Kuma Inn

There are those rare meals that you know you'll always remember. Not only does the food taste out of this world, but it also makes everyone at the table simply ten times happier and more energetic. I think tapas especially has this sort of effect on people, because you're not just having a meal together, you're sharing the experience of eating. I had one of those memorable dining experiences last night at Kuma Inn. The occasion was for Samantha's 24th birthday. Now, I know you all are going to think I'm biased towards this place, because I love any sort of Asian cuisine, but Kuma Inn really is amazing. Samantha and Sarah both raved about every dish and we all breathed collective "wow"s and "oh my god this is amazing"s after we tasted each dish.

The restaurant is located on a dark and run-down stretch of Ludlow street between Delancey and Rivington. It took me a while to find the place, because there's no awning or visible sign. Just a piece of white paper with the the words "Kuma Inn" printed neatly on it, tacked to a propped open door. The restaurant is located on the second floor of what appears to be an apartment building. The only things that give away the identity of the place are the dozens upon dozens of restaurant reviews and ratings from all the various newspapers and magazines, taped to the foyer's walls. You walk into the restaurant and practically walk smack dab into the open kitchen. Kuma Inn is small, there are no more than 12 tables. The decor is simple...actually it's kind of bland...blonde wooden tables and chairs, hard wood floors, white walls with minimal decoration. But it's great, because there's nothing to distract you from the food.

We decided to order two tapas each, so six in total. The first dish that our waitress served us was the Mixed Seaweed Salad with sesame and chili oil. The bright green seaweed strands were cool and refreshing and the sesame oil gave it a rich coating of flavor.

Next came the barrage of seafood dishes: steamed mussels in kaffir coconut lime curry, drunken spicy shrimp with sake and thai chilis and seared ahi tuna with a thai chili-miso vinagrette. The mussels were perfect tender little morsels of fresh meat. The mussel shells were perfect scooping vessels for the delicious lime curry sauce at the bottom of the bowl. The squares of seared tuna were a toasted brown color on the edges and a deep reddish purple at the center. The meat was amazingly tender - it was like eating sashimi...only 100 times better.

After the seafood dishes were delivered, the sauteed green market mushrooms with baby bamboo shoots, pork dumplings and chinese sausage arrived shortly thereafter. The chinese sausage is supposed to be one of their signature dishes, but I didn't think it was that spectacular. I thought the seafood dishes were way better. The meat was a little too tough and the sauce was extremely sweet and tart.

I was too busy wolfing down my food that I didn't remember to snap this picture til the end of our meal:















For dessert we ordered the coconut lime panna cotta and fried plantains. The pale green panna cotta, topped with one mint leaf and three blueberries, was served in a small glass tumbler. It was smooth, rich, fragrant, think...it was like a thinner custard. AMAZING. One of the best desserts I've had in a long time.

For 6 dishes (actually...now that I'm thinking back, i think we ordered an extra dish, so 7), 2 desserts and a coconut water, the bill came to about $80...a steal in my opinion for food that tasted so good.

Other highlights:
Sam Rockwell and the Mac Commercial Guy dining behind us!
BYOB!!
Foxy Brown and Lily Allen blasting from the speakers!

Go immediately...bring your friends, your loved ones, just tell someone about Kuma Inn!