Ootoya Greenwich Village

I love Ootoya. Doesn’t matter which location I go to, it’s always good. I prefer this location as it seems to be easier to get a table (I do happen to go when it’s late, around 9 – 9:30 pm so that might be why it’s so easy to get seated right way). Japanese cuisine is so clean and comforting to me. Even when you decide to eat something slightly heavier, you never feel like you’ll fall into a food coma. The food portions are perfect and I always get the set for everything because I love their perfectly smooth chawanmushi and their miso soup actually tastes like it is homemade instead of powder mixed with hot water.
This is where I go to eat every time I finish catching a movie at the Regal theater and it’s a perfect end for a date night.

TLDR:
— Solid go-​to, functional Japanese food.

I go there often for lunch. Very healthy, quiet and clean. Service is great too. Saba teisyoku, Kurozu ankake and nabe are very delicious. However if you want to eat Saba teishoku, go to Robataya near St. Marks. Their saba teisyoku is cheaper and its the same portion.

This was a Nootoya for my date and me, but It’s deserving of 4 stars for the quality and presentation of the food.
It wasn’t to our taste and we would have preferred more flexibility/​options for sushi; there’s no nigiri and the sashimi bowl only comes with one serve of uni.
We felt it was a bit overpriced for what we ordered, though the Wayshu beef and chicken wing skewers were remarkable.
Décor is OK – tables are a bit too close together and it’s very noisy, so I was way more in on our neighbors’ conversation about the trials of tinder than I ever wanted to be.

What this Ootoya location lacks in sex appeal, it makes up for in comfortabiliity. What does this statement mean??? Well, let’s face facts, the Chelsea location is a whole hell of a lot sexier than this spot in Greenwich; Chelsea’s got the dim lighting, balcony/​second level seating, nook-​ish waiting area… but all at the cost of being a tad bitchier (the self-​aware pretty ones always have an attitude, and they know that dudes will just let them get away with it). Greenwich, on the other hand, has lighting that’s brighter than a high school cafeteria, first floor (only floor) seating space, and an antechamber serving as a 3×3 foot space buffering the outer door from the door to the dining area (meaning that you’re gonna have to wait in somebody’s eating area).
However, while the general cosmetic/​aesthetic attributes of Greenwich are inferior to Chelsea, there are a number of other factors that balance the scales. When my last episode of craving for Ootoya occurred, option one was actually the sexier of the two options that are subject to this review. Calls to both were made prior to the excursion out; needless to say, a reservation for two was not in the cards. Chelsea was curt and kinda a c*nt, saying «can’t help you, you’ll just have to come in,» *hangs up* … Greenwich, on the other hand, tried a little bit harder; words like «I’m sorry sir!» and «The wait for walk-​ins for a party your size should be seated promptly» and «We look forward to you dining with us» certainly were comforting to hear (from a customer service perspective). However, being a slave to fashion, I still pathetically crawled to Chelsea’s doorstep in spite of knowing that she would never work nearly as hard as Greenwich to have me inside her (dining area).
Just so happens that Chelsea had a packed night. Was Chelsea as pleasant (i.e. cold-​blooded) in real life as she had been on the phone? You bet. And there was a foolhardy lot standing by in the waiting area, just to have a taste. How long was the wait? «One hour» was her unapologetic reply.
With some time to kill, myself and my (one-​time) dining partner put our names down and decided to take a walk. It was unseasonably warm for late December anyway. Before we knew it, we had cut through Union Square Park and were but a couple of blocks away from Greenwich. As far as culinary offerings are concerned, the logic went a little something like this: they’re both Japanese, so wouldn’t it stand to reason that Greenwich and Chelsea would taste the same (in spite of any differences as to style and appearance)? Having trekked so far, we decided to test the soundness of this theory.
Smiling service greeted us upon entry. I kid you not, but she informed us that there were two open seats left in the back, so we said yes… it must have been destiny. Prompt, friendly, and expedient service continued; the place operated like clockwork, very Japanese-​workmanlike (as a domiciliary of the Land of the Rising Sun for a half year, I feel that I am more than qualified to make this observation). Before we knew it, I was done my katsu, my dining partner finished her salmon, and our ice cream dessert went from the bowl, to the spoon, to the mouth, and ultimately to the stomach.
A very pleasant dining experience (with tasty food), under interesting circumstances. One day, when I’m a more mature man, perhaps I’ll learn to be able to quickly decipher and appreciate the value of things more, not solely on their (merely) skin-​deep facades, but more about the substance. Until then, it’s good to know that if the prickly yet pleasing (if only in terms of the more superficial…) Chelsea disappoints with her cold uninviting demeanor, that Greenwich will be there to piece me back together and treat me the way I expect to be treated.

