Kibo

The service was incredibly nice, but the food was a bit lacking. The restaurant itself has a bit of a loungeish feel, which is nice as seats are spaced nicely. Some dishes to point out/​are worth ordering:
Crispy Shrimp — I was expecting popcorn shrimp, but it was actually 3 or 4 interestingly battered and perfectly fried large shrimp.
Boneless Chicken Wing Skewers — moist and tasty.
Wok Seared Spicy Beef Udon — Very spicy. But good.
The rest of the dishes were decent, but not incredibly memorable. Maybe a revisit if I’m in the area, but not sure if it’s worth the money with other options around Union Square.

Let’s start with the most exciting aspect of Kibo (in my humble opinion) — ZERO … CALORIE … NOODLES. Zip, zilch, nada. It is a calorie-​FREE ramen noodle. Of course, I can’t say the same for the delicious (and somewhat addictive) broth it comes in, served with pork, nappa cabbage, egg and ginger. My husband and I engaged in a battle of the chopsticks over who would get the final bite (I won … obviously).
As for the other dishes:
— Shishito Pepper Appetizers — Delicious! Crispy, sweet, and a little spicy (actually, the waitress let us know that one of the peppers would be really spicy– how she knew that, I have no idea, but nonetheless guess who ended up getting that one? This girl right here).
— Chicken Soboro — When asked about this dish, which is marked as one of chef Joel Rubichon’s signature dishes, the waitress informed us that it was quite good, but not what most people expect when ordering a chicken appetizer. We understood a few minutes later when a waiter dropped off the bowl: essentially, a deconstructed chicken fried rice. It was REALLY good, and we ate all of it (I think hubby won that round), but it’s not really a chicken appetizer in the conventional sense.
— Filet Skewers from the Robato grill — So first of all, the Robato grill sounds a lot more exciting when you read about it on the website or some article then when you actually get to the restaurant. And though the filet mignon pieces were succulent, juicy and tender … basically everything you’d ever want in a piece of steak … we only got four small pieces that were devoured in a matter of seconds, for a whopping $ 14. I don’t think it was worth the price.
— Braised Short Rib — Luckily, the short rib did managed to sate our appetites. It, too, was tender, a little sweet and melted in our mouthes. We also fought over, of all things, the pickled vegetables and jus meant to decorate the plate (now that I’m thinking about it, we must’ve looked like a bunch of savages!).
— Crab and Shrimp Fried Rice — Not realizing that we’d be getting a rice-​type dish earlier in our meal, we ordered the fried rice, which we got a very generous serving of. It was really good, but by then we were full, so husband requested that the rice and sauce from the Spicy Pork Ramen be wrapped up.
The décor was really very lovely, and they utilize the space quite well. Our waitress was a sweetheart, and the bartender humored me in making a virgin cocktail (so that I might at least pretend I’m still able to have a drink on date night).
For those who appreciate random trivia (or if, like me, you were wondering what all of the scrolls adorning the walls of the restaurant were), the word «kibo» actually means «wish» in Japanese. The fabric that you’ll see rolled and fanned throughout the restaurant are actually wishes written down and immortalized by past patrons of the restaurant. They, unfortunately, didn’t have any fabric during our visit, but told us that if we return, we can make our wish then. I’d take Kibo over a wishing well any day (although it is a bit more pricy).

Some unique combinations. A little too «trendy» /​club looking for my taste though.
The food was amazing…

Stopped by on a Friday night. A friend’s old coworker was spinning for Latin night upstairs (which was fun). We started the night downstairs at the bar. The bartender was really friendly, made the drink decently as well. He gets brownie points for giving my friend a free drink while she was hanging out (the rest of us had drinks). The restaurant itself is very pretty (is this the old Japanois?)

I love this bar, and I love the bartenders! The drinks are fantastic, and the people who work there rock. The prices are reasonable (this is Manhattan, folks), and the bar is so huge and chic.
I also have had some of the food, and it was amazing.

