Recently we went to Morimoto restaurant in Philadelphia. Located on Chestnut between 7th and 8th, the nondescript front makes it easy to miss. We ordered the omakase tasting menu and liked it, but weren't as impressed as we thought we should have been. The only sake we got to taste was the Morimoto Junmai, and the food completely outshone the drinks. I would like to go back and order a higher priced option to see what changes--the quality of the drinks, food, or simply the quantity.
Tasting menu:
1. Bele Casel Prosecco, with tartar chu-toro with caviar and fresh wasabi. I was so proud of myself for loving this dish as I am usually not a huge fan of caviar.
2. Huber "Hugo" Gruner Veltliner from Austria and carpacio yuzu hamachi
3. Daniel Gehrs un-oaked California chard with seared hamachi and microgreen salad
I enjoyed the first three dishes and could have called myself satisfied with them but my husband thought they were all too similar. I thought they were fresh and flavorful and not filling at all.
4. Strawberry gele with mint
5. Morimoto Soba Ale with soba carbonara--this combination of drink/food didn't really fit together as both were very heavy. But this was our favorite dish: soba boiled in green tea and served with scallops, bacon, Parmesan cheese, and edamame.6. Ratzenberger German Reisling with black miso cod--this was my husband's favorite, served with pickled daikon and black beans. I was a little put off my the fishy taste of the cod.
7. Morimoto Junmai sake with nigirizushi. The rice was perfect. By this point I was stuffed and couldn't finish the 5 pieces that were served.
8. Domaine de Coyeux Muscat from France with no-flour chocolate cake, white chocolate mousse, white and black miso sauces.
We had differing opinions of the dessert. I thought the cake was amazing just by itself but I did not enjoy the miso sauces with it. Usually I love the salty-sweet combination, but the taste of the miso was too strong for the chocolate.
I would recommend Morimoto to anyone, but if we go back, I'd like to sample some of their specialty dishes and especially peruse the extensive sake list they have available.