good place for Japanese food. I had the tonkatsu
, it’s good. The small dishes with it is impressive, I love the egg. My boyfriend had the fish set, I taste a bit, which is also great! A good place near nyu.

So far so good. I ordered the small coffee made by BROOKLYN coffee and their doughnuts has the same quality as Doughnut Plant but different interesting favors again. That’s how good it is!
Both places are my favorite doughnut places in the city. This one offers better selection of coffee. So eat at both places as they are equally good high quality doughnuts. You can’t find the flavors from each other.

I have been to Chelsea, Times Square and Greenwich Village Ootoya more than total 10 times, close to 15 times so far, and every time I go, I receive really good customer service (really thoughtful) and tasty food with reasonable price.
In my opinion, Ootoya is really good place for little bit fancy version Japanese comfort food. If I would like to have Sushi or Yakitori, I will go somewhere else, but if you would like to taste some Japanese family style food, this is the place to go!!!
Their set menu (Main dish with rice, miso soup, pickles and chawanmushi (savory egg custard), is between $ 16 to $ 21.

Ootoya has become my go-​to dining spot in the village. The tonkatsu alone deserves five stars. There’s something about the breading that is extremely good and insanely addictive. It has the most perfect crunch — I have no idea how they cook it but it’s awesome. My friends like the miso tonkatsu, which is the breaded pork cutlet served in soup. The soup is really good, but I think it makes the tonkatsu a little bit soggy. I would definitely recommend ordering it dry if you’ve never tried tonkatsu before.
The first time I came here, my friend ordered the seared salmon over rice. It’s a lot lighter than the tonkatsu, and I would suggest eating that if you’re more health conscious.
The restaurant is usually packed during dinner time and on weekends. Make a reservation the day before to avoid long lines!

The venue is typical Japanese — clean, delicate, small portions, and great service. Though I enjoyed my meal (noodles and shrimp tempura), I ate all the leftovers my kids didn’t finish (beef slices and rice, salad) and still feeling a bit hungry after we left.
Compliments to the servers, hostess and managers — first class all around.

I was insulted by the manager; it happened this passed Spring but I waited my frustration/​anger to be subsided before posting.
After having an amazingly fresh and beautiful Sashimi, Sashimi 6 Ten Mori ($ 45) from the appetizer a week ago, I made this sashimi plate as my main dish, with a side of Ootoya special brown rice. This rice doesn’t have light tea color that I am used to but it is a reddish brown rice. It looks like a mixture of half white and brown with keeping nutty flavors and a crutch texture, yum.
When my Sashimi arrive, the quality was very disappointing. After one bite of tuna, I had to put down my chopsticks and looked for my waiter. I whispered to our waiter’s ear, our table was closer to the tables on the both sides, to inform him about the unpleasant quality of this tuna. Others were just fine this night. I asked my waiter to tell the sushi cook to taste this tuna and handed my plate. I thought the cook will understand my issue once he tasted it. But instead, my waiter came back to tell me that it has arrived today thus it is very «fresh». I was stunned by the cook’s answer and asked the waiter «Did the cook tasted my piece of tuna? «He said «no…»
The cook had the audacity to say it’s fresh even not tasting the tuna. It raised my temperatures to the max. «Call the manager! I want to talk to him.» Skinny man with his name tag says «Mitsumori/​/​三森» showing up and immediately apologizing for my unpleasant experience. I remembered the name. Mitsumori is the CEO of Ootoya and thought he might be related. I thought the manager understood what my issue was. «Did you tasted that tuna?» He said «No» and disappeared quickly to the big group behind us. I really wanted to go off on his careless answer. My hubby helped me to calm down. I was treated as «a difficult customer of the night»
On their Japanese site, clearly stated that Ootoya’s motto is «リーゾナブルで、安心、安全/ Reasonable, Reassurance, and Sureness (of its quality and service)» by 代表取締役 (President & CEO Hisami Mitsumori /​三森久美). What happened to «Reassurance and Sureness?» This manager at Ootoya Greenwich Village had successfully created a very unhappy customer.
We come here once a week because their other dishes are consistently good, grilled fish and Tonkatsu, but I don’t see Mr. Mitsumori anymore happily. I thank to the hard working waiters, they are always making sure that we are treaded well and asking for the quality Sashimi each time when we order that plate. I appreciate their thoughtful gesture.
Greenwich Village Ootoya is greatly supported by their dedicated staff members. The staff members at this location has not changed often as the other locations. Our waiter and weekend maitre d’ remember us and trying to give us our favorite table if possible.