So unless I’m forced (and even then I’m fighting it) I won’t be back here again.
The food is way expensive, especially considering how much your getting. I had the sushi platter and shared it with a friend… the fish was fresh but nothing to right home about. I’ve had better else where. Actually I passed a place walking to Kibo that was probably hella better too. but for $ 30 that was NOT enough sushi.
The wait staff is the part that killed it however. I was in a large group for a birthday but I still could tell that it was bad. The waitress didn’t bother pouring the wine equally, I mean I had about 3 tablespoons and someone else’s (At the same time) was more than half full. She took half the orders and then left for 20 minutes. The people who brought out the food just sat it on the table wherever and didn’t announce what it was so it could be passed to the correct person. The waitress was never seen, and when I asked for the check for myself and my friend it took 30 – 45 minutes before she ever actually brought it to us.
I saw some of the food I thought about ordering. and I’m actually happy I shared a sushi platter. But next time if I want sushi there are plenty of places in the city or in Jersey I can get it from. I’d get a lot more of it too.

Came in here for some drinks after an engagement dinner.
If you’re feelin’ sexy, try the Kibo-​San. It’s something like lychee and pomegranate seeds with vodka mixed with egg white froth. Pretty damn tasty.
If you’re feelin’ down, take on the lotus blossom. It comes with a fortune cookie and that might just brighten up your day.
We had shots of Patron and Jameson with edamame the rest of the night. I seriously need to come back and try the food LOL because I was totally staring down the guy eating next to me.

Sorry don’t know or care about Japonais so let’s drop whatever this space use to be it’s called KIBO NOW! I happen to stumble upon this gem with three of my friends after Fuerza Bruta a few blocks down at the Daryl Roth Theater. My friends were looking for a place to eat and i was about to just jump in the subway but i figured why not hang with my friends for a bit more. Literally walking down the street one of my friends stopped and said she knows people who work at Kibo so we decided why not. Even upon walking up to the space the place looked pretty damn awesome from the outside.
Now even though my friend knew a good amount of the staff i still feel the staff would have been friendly and our server was cool as hell, helpful if we had any questions and cracked some jokes. I loved the décor and ambiance of this place, sleek black and red colors, dimly well lit, second floor is for private parties and a pretty large space. Also the fact that there is a ton of room between the tables and well spread out, large seating areas make for an enjoyable experience. A good amount of restaurants have close seating in NYC and sometimes that can be annoying when there’s a loud party seated near you etc.
We started out with the Edamame which was very good, then we got a few Maki rolls i believe we got the Spicy Tuna, Shrimp and Smoked Salmon, and the Black & White. The table seemed to love it, i decided to try the Spicy Tuna, I’ve previously had some bad experience with Sushi i guess my body doesn’t agree with raw food but this Spicy Tuna went down easy and it was good that i decided to try another one and dip it in whatever sauce they brought us which was very good as well. I wanted to try the Robata Grill which seemed to be a sweet idea, you could watch the chefs work in the kitchen on the grill through the glass window, but i opted to save that for the next visit. I decided to try the Crispy Chicken Breast with teriyaki sauce and asparagus. I can’t speak for the Asparagus but the Crispy Chicken Breast was SO DAMN GOOD! If it was socially acceptable to lick the plate clean of the teriyaki sauce i would have. Juicy, tender and so full of flavor, even the server said excellent choice when i ordered it. The only other dish i remember that was as good as mine at the table was the Skirt Steak with mushroom, shishito peppers, shallots. The Shishito peppers are phenomenal seriously the next time i’ll have to have both.
My favorite drinks there were Talisman and New Moon, but to be on the safe side because i’m not sure those are the right ones just ask for Kibo’s version of a mojito (i think that was the New Moon) that drink was really good and then they have a raspberry pink colored drink which was topped of by pink peppercorns (pretty sure this is the Talisman, so good!)
Love this place and def will be going back, great for groups, business lunch/​dinner, first date, or a romantic night out with your significant other

I was there for a birthday party and servers were courteous and patient, giving us time to chat.
Food was not out of the world. Sushi rolls were creative and pretty tasty… actually prefer the rolls here than Sushi Samba. However, my favorite thing on the menu were the shishido peppers. DELICIOUS! Would go back just for that.

