Aria

It's 8pm-ish on a Friday night and the restaurant is at about a quarter capacity. I take this as a sign that I'm watching a restaurant going through it's death throes. The service was very friendly. I had a couple cocktails, one was pretty good the other hardly palatable. Both of my dates cocktails were overly sweet. The crab rangoon appetizer was pretty good while the peking duck dumplings were a disappointment. When I think peking duck, the first thing that comes to mind is that crispy cracklin which was completely absent in the dumpling dish. I feel they should be incorporated somehow. The real disappointment of the night was the duck pho. Pho with seared foie gras, duck leg-foie meatballs, and spiced duck breast priced at nearly $30 a bowl should be out of this world. Instead it was somehow pedestrian. The one bright spot of the evening was dessert. My date and I shared the pot de creme and it was absolutely amazing. The atmosphere was really awkward. I just sort of felt bad for the place.

Swanky Asian fusion, delectable cocktails, but no more Beverly Kim :(  Starting with housemade flatbread, three spreads were displayed before us.  A feast for the eyes and tastebuds, I was excited for more to come.  We started with the pickled beet salad and the oxtail wonton soup.  Not a fan of the soup, although presentation wise, I always appreciate when they pour your serving at the table.  Next up was the sous vide wagyu short rib and black grouper.  The rib texture was a bit off, not exactly fall apart as I expected, but the grouper was perfectly cooked with a nice crust.  Dessert was sorbet, served in an elegant martini glass with hibiscus.  Cocktails are not to be missed.

My girlfriend and I met at the bar last night for some pre-theatre libations. The sushi was fantastic. The drinks menu (cocktails, wines by the glass, sake) is full of delicious options but not overwhelming. Ambiance is pleasant; not overcrowded but buzzing, the kind of place you can have an actual conversation. Servers went out of their way--my friend accidentally left our theater tickets on the bar as we left, and the bar manager found them and followed us down the street three blocks to get them back to us, just in time for the performance.