Ok, I’m quickly coming to the realization that my delusions of being the next Anthony Bourdain are completely off-base. After watching nearly every episode of “No Reservations” and reading “Kitchen Confidential” (with his other books soon to follow), I began to religiously follow his recommendations and preferences in food.
There are three overwhelming Bourdain favorites: foie gras, bone marrow, and sea urchin. Once this became apparent, I made it my personal goal to try each of these dishes.
I have yet to try foie gras, but if my experiences with the other two are to be trusted, I should stop looking immediately.
You may have already read my debacle with bone marrow and now it’s sea urchin’s turn.
The only place I could find that was serving some variation of the dish was Izakaya Hiro (formerly Sushi Hiro) on King Street. You can see from the picture above that the dish doesn’t look bad at all. Fairly normal looking sushi actually. Everything else involved (rice, wrap, cucumber) was standard.
The sea urchin has an odd texture, which I was able to get passed (unlike the bone marrow). It was kind of “goopy,” but slightly solid. The taste, at first, was slightly briny, like an oyster. I like oysters, so I was feeling okay at this point. Once that flavor dissipated, my attitude changed. It was not good. For some reason it tasted like medication to me. Just like the marrow, I was not willing to finish the remainder.
I’m certainly not having good luck with my foodventures lately, but I will not be giving up!