Inakaya Inakaya
New York Times building
231 W. 30th St. (Eighth Ave.)
New York, NY 10018
Map
Cuisine: Japanese / Sushi
Robata and sushi-centric Japanese eatery in the New York Times building.
Openings: Lunch & Dinner daily

Features

  • Dress code: Casual dressy
  • Reservations suggested
Inakaya, New York, NY


Inakaya Restaurant Review:


Like screaming with your sushi? Or at least an occasional clap-along with your kinki (that’s deep-fried snapper)? Then this is the place for you. Welcome to Inakaya, a somewhat theatrical and handsome 54-seat Japanese eatery on the ground floor of the New York Times building. Sushi chefs happily slice and dice, yelling out greetings to newcomers and bursting out seemingly random, inexplicable shouts. Once or twice throughout the night, everything is stopped for a group clap and chant. But despite the performance by the staff, the offerings from the kitchen make everything tolerable. That fried red snapper, for example, manages to be ultra crispy on the outside and super tender on the inside. The pork belly is a nice ratio of fat and meat. And the veggie dishes, all cooked on a robata, retain a ton of flavor. The unsung hero, however, is the sushi, which is very fresh and might be the main reason for coming back. Just bring some earplugs.