Ootoya

Ooytoya is a authentic Japanese restaurant, so rare in NY these days. There are Japanese servers, cooks and customs. Ooytoa is a chain in Japan and is uber-popular here in NYC in the Flaticon district. I have eaten here twice for lunch and both times, the place fills up with people of all ages and lots of families. First, you are given a hot towel. The menu is extensive and incorporates Japanese home cooking, yakitori's, dons(bowls) and sushi. I went with fish both times and they are served with quite an assortment of little dishes. The Salmon Saikyo(pictured) is marinaed in sakyo miso and comes with egg custard, rice, radish, yams, seaweed with sweet black beans, Japanese pickles and soup for $18. Every little taste on the serving plate is a treat minus the egg custard(beautifully served, but an aquired taste. The Hokke Yuan or grilled "ootoya" fatty horse mackeral steeped in sweet soy sauce served with ponzu sause is equally tasty. The soup here is so very flavorful and your palate is in for a treat at Ootoya. 8 W. 18th St. MUST GO!

Catfish Bar & Restaurant

While a long walk up fun Franklin, this Cajun joint is a longer one up Nostrand. Best to take the 2/3 or 4/5 to Franklin Ave and walk to Prospect and one block over to Bedford. This nabe once deep in the cut, is undergoing serious changes- check out ILoveFranklinAve.blogspot.com for more info. At Catfish, with 16 beers on tap you have plenty to choose from and enjoy. I went with a 1/2 of Doc's pear cider- sweet & tasty. The woodsy interior is inviting. I am sometimes confused by Cajun/Creole, but no dispute about the great grub on tap here. Warm cornbread with honey butter tastes very good. The lemon pepper shrimp with Cajun mayonaise is a nice fresh start. The Gumbo File was the star of the show with a rich, dark, dense soup of crab, shrimp and some Andouille sausage for smoky flavor. The vintagey bathrooms with sliding doors held closed with a jimmy-rigged iron piece is mad-cool. The spot was filling up nicely for a Sunday. Would try the Cherries Jubilee next time if I wasn't full from the gumbo. GO!