Nara

Today's post, alot of the photos are courtesy of Juliana Chan... thank you for sharing your awesome pictures when I was too lazy to turn on the flash.  On to the post!

So, both of us have been talking about going to Nara for some time, finally got a free chance to go check it out.

It occupies the old Katsuya spot in West Ave.  Unlike it's predecessor, the space is still chic but much more open, and welcoming, than shi-shi stuffy.

When we sat down, the only non-alcoholic specialty drink that was available was Mango Limeade.  It was very refreshing, not too sweet and not too fizzy, definitely a good try.

Per our server's recommendation, we tried the Spicy Pig Steam Bun.  It's not at all spicy, as a matter of fact, the seasoning was so good, that I dare say finger licking good.

Chef Donald Chang was making the round, saw us taking pictures left and right and decided to jump in... sorry about the thumb in the corner. 

What did he post in front of?  It was the Red Snapper with 4 types of tobiko caviar, off the menu (special for the evening).  Fish is definitely fresh, and the spice that goes with the sashimi not at all spicy.

We ordered truffle fries, because my friend is a big fan.  To our surprise, it was shoe string size, which is fine, but it was super oily.  When the chef stopped by, I told him such, and he was saying that as a matter of fact they are re-vamping that to thicker size so that they can absorb more truffle oil.  

As a matter of fact, when I told him about it, he thought I work in the industry.  I told him no, just a foodie wannabe.  But he said that if I can pinpoint exactly what is wrong with food, I'm pretty close... I'm totally humble. But if you put some fries on your plate and you see oily marks, you'll say it's oily too, right?  He's totally a flatterer.  LOL.

We of course ordered the hot rock, we've seen tables upon tables ordering this, and we are super curious.  We are accustomed to Korean table BBQ, cooking on the rock does seem to bring some specialty to it.

It comes with small ball of rice, lettuce for wrapping, and a spicy bean paste, which was not at all spicy.  It's what I call a friendly spicy.

Here's the Texas Kobe beef... I'm not sure how that's qualified, but the beef is nice and juicy.

Here's my friend cooking, which we were making a mess.  Our server offered to cook it for us, and we figured that we can do it ourselves.  Until another server saw us making a mess, and he offered and we took him up on it.  Turns out, this is NOT how you do this... just let them do it for you.  Sit back, relax, and enjoy.

The finished product should look like this.  You put some paste and they also have this light brown sauce to go with it.  All the components together brings your taste buds to a joy.  Do it!

This is their open faced soup dumpling.  Does remind me alot of the Shanghainese Soup dumpling, except the soup is on top instead of inside.  And the bottom is pan fried, so they do suggest you eat them as soon as the dish hit the table.

Of course, we have to check out their sushi... This is the scallop, and it's super smooth and fresh, worth every penny.

I did not try this, but this is their Uni Shooter.  It has tobiko rimmed the glass, sake, uni, and masago mousse.  They do get generous with the sake, I will say.  Wonder how it all goes together?

This is their sweet shrimp sushi.  It's nicely cook, and for the presentation, they fried the shrimp heads and put it on top a bed of rice.  Suppose if you want to, you can try eating that... but I'll pass.

This is the Salmon Truffle Roll.  It has salmon, cucumber, avocado, shrimp, and black truffle oil.  The truffle oil is so awesome that it brings a symphony to my mouth... highly recommend!

For dessert, we tried the green tea tiramisu, I will say there's not alot of green tea going on there, but the mascapone cheese mixed with the cakes does brings this harmony together.  It's not too heavy, you can still move around after you top off with this dessert.  

On our way out, he saw us and invited us to return, so I took the opportunity to take a proper photo with the chef.  He was super friendly, personable, and really took care of people.  I'll save the antidote for the next post, but just say that he really treat each guest there like someone at his house.  He socialize, joked, and chatted about food, and himself, and what goes well with what.  I learned alot.

Overall, I would say Nara can be compared to Uchi, where there's creativity and thoughtfulness went into these dishes.  Both do not claim that they are specializes in one cuisine, and specifically tell people that they are fusion.  So, you do need to bring an open mind to dinner.  Both made sure that whatever you ate, it's not going to bogg you down, and want to roll out of the door.  You leave there, feeling fulfilled but not so heavy that you want to crawl up in a ball and sleep it off.  While Nara lacks the super out-of-the-box creativity that Uchi has, his spins on Korean comfort food and Japanese cuisine shows that he knows his food inside out.  Tastebuds don't lie, and he does rely on that and his experience in the industry to bring him to this spot.  I see great things for Nara, and definitely will return.  And reservations are highly recommended.

Nara Houston

Inside West Ave

2800 Kirby Dr.

Houston, TX 77098

281-249-5944

http://www.narahouston.com/