Neta

One of my favorite foodies came to town and since he was avoiding red meat, we thought we'd check out the West Village's new Japanese restaurant, Neta.  "Neta" is a Japanese word that translates to "fresh ingredients of sushi."  The chefs, formerly in charge of the kitchen at Masa, deliver fresh, inventive, delicious Japanese food.

Neta's lack of decor is actually a clever way to highlight the bustling open kitchen and the beautiful presentation of each dish.  The restaurant only holds a handful of tables but also offers about two dozen counter seats.  This is a terrific restaurant for an out of towner (or local, for that matter) dining alone.  The action in the open kitchen is more exciting than at least half the dates I went on before I met my husband.

Neta's entire menu is based on small plates so the restaurant recommends ordering 3-5 dishes per person.  Another option is the Omakase menu, which translates to "chef's choice."  The chef will choose 5 dishes based on seasonal ingredients (taking into consideration each diner's food allergies).  Each diner at the table, however, must order the Omakase menu.

Instead of restricting ourselves to trying 5 dishes, we opted to order a large portion of the menu and dine family style.  I recommend ordering family style instead of the Omakase menu at Neta because you can easily find more than 5 things you'll want to try (and acknowledging that I am somewhat of a control freak, I am a bit hesitant to relinquish my entire dining experience to a chef that does not know my personal food preferences).

Neta offers high end sake at affordable prices.  The sommelier is very knowledgeable and unless you have your heart set on an option, I would recommend consulting with him first.  The wine by the glass, while a bit less affordable, turned out to be a good value because the sommelier was heavy handed with each pour.

Our server was attentive and cheery, albeit a bit aggressive on pushing drinks (AND she "inadvertently" absconded my glass of Sancerre before I had finished it).  She did accurately guide us to the right amount of dishes for our party, which seems to be more of an art than a science.  I enjoyed the pace of the meal from the kitchen, which was impressively spread out despite how many plates we ordered (I find sometimes when you order small plates, the servers aggressively place the dishes on your table, resulting in rushed meal).  At Neta, there was never more than three dishes on the table.

What to Eat:

If they have it on the menu, order the Spicy Lobster, which was a special.  This dish is hot!  Despite my attempt to ask for it mild, it still came out HOT HOT HOT.  The lobster, served in the lobster claws, was wok fried with onions, asparagus, and green chiles.  If you like spicy food, this is a must.  I would consider ordering more than one for the table.

Also make sure to order the Duck & Foie, which will help reduce the level of heat from the spicy lobster.  The tender, braised duck strips and foie gras slices are mixed together in a hoisin sauce and then packed inside a crispy, celery shoot  (there is a fourth celery shoot missing from the picture because someone (you know who you are) jumped the gun when he saw hoisin sauce). 


Do not expect a large, round scoop of fried rice when you order Neta's Duck Rice (not pictured).  Neta's duck rice is presented as strips of braised duck, mixed with hoisen sauce and then piled high on top of white rice.  The beautiful presentation came second only to the savory taste of the dish.

The surprise hit of the night for me was the Schezuan Spiced Salmon, which was a creamy, salmon mixture piled onto a bed of white rice and then topped with crispy Bonita flakes.  This simple, cool temperatured dish is a nice change from the warmer dishes on the menu.

Because Neta is a Japanese restaurant with tons of fresh seafood option, order at least one sushi dish.  I would recommend only ordering one per person, however, so that you can enjoy all of the unique, cooked options on the menu.  My favorite sushi roll at Neta was the Dungeness Crab and Avocado Roll.  Despite the simplicity of this roll, it was the perfect way to end the meal.  The sweet crab meat did not contain any unnecessary filler, like mayonnaise or tempura.  The smooth and savory avocado was all that was needed to compliment the sweet shellfish.

Wondering which West Village hot spot will show up next?  Keep reading, the West Village is back on my radar,

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