THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED The Dragon

THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED The Dragon Restaurant Review:

Those who find China Grill’s size, clamor, and circus-like bustle overwhelming needn’t brave the big-top to enjoy its classic dishes; a small selection is offered in this intimate 40-seat adjacent room---which has its own street entrance, and a supremely sedate ambience (except for the giant pop-eyed dragon dangling overhead). But the menu mainly focuses not on its parent restaurant’s Pan-Asian creations but on its own unique zen sai (Japanese small plates, such as panko-coated salt-and-pepper shrimp with daikon-carrot-beet salad, dressed with sambal chile sauce) and innovative sushi rolls. Getting over the California roll blahs is easy when offered unusual combinations like the 1-2-3 flavor punch of the rum-glazed yellowtail/avocado-based Havana Roll: salty tobiko roe, sweet coconut and spicy kimchi. Factor in a variety of sweet, savory, hot or tangy tabletop sauces, along with the standard soy and wasabi, and clearly boredom is impossible. Though The Dragon is renowned for its seductive sakétinis (particularly the signature Dragon, featuring saké, vodka and fresh-brewed green tea), the saké selection is noteworthy enough that such mixed drinks seem a sin.