Matsuri Recommendations??

[FoodDude2]

So what dishes are can't miss?? Anything off the Japanese menu that are must trys??

I have read the Matsuri Rissoti is great and the Hotate yaki are great. Any others??

[MACCHIATO]

Most stuff I tried were good so far. These are my favorites.
Traditional: Chutoro soyzuke, Bluefin otoro, Negitoro Yukke (all tuna sashimi variations)
Madai, Kampachi, Uni, Tsubugai, Aburi Otoro( torched) as Sushi
Gindara misoyaki, Asari sakamushi (steamed clams), Nabeyaki Udon as hot
stuff.
New fusion: Beef Carpaccio, Risotto, Caribbean roll, Tonshabu
Japanese menu: Una don (big eel over the rice), Gyu don( beef omlett with rice),
Negitoro don, Sanshoku don (toro, uni, ikura on top)

I'd like to know more recommendations from others.

[FoodDude2]

Anyone know if they are still serving monkfish liver (ankimo) as a special??

[FoodDude2]

Heres what I ended up with.

Udon Soup---Good but unremarkable

Hotate Yaki--Garlic Scallop--Delicious lightly cooked scallops with garlic.

Shrimp Tempura--Good but unremarkable

OToro Sashimi--Best dish of the night. Fantastic. Slightly firm and soft texture that melts in your mouth.

Americana Roll--Good but no big deal

Nigri Sushi--Very good. Had the usual assortment but also one piece that was either a clam or some other shellfish. I enjoyed that very much. Tasted like the sea with a slight crunch to it.

Japanese Uni Sushi--Was imported from Japan rather than the regular Uni they get. Really good. Was very creamy, almost sweet, and fresh. Didn't have any irony aftertaste or bitterness at all.

Steamed Shrimp Dumplings--Good but unremarkable. Very light and fresh.

Crunch Hip Hop Roll--No big deal. I think it was a spicy tuna roll with tempura bits.

--I wish I had gotten more sashimi. Overall some things were great and everything else was good. The only complaint was they brought out almost all the food at once but I should have known that and ordered in stages instead of ordering it all at once. Total bill with tip was I think $100.

[mikek]

Last night I ordered something new (for me) that was under their "new age" dishes, with rice cooked in a hot pot with soy sauce and veggies, 6 BIG slices of raw tuna and a quail egg to put on the top...absolutely delicious.

[Blind Mind]

The bluefin sashimi is very good. I usually start with gyoza and the hotate yaki and then freestyle from there haha. Uni sashimi is usually the closer.

[FoodDude2]

Thanks. For a restaurant that has so many fans on here, I am surprised there are not more favorites out there like there are for Hiro's

[Frodnesor]

There's a good bit more information on this thread (which is the first you turn up if you search for "Matsuri" and sort by relevance), especially once you get past the sturm and drang over their brief closing last year for remodeling->
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/442337

I think you see more commentary on particular dishes at Yakko-San than for Matsuri b/c Matsuri is more of a straight-ahead sushi restaurant (though there are some more "exotic" cooked dishes) while Yakko-San is izakaya-style with many different cooked dishes.

I've been to Matsuri a couple times recently, not enough to feel like I really know the menu all that well, moreso b/c I was really focusing just on sushi (and I'm also not a big fan of silly rolls, of which they have several). The sushi was among the best quality I've had locally. The one "new world" dish I had, a "chu chu tako" with octopus and a spicy sauce, was only OK. The itamae was somewhat distant and unfriendly (I asked him what was particularly good today and he said "Everything."), but that's not atypical if you're not a familiar face.

[mom2mateo]

Frod: I went to Matsuri back in the 80s when they first opened it and "masa" was a friendly happy guy. He had a concotion I called salmon pate that I would crave and get take out once a week. Masa is not so friendly anymore and don't try to ask for salmon pate because they don't know what I am talking about. It is almost like they are trying to forget they use to be a dark dingy hole in the wall. However, the food is of superior quality which for raw fish is an absolute must. I once went for lunch and on their English menu they have a great bento lunch for eight dollars that they serve in square boxes. Next to me were Japanese patrons who were having bento lunch but in rectangle boxes. I said I wanted what they were having and enjoyed a wonderful trio of fish over rice. Eel, tuna and Ikura so fresh and delicious. I was so happy. Until, I got the bill. The Japanese bento box lunch was eighteen dollars! So I will stick to the english menu from now on. My new favorite must order is the salmon skin salad but please other chows feel free to try different dishes and report back. I love to hear other favorites! And really nothing is horrible in this place.

[Blind Mind]

FoodDude, the bottom line is that pretty much everything there is good.

[FoodDude2]

That seems like the general consensus. I was looking for some Japanese menu items to try since I can't read Japanese at all. Perhaps I'll just ask the waitress to make some recommendations.

Thanks for the help guys and girls.

[tpigeon]

Their plain stuff is good too and so is the whitehouse roll