Went to Kato as my usual birthday dinner spot. This time’s menu has been my favorite so far, finally dethroning the tasting menu I had experienced about 3 years ago. Sad that the yudu geng was no longer on the menu but I did like how every single dish was a new dish compared to before. Favorite was the jin sha, lobster dish.  Texturally impressive with the crispiness from the salted egg and veggies and springy-ness of the lobster meat. The sauce they made brought it all together and quite honestly, I’d love to use that sauce for all kinds of seafood. Dishes were:

LIANG MIÀN - SESAME, CUCUMBER

SUÃNCÀI YÚ - LEGUME, SOURED VEGETABLES

JIUCÉNGTǍ CHO GÉLÌ - BASIL, RICE WINE, SOY PASTE

JIN SHA - SALTED EGG, SCOTCH BONNET, LIME LEAF +55

MÁYÓU JĪ - DATE, SESAME OIL

SHAO WEI - MAGAO, BLACK PEPPER

SUÃNNĂI - MEYER LEMON, OSMANTHUS

QING CǍOMÉI - GREEN STRAWBERRY, FIG LEAF

TIÁNDIĂN - ORANGE, POTATO, YUANYANG

My biggest problem and probably also the biggest complaint about Kato (plus what most people suspect was gatekeeping them from their 2nd star) was their service and abysmal wait time in between dishes. Last year, my entire meal from sit down to leaving was a total of 3 1/2 hrs with my longest being 4 hours 2 years ago. This time was way different. Pacing and service were very much on point. My reservation was at 5:30, sat down 5:32, 1st dish arrived at 5:46, last dish arrived at 7:46, and I was out the door around a little past 8:10. Roughly start to finish 2 1/2 hours which matches the same time as my all time favorite Restaurant Ki experience. I think having that consistent pacing contributed to making the meal much more enjoyable. Can’t wait to go back next year.

Kato Fixed their Biggest Problem