Shokudo
Imagine that you see a handsome individual at a party, he approaches you, you hit it off, and go on a first date. First date was ok, all you could do was stare at his face because he's so darn cute. You go out on a second date...same scenario as above. You had a great time, but nothing to write home about. You go out again on a third date...yup he's still a hottie, but this is when you come to the disappointing realization that...he.is.boring. Drop dead gorgeous, but so completely mild in every way possible that if it weren't for his looks, you would never notice him.
This is how I feel about Shokudo. I want to LOVE this place, but there is no flavor. The decor is cool, the facade is modern and clean, and the people there are friendly, but the food is so watered down that I can't bear it. It's tragic. There was so much hope for this place when it first opened. I kept going back hoping that my taste buds were somehow off. Perhaps the chef had a bad day, maybe the menu was still under construction...all these excuses and 5 visits later, I'm still wondering why the flavors of Asia aren't coming through given that the owner is Japanese and the chef is Filipino. Here are some of the tragic encounters:
Tragedy #1- Sapporo Miso Ramen with Braised Pork Belly- the small font on the menu continues to indicate that this dish has " Narutomaki, Soft Boiled Egg, Bean Sprout, Baby Corn, Wakame, Red Miso".
My issues with this dish:
a) This dish has absolutely zero flavor. With all of the ingredients listed above, you would think that there would be yummy umami goodness galore. Sadly, no.
b) Instead of a soft boiled egg, I got a cross between an overcooked egg (complete with greenish gray ring around the yolk) and a "century egg". This seems nit-picky but when you are anticipating the ooey-gooey goodness of a warm and runny yoke to add some silkiness to a broth which desperately needs it, a hard-boiled anything will simply not do.
Tragedy #2- Kalbi - 72 hour marinated ribs.
a) You marinate anything for this long and it has to taste like something, anything! This Kalbi was flat in flavor and I actually had to request some soy sauce to add some ooomph to it.
b) Isn't this dish really called "Galbi"?
Tragedy #3- Pork Braised in banana leaf
a) This dish was served to me cold. I don't know about you, but I don't really like cold pork.
b) Zero flavor.
Tragedy #4- Kimchee sampler (I can't find this on the online menu, but we ordered it)
a) No flavor.
b) The portions were similar to how much ginger is served on the side of a sushi order.
The silver lining is that they have great desserts and some of the best pancakes I've ever had. But that's not what I want from an Asian restaurant.
Shokudo is beautiful but the food lacks in flavor and focus and it is simply heartbreaking.
I want to love you, Shokudo, but I just can't.
