Yakiniku West

East Village - E 9^th Between 2^nd and 3^rd Avenue 

Japanese BBQ

Enter Yakiniku West to a wall of shoes due East.  Yes, authentic Japanese BBQ means following authentic Japanese rituals.  Of course, they make it clear that while taking off your shoes is mandatory, you leave them in a cubby at your own risk.  Walking into Yakiniku West is like walking into Flight Club; only the shoes are not fresh Nike’s or vintage Air Jordan’s wrapped in plastic, and they’re especially not for sale. 

The tables at Yakiniku are dug out into the floor.  At first, I thought I would have to sit Indian style on the floor, which would have been somewhat of an issue.  However, I quickly realized that the Japanese are smarter than that.  Maybe they sit legs crossed on the floor in Japan, but they know how we operate in New York: overweight, inflexible, and out of shape.  Grab a pillow, and take a seat. 

Yakiniku West abides by the “do it yourself” concept.   Quite frankly I think its genius.  You buy the raw meat; they provide your own grills built into the table.  A few pitchers of Kirin and some saki-bombs and boom! all of a sudden you are the modern day Morimoto.  Who needs Benihana anyway?  The meat is thinly sliced, well marinated and easy to cook.  I’m pretty confident you can’t really screw this up.  I’d trust Stevie Wonder to orchestrate my dinner at Yakiniku West any day.   

Don’t bother with the sushi menu; stick with the searing raw meat selection.  The sweet and sour dipping sauces come complimentary and gave me more satisfaction then trading my apple for someone’s Dunk-a-roos during lunch back in Elementary school.  While the cookie-to-frosting ratio may have triggered your adolescent anxiety, rest assure your sweet and sour dipping sauce can be refilled.

Yakiniku West is a slam-dunk.  Bring the whole team.

Mable's Smokehouse

Williamsburg, Brooklyn – Berry St between N11th and N12th

BBQ

Give it up for The Dark Knife NYC local Smokehouse of the day: Mable’s from Brooklyn.   Get off your barstool, throw on your hippest thrift store rags, put on all seven of your piercings, rip your skinny jeans, pop on your converse and head over to Williamsburg for some barbeque. 

Wake up with Jeff Lutonsky and Meghan Love, husband and wife and the muscle behind Mable’s Smokehouse.  The couple created this communal barbeque house filled with southern comfort and country recipes passed down from old grandma Mable.   The wooden rustic atmosphere will give you a taste of Texas, while the medley of random chairs collected from the Salvation Army will bring you right back to Brooklyn. 

I recommend sharing the Deluxe Platter for $27.95.  The Deluxe comes equipped with your choice of three meats, three sides, slaw, pickles, jalapenos, sliced onions and wonder bread.   No need to play guess that rack; they are St. Louis ribs.  While delicious and flavorful, the pulled pork and beef brisket are one and two on my depth chart, with the ribs taking the last spot in my starting lineup.

Now this brings us to a gentleman’s game of Marry, Fuck, Kill with the side orders.  I’d hands down make the sweet Candied Yams my wife.  While delicious, I’d probably have to kill the Borracho Beans for the obvious reason; they talk back.  Which leaves the Creamy Mac N’ Cheese and myself line-dancing to honky-tonk all night.  Make sure to ask for extra secret bbq-sauce; better safe than sorry.  Finally, wash down your meal with an ice cold $3 Schmidt’s.

Viva la Mable’s Smokehouse!