Freshest Uni I had!!! no need to dip in soy sauce, taste the sweetness!
I love this place! Nice staffs, creative dishes and nice atmosphere.

For a popular spot that usually has a 20 – 30 minute line, Ootoya really needs to do a better job managing their wait list. On 2 consecutive occasions now I’ve put my name down and sat on the bench between the 2 doors only to find out half an hour later that they sat someone else. Now I have a common name, but I’ve never had this issue at any other restaurant before (can you imagine the anger if something like this happened at Ippudo?), plus the second time I looked through the sheet and there wasn’t even another Michelle on the list.
The service here is also the worst out of the 3 locations. With the frustration that comes with eating here, I may as well have stayed at home and cooked myself…
Rant aside — I do really like the food but with so many Japanese restaurants in the area I would much rather support a business that I look forward to eating at

Make a reservation when you come!
I went around 730 on Wednesday without a reservation and waited around 40 minutes for a table. It was reasonable though. The only thing that bothered me a bit was that the hostess never gave us a certain explanation on if our table was ready or not. We kept getting blank answers which resulted in us standing around at the bar for a good ten minutes uncertain of what to do. THE FOOD HOWEVER was worth all that wait. I ordered the Katsu Toji which was amazing. It was pork covered with a layer of egg all dipped in a type of soy sauce broth. Miso soup, vegetables, and egg custard comes with the meal as well. The meal was 19 dollars but worth it for the quality of the food. The ambiance of the place is cozy and inviting as well. Overall, a chill atmosphere. I would definitely recommend and come again.

This is a great, authentic Japanese restaurant (I mean, I am not Japanese nor have I been to Japan but this is my guess).
I had the first bowl set on the back of the menu — it had amberjack, uni, salmon row — all the good stuff. It was pricey at 33 dollars, but the quality of the fish was excellent and it came with a soup, pickles and custard.
The ambiance is fancy-​ish but not intimidating.

I like this new location! Spacious so u can avoid waiting line
I have been to all 3 locations for both lunch and dinner. I do like their fish sets because I love steaming egg lol. Not many Japanese restaurants offer it and even some of them do have it, they charge more than 8 bucks for each.
I would say fish sets are good for lunch but definitely try their sashimi platter if u come for dinner! They are so fresh and uni would just melt in your mouth. I was surprised because I didn’t really give high expectation on that and just wanted to have some appetizer to share.
desserts are okay! Have tried all of them and would say if u are in east village area, there are much better Japanese desert spots– u know those spots for matcha and red beans lol