I must admit, I was quite excited to try this place after learning that Joël Robuchon designed the menu. However, the food was all right, nothing special compared to other Japanese fusion places I’ve tried. Even the décor was nothing special, though it was pretty roomy. It kinda reminded me of Japonais. Oh wait, the location formerly housed Japonais. I think I liked the décor of Japonais more, maybe because of the trees/​flowers. The waitress we had was very nice. They gave us complimentary turnip soup, which was quite tasty.
Appetizer: Crispy Tofu– the seaweed was pretty good
Maki: Had the Golden, BBQ eel, Kibo (be careful of the almonds, I bit down fast and the pieces scraped the side of my mouth), and Shrimp and Smoked Salmon (my fav out of them all)
Spicy Pork Ramen was quite good. The ramen was a bit over cooked I thought, as it was a bit soggy.
Also had the special of the day: bass. It was quite tasty and was huge for the price of $ 35. It could probably feed 1.5 people.

I love this restaurant. I really hope people start going so it won’t close!
The bf and I went there last night for a date night based on the recommendations of several friends. We started by splitting the Shrimp Robata (grilled shrimp on a skewer) and the Beef Tar Tar. Then we split three sushi rolls (Black & White, Spicy Tuna and Rainbow Roll). The robata and beef tar tar were amazing. I would happily go back to eat both again!
The shrimp was ok. The fish was incredibly fresh and while it was tasty, it wasn’t better than any other sushi place in the area.
We also tried the specialty cocktails. I’d highly recommend their version of the mojito — it was incredible!
I cannot wait to go back and we were still talking this morning about what we want to order next time. So good and so reasonably priced.

I’m so happy to see that Japonais has reopened in Union Square! Oh, wait nevermind. This place is named Kibo. But it looks the same, feels the same and has a pretty comparable menu and price point.
The menu is made up of delicious Japanese small plates — perfect for sharing — and it’s not outrageous expensive while still looking elegant. They have a nice upstairs area as well which is perfect for private parties, and definitely something to consider if you’re planning an event. Certainly a fabulous option if you’re in the area and looking for a nice lunch or dinner spot and have a big group.

Came here for dinner and ordered ramen. Their noodles are handmade and you can tell they are too. So good, especially with this cold weather! I also recommend their spicy tuna sushi & ask for it extra spicy.

Our New Favorite Restaurant in NYC :)
Amazing restaurant very well done. Although new, Kibo certainly proofed that this baby is striving for the top of the line exquisite dining experience. We went to Nobu the night before and certainly Kibo blew them out of the park! Excellent to try if you’re in the Flatiron area or Union Square! The price was excellent (we thought too good to be true!) –check out their lunch specials (budget proofed!). Also we can definitely tell that their ingredients are very fresh and made from scratch quality and as well as presentation. Impressive talented chefs :) We thought the menu were very well thought and developed. The ambience was breathtaking, they certainly invested good amount of $ into this place. Their menu, service, and talent have for sure accomplished a long time reliability.
A definitely new place to try also I think it’s quite romantic :) I’m definitely coming back every time I’m in town and bringing guests! While we were eating, we couldn’t stop by the amazement of the dishes, it was just like opening up a Christmas gift — a wonderful one! A present for our taste-​buds :) We had the talented chefs ordered our dinner and wow they’re talented! My family were definitely impressed and I can tell the other guests were enjoying the restaurant. For those with taste buds that are hard to please rest assured, you’ll be in good hands here. We were also shocked at how delicious their ramen broth were! They must have worked hard at developing their recipes. The service was great, the server continually made sure we were taken care of and the manager also were certainly attentive. Great bar area, perfect for a drink perhaps many more (it’s definitely a sexy hot spot!). Also conveniently located and show your Out of The Town-​ers! I’ve been telling my friends about this I believe this restaurant certainly found their «groove, continually have more regular diners and never need a course correction». Get ready for a wonderful dining experience good for any audience you’re trying to impress (elegant as well).
— on my safe bet, treasured hot picks.

