The List: Miso Izakaya
Last weekend Billy and I finally made the trek out to the Old Fourth Ward (OFW for insiders!) to try Miso Izakaya. Our target, the Crispy Duck Bun, a two-time winner from The List. When you look this restaurant up on Yelp, the place polarizes people . Most complaints relate to poor service, and some debate whether the menu is "authentically" Japanese. As for the first problem, we had excellent service (I was prepared for awful), and "authenticity" isn't a big value for me. I don't approach eating out like a dog show judge where I'm evaluating places according to some "standard." I just want good food.
On that count, I couldn't have been happier with Miso Izakaya.
To begin, the Crispy Duck Buns are amazing. Note the "crispy" applies to the duck skin, NOT to the buns. The buns are a soft, Mantou style sandwich situation. The flavors are great and absolutely "list worthy" - however, I actually enjoyed the pork version more (pictured on the right). The pork was crispy and the sauce had a kick to it which makes my mouth water just thinking about it.
I'd recommend getting one of each!Next, at the insistence of the neighboring table (seating is NYC style tight!), we ordered the soft-boiled egg over crispy rice. YUM! It's not as life-changing as the Empire State South version, but it's pretty stinking amazing!The spicy sashimi salad is no joke. Spicy and delicious. This was my favorite thing of the night, but the heat was too intense for Billy. Only order if you LOVE spice and seaweed!
Of course we ordered a couple of rolls - the spicy tuna and the salmon with cucumber. Both solid, but I don't think I'd fill my belly with rolls for the next visit.Billy's favorite part of the menu was the hand rolls - soft-shell crab and shrimp. Fantastic!!!I appreciated the chef's farewell of frozen grapes. A lovely touch!We are definitely fans!
The next visit needs to be for lunch where I can try their famed ramen. Who's in?