New York does Japanese well, that’s for sure. Ootoya wins because of it’s array of Japanese offerings with side dishes in a set that complete a meal, almost like a luxury lunch box, paired with outstanding and attentive service.
Our group of five got to sit near the back of the restaurant at a table that seemed separate from the rest of the restaurant. We got to see the chef grilling the yakitori right in front of us!
food
+ SALMON SUSHI SET: A steep price for 6 pieces of sushi with miso soup, pickled vegetables, and egg custard, but surprisingly this dinner set was very filling. There was more rice than usual on the sushi, but I liked the variety of raw salmon, seared salmon, and salmon painted with a pesto-​like glaze.
+ COLD SOBA (SIDE): I paired this with my dinner set, and the soba noodles were chewy but soft. Perfect!
+ MISO TONKATSU SET: My boyfriend opted for the pork tonkatsu in a miso sauce. This dish is definitely a better option for those who like to eat more. The dish was not too salty, and the pork was perfectly cooked and not overdone. There was ample amounts of pork with a full bowl of rice and miso soup, pickled vegetables, and egg custard! He was definitely more than full.
tips
* The egg custard included in the set is not sweet, like Chinese egg tarts, or watery, like Korean steamed egg. The egg is soft, light, and silky. There is a dollop of plum sauce that make a bite sweet, but otherwise this is a savory finish to the set.
* The mini vs. the large don sets do not have much of a difference. They offer a little more fish, but otherwise you are paying for a lot more rice.
Service was top-​notch. Our waters were never more than half empty (or full), and our server made sure to accommodate our requests very well. When we were leaving the restaurants, every server greeted us goodbye and bowed. I felt like I was leaving my aunt’s house and we just had a family dinner with everyone in there!

BLUF: Haven’t been able to go wrong trying anything here. The Miso Tonkatsu is a definite recommendation. Ootoya is authentically modern Japanese of a restaurant I’ve seen in NYC.
Finally took three trips to Ootoya before I got my lazy butt to write a review.
Every time I’ve gone, I’ve gotten a new entrée and was quite pleased but I’ll write about my latest visit!
I went to Ootoya at 6:30 on a Sunday evening with a party of three without a reservation and had a wait of 45 minutes. Service was quick but the restaurant is just small to accommodate a heavy flow of patrons.
I ordered the Miso Tonkatsu as a set which included a side of rice and miso soup. It was $ 22 and 100% worth it. The pork loin was deliciously breaded but the aka miso paste and cabbage nicely softened up the meat.
The poached egg on the side was well cooked and had a liquid like texture without being too runny.
Definitely would return but will make sure to call in ahead of time.

3.5 STARS
PROS:
— MINI KAISEN DON with COLD SOBA SET $ 27 (Assorted Sashimi Blue Fin Tuna, Amberjack, Scallop, Scottish Salmon, Uni (Sea Urchin), Simmered Sea Eel, Salmon Roe and Egg served atop of Sushi Rice.) — the sashimi was very fresh. I definitely recommend it. I didn’t like the cold soba however.
— STEAMED EGG CUSTARD (comes with the set) — it’s pretty good. soft and fluffy. One thing I didn’t really like was that it had this vinegary taste on the top of the custard that doesn’t taste that good.
CONS:
— KAASAN NI SET $ 20 (Breaded and Deep Fried Chicken and Sliced Onion is topped with Poached Egg and Grated Radish. Served in a Soy Sauce Infused Broth) — The deep fried chicken did not taste good as it got soggy from the broth. I also didn’t like the grated radish. It’s kind of bitter.
— Cold Soba — Bland and tasteless. I wouldn’t suggest getting this with the set.
— PRICEY
Note: AC is pretty strong there so if you sit here for a while it can get pretty cold.

We didn’t make a reservation and strolled in at around 6pm on Friday. The restaurant was about 60% full and they promptly sat us, clearing off a reserved sign on the table.
The sake list was extensive — standard for a more upscale Japanese restaurant, and we decided to order some junmai. It was delicious. We also ordered Asahi draft, which was likewise delicious and fresh.
The dinner was good. $ 33 for a kaisen don and $ 31 for a bara chirashi don, both as sets. For the price, it wasn’t mind blowing and I’ve had better. There’s several Ootoyas in NYC, and this one seems to be the newest joint. It definitely had a crisp, trendy, and modern feel to it. There was only one women’s and one men’s restroom, which was a bit surprising, considering the size of the more or less spacious restaurant.
By the time the clock hit 6:45pm, the place was PUMPING — completely packed. By 7pm, there were people waiting outside. I ate about half of my bara chirashi. I’ve gotten great bara chirashi don sets for less than $ 31 with better quality fish (with the same level of presentation). I think i’m going to stick with my usual and just get a grilled fish (esp. the saba) next time. We were in the mood for sushi, and were furiously searching Unilocal for help while visiting my old stomping grounds, and we thought Ootoya would be bomb but we ordered the less than ideal things. The restaurant is still a delicious Japanese joint, so I’m not going to give it less than the 4 stars it deserves.