This evening, skillfully grilled meats and seafood will make their grand debut at TEISUI, a new yakitori kaiseki restaurant opening up in NoMad. The sleek eatery joins other omakase-style yakitori spots like Tori Shin, presenting 10 courses of artfully-plated grilled chicken, duck and also rice. They're even grilling rocks—more on that later.
The restaurant bills itself as a spiritual sibling to a Japanese Ryokan hotel, where dining is the primary purpose and guests receive special meals delivered to their rooms one dish at a time. Courses at TEISUI begin with a special off-menu amuse bouche of creamy egg custard studded with foie gras and topped with an edamame puree and lobes of amber uni.
From there, dishes are handed across the dark counter—you'll want to sit here, with full view of the grill and plating—like the beautiful Kamo Mushi-Yaki, tender duck breast topped with orange rind and served with a zesty herb salad with yuzu dressing.
As with any experience with a view into the cooking process, it's fun to watch the chefs carefully turn skewers of chicken breast over the flame and see the styling of the dish on the plate. There's drama for the diners, too, especially in piercing a golden poached egg yolk with seasoned chicken meatballs and the pleasing sizzle and fragrant steam bath when a hot rock from Mt. Fuiji gets added into a wooden pail of miso soup.
The 10 courses go for $150, a reasonable price especially considering that service is included. In addition, there are sake ($95) and wine ($90) pairings available as a supplement. Offerings during a recent press preview included a mineraly Pinot Gris from California, as well as a sake brewed specifically in extra cold temperatures.
246 Fifth Avenue, 917-388-3596; teisui.nyc
