It sounds like Mr. Bauer is even more into Nojo than Jonathan Kauffman, and writes of the seemingly straightforward izakaya menu, “[it] seems unassuming… on first glance, but once the plates begin to arrive, complexity unfolds with every bite.” He goes nuts for chef Gregory Dunmore’s chawanmushi (custard) with Manila clams and green garlic, saying he now has a “Pavlovian response” for the stuff, his mouth watering as soon as he walks in the door. He loves most every dish he tried, and he’s easier to please than Kauffman when it comes to the skewers, calling each one “distinctive” and drawing favorable comparisons to Ippuku (Kauffman said Dunmore’s were blah next to Ippuku’s). And he’s impressed with the staff, saying they knew the answer to every question he asked, and he says the place has so much integrity in general that “you expect the staff to answer in Japanese.” [Chron, Kauffman’s take, Earlier slideshow]
