That neighborhood Down Under the Manhattan
Bridge Overpass, DUMBO, is slowly morphing into SoHo.
Once a gritty community with cheap rents for artists, the neighborhood
is becoming a real estate developer’s wet dream with huge lofts,
commercial offices and boutiques. It’s only moments before the
makeup emporiums take root.
DUMBO’s culinary scene, too, is a work in progress. In the past
few years, good eateries like Superfine, Rice and Five Front
have sprung up, drawing, if not a crowd, then at least an awareness
of the neighborhood as a place to find a good meal.
Last September, Miso, a Japanese fusion restaurant, opened on
DUMBO’s Main Street. Its co-owner, Richard Mauro, a designer
associated with the architectural group SITE, designed the restaurant’s
layout and decor. It’s a long, narrow room, with a good yin and
yang of steel and warm, rough wood. In the evening, when the
lights are dimmed and candles are on the tables, the high tech
space becomes elegant.
Miso’s chef and co-owner goes by the name Zeo. He specializes
in the cuisine of the Shikoku area, also known as the "Magical
Islands" in southern Japan.
Mauro describes the cooking of Shikoku as "lighter and spicier
than other areas of Japan." Right now, he’s still in the
process of sourcing many of the herbs and spices from the island.
When they’re satisfied with the ingredients, more traditional
Shikoku dishes will be on the menu. Right now, only a few are
served as specials.
I don’t think you’ll miss them. The dishes that Zeo serves are
superb. The seafood, bought early each morning in Chinatown,
is so fresh that the fish flavors are sweet and crystal clear.
Cooking fish this unsullied seems pointless until you taste what
tempura batter does to the jumbo shrimp.
Zeo creates his own sauces. Their vibrancy made others I’ve tried
seem muted in comparison. His fusions of greens with meat dishes,
hot entrees like Chilean sea bass tempura with garlic butter
sauce, and the special sushi rolls like the "Sweet Heart"
– grilled eel, avocado and caviar wrapped around shrimp tempura
and topped with shiitake mushrooms – all work. The ingredients
enhance one another; nothing seems forced.
It’s a good idea to allow Zeo to select your sake. The chef knows
his liquor, and can offer both hot and cold versions. Served
warm, the sake is soothing; it’s even better served chilled.
Cold, the liquid takes on a creaminess and subtle fruit flavor
– like plum but not sweet at all – that works as a refreshing
palate cleanser.
Simple dishes like miso soup and tempura are the bread-and-butter
of any Japanese restaurant. Zeo’s miso soup has a rich soy flavor,
not salty as it’s sometimes served, and the tiny cubes of tofu
in the broth are silken. The mixed tempura was expertly fried
without a trace of oil. Slices of red pepper, eggplant and large
shrimp benefited from their light, brittle coating.
A bowl of eggplant with ginger sauce, served with jasmine rice,
is another great way to start the meal. There are shavings of
dried ginger atop the sizzling slices that do a wild, quivering
dance as the eggplant cools. The eggplant is velvety and the
ginger is pronounced but not sharp.
Equally delicious is the sushi and sashimi platter. You can taste
river stones and cold, clean water in the firm flesh of wild
salmon; tuna looks like a huge, sparkling garnet; slices of chewy
octopus, however, are an acquired taste that I’ve yet to acquire.
I loved the eel sushi with the jewel-like beads of red caviar
almost as much as the sweet, raw shrimp topped with tiny mounds
of black caviar placed to look like little eyes.
A special, which didn’t sound special to me, turned out to be
one of the best dishes of the evening. The two words I think
when I hear "teriyaki" are syrupy and sweet – not a
bad combination for something that tops ice cream, but deadly
over fish. This teriyaki however was delightful. Made with thick
filets of yellowtail, the sauce, which was not sweet at all,
served to deepen the fish’s delicate flavor.
The salt-and-pepper shrimp were just as good. The big shrimp
sprinkled with coarse salt and pepper and then sauteed in their
shells. Suck off the salty, spicy coating before chewing on the
tender shrimp. They don’t make dainty eating, but they’re wonderful.
Shikoku tuna is a heart-thumping, fireworks-in-the-mouth experience.
Zeo takes slices of fish, seers them on one side over a hot black
stone, then splashes the slices with sake. The fish remains deep
red at its center while the flash cooking brings out its deep,
meaty flavor. The aroma reminded me of burning cedar. This dish
alone is worth the trip over.
Mauro promises more desserts in addition to the excellent green
tea ice cream served now, when Zeo can find the almonds he wants
for custard. Those available now "just don’t have the flavor
of the Japanese almonds I remember," says Mauro, a taste
he found difficult to describe.
My husband, who spent a summer in Japan, can’t stop comparing
what he eats in Japanese restaurants here to what he ate in Japan,
so he’s often disappointed.
"The meal [at Miso] was almost as good as Mitsuko’s,"
Bob proclaimed, recalling the superb cooking of the mother of
the family he lived with for a summer.
For him, everything about Mitsuko is tinged with nostalgia. The
woman bowed and called him "Bobosan," greeted him at
the door each evening with an ice-cold beer, and draped a cold
towel around his neck. Another experience like that – like her
cooking – won’t be replicated anytime soon.
Miso (40 Main St. between Water and Front streets in DUMBO)
accepts Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Diners Club. Entrees:
$12-$18. The restaurant serves lunch from Monday through Saturday
and dinner seven nights a week. Free delivery in DUMBO. For reservations
call (718) 858-8388 or 858-8623.
