Kin Gin
Japanese restaurant · Lower East Side
107 Rivington St, New York, NY 10002
Highlights
Japanese Izakaya: raw bar, pork jowl, sweet potato crème brûlée
Japanese Izakaya: raw bar, pork jowl, sweet potato crème brûlée
"Somehow, the swimming pool-sized skylight isn’t our favorite thing about this Japanese restaurant in the Hotel on Rivington. That honor goes to the tontoro, a juicy grilled pork jowl, glazed in rich brown miso and garnished with crunchy peanuts. Come for afternoon sunshine and izakaya snacks on the Lower East Side." - bryan kim, molly fitzpatrick, willa moore, will hartman, sonal shah
"Sweet potato might not initially be thought of as a crème brûlée flavor, but this recipe makes the case for why it should be. I first came across these custard baked potatoes in Japan; after seeing them again at a Thai night market in Los Angeles, I had to attempt them myself. The recipe hails from a restaurant on New York’s Lower East Side. You’re essentially making a creme brulee custard base that is mixed with the insides of a roasted sweet potato, pouring the custard into the hollowed out potato, baking until the custard sets, and then finishing the top with torched sugar. The result is unlike any sweet potato you’ve ever had: creamy and luxurious with a crackly bruleed top. — Kat Thompson, Eater at Home associate editor" - Eater Staff
"The executive chef employs tinned crab in delicate egg preparations, whisking two parts chicken stock with one part eggs and canned crab meat, seasoning with soy sauce and kosher salt, and gently cooking until a silky egg-and-crab custard forms; substituting soy milk converts the preparation into a steamed egg tofu, illustrating how canned crab pairs well with egg-based textures." - Kat Thompson
"Another spot on the LES, Kin Gin calls themselves a contemporary izakaya. The executive chef used to work at some very fancy spots like Masa and Morimoto, so expect refined izakaya bites like a scallop crudo, braised pig ears, and grilled house dry-aged mackerel. It looks like a big open room with skylights, and a marble hearth, right in time for summer." - will hartman
"A controlled use of the freezer is central to the saba yaki — dry-aged mackerel that is canoe-cut, cured with kombu salt for three days to intensify flavor and remove moisture, then briefly frozen to preserve amino acids and shape; the chef also advocates short, controlled freezing (a day or two) as a safety step and texture aid for raw or delicate fish." - Anna Hezel
