Tempura Matsui
Tempura restaurant · Murray Hill
222 E 39th St, New York, NY 10016
Highlights
Tempura Matsui serves an intimate, Michelin-starred omakase of impeccably light, seasonal tempura in a serene, Japanese temple-inspired setting.
Tempura Matsui serves an intimate, Michelin-starred omakase of impeccably light, seasonal tempura in a serene, Japanese temple-inspired setting.
"While in the U.S. the word omakase — which translates to “chef’s choice” — has become synonymous with sushi, in Japan one will find myriad omakase menus, from yakitori to tempura. Tempura Matsui hit New York about three years back, and it’s the city’s first omakase tempura restaurant, serving set menus ($40, $60 for lunch; $120, $165, $220 for dinner) that change four times per year. In Japan, what separates good tempura from great tempura is not only the quality of ingredients sourced, but more importantly the batter into which the ingredients are dunked, then fried. Proper tempura batter will coat ingredients like a delicate veil, and a true shokunin (craftsman) will place those fried bites onto a small sheet of folded tempura paper in front of a guest, leaving no oily residue on that paper. Tempura Matsui, designed to look like a temple, offers a version extremely close to what one will encounter at some of Tokyo’s top haunts. Depending on the season, a menu will span from shiso and uni tempura to sweet potato and scallop. Sadly Tempura Matsui’s original chef, after which the place was named, died two years ago, but the restaurant has been able to maintain its Michelin star nonetheless." - Kat Odell
"This pricey Japanese tempura spot retained its one-star rating. Dinner is $280 per person. A shorter lunch menu is $160." - Eater Staff
"Tempura Matsui skillfully demonstrates why tempura is a celebrated Japanese cuisine type in its own right. The prized seats are at the counter, especially if you want to see the master at work.The chef uses a mix of sesame and cottonseed oils and the batter is used sparingly. You’ll start with a parade of seasonal dishes including tofu with uni, before having some beautifully arranged sashimi. Then, the main event begins in the traditional way with crispy shrimp legs. Dishes turned out of this kitchen usually vary according to the seasons, but could include the likes of wonderfully tender squid, succulent Hokkaido scallop, plump matsutake, as well as subtly sweet onion. Be sure to end with tencha, with its mellow and deeply flavorful broth." - Michelin Inspector
"There’s a Japanese place attached to an apartment building in Midtown East that claims to make the best tempura in NYC. Just walking through the door will cost you a minimum of $250, and that’s before any drinks or add-ons. For many New Yorkers, Tempura Matsui is a bucket list restaurant. But instead of the lightest, crispiest, most perfect tempura in the city, what you’ll get is a succession of limp, not particularly exciting fried things delivered by servers who give off the energy of hyper-critical babysitters. Tempura Matsui focuses hard on the food: there’s little else to the experience of eating here aside from the nonstop parade of courses and the judgy, hovering servers who will tell you in no uncertain terms how you’re allowed to consume each bite. But the food isn’t very good. Many of the fried pieces are overly greasy and lack a satisfying crunch. The non-tempura items, like a palate cleanser salad served halfway through the meal, contain out-of-season ingredients (a raw tomato in February, for example) with little-to-no flavor. It would be one thing if eating here was fun, at least, but the severe, judgy nature of service casts a somber shadow on the atmosphere. The staff will comment on things like whether or not you choose to check your coat, and how much of the final course you weren't able to finish. Whether you sit at the counter or in one of the booths off to the side of the tiny dining room, you’ll spend the better part of three hours squirming uncomfortably, hoping that you don’t get in trouble for putting the wrong condiment on your next bite. For a much better (and less expensive) experience, we recommend the tempura omakase at Secchu Yokota in the East Village. Food Rundown Omakase The omakase here starts with two small appetizers, like sashimi and chawanmushi, then 14 courses of tempura that always start with fried shrimp heads—this will likely be the best bite of your meal. Many of the other tempura pieces are excessively greasy, and don’t have much flavor. Sandwiched in the middle of the tempura courses, you’ll get a palate cleanser of a salad that will likely also contain some out of season vegetables. Ours had a watery, flavorless tomato in the middle of winter. At the end, you get a choice of tendon, tencha, or tembara, but you’ll probably be too over the whole experience to enjoy this. Dessert is a piece of fruit, hopefully (but not guaranteed to be) in season. We got a slice of unripe melon." - Carina Finn
"Tickle your tastebuds and try Tempura Matsui in New York City; or Tempura Endo in Los Angeles." - The MICHELIN Guide
