There are few restaurants in Times Square that are little gem and Inakaya is surely one of them and there is one thing I always recommend that is to eat at the counter. There, you not only observe what is going on in the kitchen, watching the staff grilling meat, seafood or vegetables, you get the little show which is how they bring some of the dishes to your table, by simply putting them on a long paddle and handing over the dish to you from afar.

But it is not just the show: the food there is superb, with a nice selection for vegetarians and non-vegetarians, dishes that will come as they are ready.

Here is what we had:

As a special, they had a sakepirinha, their take on Brazil’s national cocktail, the caipirinha but instead of cachaça, they use sake.

Grilled mushrooms in foil: these are three different kinds of mushroom cooked with soy sauce in a foil that you just need to rip open. Simple, but delicious, especially if you love mushrooms.

Grilled mushrooms in foil at Inakaya in Times Square

Vegetable tempura: always a crowd pleaser, they were crunchy and not greasy, with veggies like broccoli, eggplant, mushroom or asparagus. I just wished there was more.

Roasted duck slices served with mustard and Japanese dashi. These thin slices were really good, with or without the mustard. Maybe slightly less cooked would have been even better, but even like that, it was succulent.

Grilled squid with soy sauce: this was a fantastic dish, not just because of the beautiful presentation. No, they surely know how to cook squid, this one not being rubbery at all.

Roasted rice balls with plum sauce: a good dish if it was not for the sauce that was too tangy.

Roasted rice balls at Inakaya in Times Square

Dessert was the taiyaki ice cream, a fish shaped waffle stuffed with red bean paste accompanied by vanilla ice cream. The waffle, homemade, was served a bit hot, melting the ice cream. It was very good, with different textures between the waffle, red bean paste and melting ice cream. A must have!

So overall we had a great meal at Inakaya and I admit that I was surprised not to see that many people in the dining room for a Friday evening. Maybe the Times Square effect or the location on the side of 40th. But definitely, I recommend this place that has great food, good service and a nice atmosphere.

Enjoy (I did)!

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Inakaya -620 8th Avenue, New York, NY 10018

I Just Want To Eat!