, from pickled veg and chimichurri sauce to shiso leaf and pink peppercorns. (If his intricate multi-layered dish breakdowns are anything to go by, you're going to get way more than what you can read off the menu here.)
Zama's got some cool stuff going behind the bar, too,� including a gang of specialty cocktails, many of which feature Calpis, that cult-following Japanese soft drink that's best described as sweet, mineralistic milk. (Try it out in the Grasshopper-san � Midori, Calpis, vodka and Zen green tea liqueur.) Sakes both hot and cold (check out the sake-heating machine above) and a selection of hard-to-find shochu (single-distilled alcohol from Japan, which is most commonly made from barley) round out the sips.
The chef's really into branding, literally � he's got a metal brand, bearing the name Zama, that he'll use to personalize the tamago (egg cake) that goes along with his sushi. And here's one more neat in-the-works idea that should entice the utensil-savvy � Tanaka's planning a "chopstick club" that'll see customers paying a modest fee for a pair they can use every time they come in to eat. They'll keep them in a custom-built box on the sushi bar. The box, of course, will be made of wood.
FOOD WAS INCREDIBLE
[...] a Japanese soft drink described by Meal Ticket as “sweet, mineralistic [...]
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