Two raves, now that I'm in a better mood.

[offbalance]

1. A few days ago, Midtown Lunch posted a review of Dainobu Japanese Deli, which just opened its doors on 47th street b/t Lex & 3rd. Since I was down that way anyway to pick up a few comics, I decided to poke my nose in and see how it was. I'm a big fan of Cafe Zaiya (on 41st near Madison), so I was eager to try this place out.

And oh, I was SO far from disappointed.

See, they had a sign in the window that said, "Miso Soup: $1.50." So that was enough of a lure for me. But then, they had a Spider Roll (soft-shell crab tempura with cucumber) for only $4.99. This is a general rarity. I could not resist. The soup was delicious - complex broth, robust greens, velvety tofu - yards away from any miso I've had in ages. And the roll? Heaven. There was roe, arugula, and some lovely spicy mayo mixed in with the tempura and rice and cucumber. The pair made an excellent, mood-improving lunch.

2. Last night, j_bkl and I were supposed to see Milk. Due to some theater fuckery, it was not available, so he got us tickets to The Wrestler instead. The movie was a cinematic body slam. I immediately liked Mickey Rourke's character, Randy "The Ram", and finding sympathy with the place he's found himself in, even though after seeing some of the choices that got him there, you can't completely feel bad for the guy. Arnofsky really did a bravura job. The entire thing felt like a documentary, from its grainy, cinema verite cinematography to its lack of dialogue in many scenes. And, Mickey Rourke is just fantastic, as is Marisa Tomei (you really feel her being two people - the stripper persona she has at work, and the woman she is outside of the club). I found Evan Rachel Wood to be a bit hysterical, but I suppose it fit the character. I highly recommend it if you've yet to see it.

Comments

[paynesgrey.livejournal.com]

Ooh! We saw the Wrestler last night. My husband loved it, and I thought it was a very well written story. Loved the ending. =)

[offbalance.livejournal.com]

Me too. I thought it was tremendously moving, and really well done.

[stacyinthecity.livejournal.com]

I love cafe zaiya. :) I used to go there a lot, but less now that it is a little further away (my office moved). Prices were so cheap, it was comparable to bringing food from home! And tastey. yum!

I'll have to try this new one you posted about!

[offbalance.livejournal.com]

It's worth trying! And if you don't already read Midtownlunch.com every day, you're missing out. I've found out about so many great places to get a cheap (or cheapish) lunch in midtown from it!

[teany.livejournal.com]

Well, the fact that you liked The Wrestler cements the fact that I should see it. I thought I'd avoid it from the description, but the trailer I've seen makes it seem somewhat charming.

I saw Revolutionary Road last week, and I was a bit disappointed. While some bits were awesome, and the 1950s "porn" was great, there were some really corny lines in it that made me and a lot of people in the theater laugh out loud in a very incredulous, WTF? way.

[offbalance.livejournal.com]

It's definitely worth seeing. Some of the bout/injury scenes are a little extreme, but never gratuitous (if that makes any sense). It's not uplifting, but it's not depressing either - it's really bittersweet, but satisfying.

That's a bummer about Revolutionary Road. I was hoping for something better (but I was afraid of what you described). I spent half of The Hours laughing at the wrong times because of dialouge similar to what you describe.

[shackledangel.livejournal.com]

Hmm... Now I crave sushi...