Two restaurants have recently stayed open for me after the posted closing time, that's either a sign of the economy or of the charmed company I keep.
We pulled up in front of Tsuru after 9, just as the owner was opening the front door. We rolled down the window to ask him how late they were open. He replied, "9:30, but please come in."
Once inside, I settled in the empty dining room with the Jazz Den Mother and sister blogger Mean Cuisine. We hadn't seen each other for a while, and an S&S (sushi and sake) get-together was way overdue. We placed our order, with the waiter nodding his approval at some of our choices, in particular plum paste with mint roll. I enjoy sake, but know next to nothing about it, so I chose a small carafe of Kurosawa in honor of one of my favorite film directors.
Green tea and excellent, full-bodied miso soup arrived promptly, followed by our assortment of rolls, including fried salmon, soft-shell crab, river eel and avocado, rainbow, and yellowfin. We were ready for our dish fest, and we dug in, literally and metaphorically.
Our rolls had a nice balance of crispy and tender, pungent and subtle, rich and sharp. So did our conversation. The staff stopped by occasionally to pour tea and sake, and to clear the dishes once we joined the clean plate club.
We were still deep in conversation at 10:30 when the owner let us know he'd like to close up shop.
Tsuru is one of my favorite places for lunch or dinner in the area, and probably my favorite place for sushi except for Sakagura in Manhattan. The service can be brusque at times, but the food is consistently excellent, and I was thrilled that they accommodated us by staying open an extra hour.
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