Kibo is definitely a step above Japanois but I am hesitant to give it 4 stars. We were sucked into trying the items from the «Robata» Grill since it has the word robot in it. No seriously, the mushrooms and the chicken were pretty good. The mushrooms tasted like an Asian version of mushrooms stuffed with breadcrumbs and the chicken with scallions was juicy and bite sized for perfect portions.
For dinner, I was craving Ramen. I got the Spicy Pork one. It came out and it looked good but tasted like a halfway point between instant Ramen and legit Ramen. I was disappointed that there wasn’t that much noodle in the dish. The broth was a bit thicker than normal broth.
I think the décor is cool but when the bill came out it seemed a bit expensive… so when we examined it a bit further, we saw 18% gratuity was added! Be careful!
P. S. Free sake is pretty much water with your Unilocal check-​in

This review is purely for their 2^nd floor lounge area. It is quite spacious with plenty of couches spread around 2^nd floor. The music is blasting really loud as if my ears are going to blow up.
Bar is not too big but they definitely give you strong drinks and they make your money worth it. Don’t know how the food is would like to try it one day.

Kibo has all of the things I love about the Park Avenue South restaurants – great atmosphere, tasty food, a little sex appeal. The service was great, the punch my date and I had was really nice and the food was good but I feel like Hane (over by Stuy Town) has comparable sushi.

I came here last night with a friend who works for BRGuest for opening night. It’s an Asian has a really trendy vibe. We sat at the bar and the bartenders were very friendly and helpful when explaining the menu. Their specialty drinks were OK, but it felt like something was missing. the taste was very light and clean, which I guess goes well with a menu that is predominantly fish, but I would have preferred a little more boldness.
We tried several plates of food and everything was phenomenal; most notably the cod melted like butter in your mouth. Their sushi rolls were good, but one (can’t recall the name and they don’t have a menu listed yet) was basically a California roll with something on top, so overall not that impressive. The beef tartar was really amazing, but the only thing I would recommend is not making it look like a raw hamburger that is ready to be put on the grill; that certainly threw us off a bit. I know I’m eating raw meat, but perhaps they should adjust the shape a little.
Again, we had a fantastic meal with impeccable service. This is a great addition to the neighborhood and when you’re finished with your meal you can always head over to Flute or the Flatiron Lounge to continue your night and not have to go too far.

I came here for the opening night party and had a wonderful time. The space is huge and beautifully decorated with full wall murals ranging from traditional Japanese to animé.
They served a number of organic and varying sakis, some of which are being made exclusively for Kibo. I am a sucker for saki and definitely had my fair share while I was enjoying the party.
The sushi was to die for, and while it was hard to tell what each roll /​sashimi was because they didn’t have the plates labeled, there wasn’t a piece that I put into my mouth that I didn’t like.
They also had servers bring around udon with beef, which I couldn’t eat (veggie), but I did try some of my friend’s noodles and they were also delicious.
The wait staff was friendly, outgoing and made sure I never had an empty glass (I ranged from saki to champagne to white wine).
I will definitely be coming back to Kibo as a patron and look forward to its raging success!

Came here for opening night. The service, timing of food, and all logistics was beautiful well orchestrated. I was impressed with the endless plethora of freshly made sushi rolls and appetizers that kept coming to feed an army of hungry guests. The fried rice kept greasiness to a minimum, grilled mushrooms were flavorful, and the spicy mayo-​coated scallop sushi rolls were the highlights of the night. Cloth tied up in bows artfully decorates the interior space — if you look closely, patrons have written their wishes/​dreams on it.
Kibo now sits in the old Japanois space and means hope or wish in Japanese. I hope they have better business than their predecessor!
Menu can be found here as they don’t have a website up yet: