Lunch at Manhattan’s Megu

THE NEW York City Restaurant Week was in full swing. While majority of the restaurants strictly

follow the schedule from July 11 to 24, some of them offer the Restaurant Week Prixe Fixe Menu through Sept. 5, 2011. The Prix Fixe menus are

affordable: lunch starting at $24.07 and dinner at $35.0 plus tax. My daughter Patricia could not get a reservation at the Nobu but we were happy to have dined at Megu—Modern Japanese Cuisine instead. New York City has two Megu Restaurants—Midtown and Tribeca. There are also international outlets in Moscow, Qatar, New Delhi and Mumbai. We chose to dine at the Midtown Megu at the Trump World Tower on the UN Plaza just a stone’s throw away from the imposing United Nations building.

Meaning “Blessings” in Japanese, Megu presents modern Japanese cuisine, sushi, and sumibi aburiyaki—a grilling technique using bincho-tan, a special charcoal found only near Kyoto and prized for its

superior purifying properties. Authentic and avant-garde ingredients are combined to suit every palate.

Our second Restaurant Week pick, Patricia and I met newly converted culinary enthusiast Marivir Montebon for lunch at Megu. Blending ultra modern design with ancient Japanese details, astonishing white porcelain columns from its high ceiling, each made with 5,000 interlocking rice bowls and sake vases, greeted us. All the dining tables are set around a central sushi/teppanyaki open kitchen and bar. There is always a selection of lunch prix fixe menu that starts with a three-course set for the restaurant week so I find it uncomplicated to make a choice right away. But I always make it a point to go through the regular menu, which is quite extensive and expensive.

Our appetizers included Crispy Okaki Asparagus fancily presented on a heated slab of stone, Chef’s Mixed Green Salad with Megu Dressing and Yellowtail Carpaccio with Chili “Kanzui” Sauce. The Crispy Asparagus, which were skewered on sticks were coated with okaki or Japanese rice crackers. We all agreed this was a different way of preparing

asparagus that even kids will love. We always order the different entrees to satisfy our curiosity and share the dishes. I had Megu Sushi Roll Combination. Patricia chose the Silver Cod with Yuzu Miso while Marivir went for the Four Herb Crusted Premium Chicken. All entrees are served with rice and miso soup. A discerning gourmet, Patricia kept

saying that the food was exceptionally good

so we have to comeback with her kids, Silvian and Sabrina.

“For Ladies only: Please select two desserts from the list below” — the dessert menu indicated. All the selections were temptingly delicious: Green Tea Crepe, NY Cheesecake, Chocolate Cake, Tiramisu and Ice Cream/Sorbet. We all selected the Green tea Crepe, which I paired with Ice cream and Sorbet while Patricia had Tiramisu and Marivir chose the Chocolate Cake. The Green tea Crepe was a heavenly culinary surprise. Instead of being rolled, the paper-thin crepes were stacked cake style with the layers in between filled with green tea flavored whipped cream. I remember eating this exquisite crepe/cake, which Patricia ordered from Payard Patisserie of famed French Pastry Chef, Francois Payard.