Seo Japanese Restaurant
Categories: Sushi Bars, Japanese [Edit]
Neighborhood: Manhattan/Midtown East249 E 49th St
(between 2nd Ave & 3rd Ave)
New York, NY 10017 (212) 355-7722
- Nearest Transit:
Lexington-3rd Aves-51st St (6, E, V)
- Hours:
Mon-Fri 12:00 p.m.-2:30 p.m.
Mon-Fri 5:30 p.m.-10:30 p.m.
Sat-Sun 5:30 p.m.-10:30 p.m. - Price Range: $$$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: No
- Good for Kids: No
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: No
- Alcohol: Full Bar
13 Reviews for Seo Japanese Restaurant
This was a very intimate and quaint restaurant. The service was amazing. Overall the food was good but I was turned off by the roach that was crawling above my head. A few minutes later I see another customer trying to kill a roach that was crawling on the wall. I wouldn't go back because of that.
This is a great romantic and quiet spot to take someone. - sit in the back by the garden!
We tried a lot of the food that were reviewed here already , e.g., the tofu and seaweed salad (yum! peanuty sauce was interesting), crab dumplings (VERY good, vinegar and mustard sides were good complements), the cold soba with chicken (not sure how good soba is supposed to taste like but this was good! I hate soft soggy noodles and this was anything but. the broth was a bit salty to sip by itself), and sushi (completely passable)
def going for more apps and noodles next time
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Cute, quiet place that's good for dinner. We were seated in the back room that overlooked a Japanese-style garden. There weren't too many other people in the restaurant so it was quiet and conducive to conversation.
We started with the tofu and seaweed salad. It came with very fresh (and what I assume to be) homemade tofu. The seaweed was good too - not at all fishy and not sour like it sometimes is at other Japanese restaurants.
We split the cold udon and the assorted sushi for our main course. Their sashimi/sushi menu is quite limited and there's not much in terms of meals in that area beyond "assorted sashimi" and "assorted sashimi." Of course, there's always the a la carte option.
The description for the udon sounded delicious - "linguine-like noodles made from fresh spring water and sea salt specially flown in from Japan" - so I was slightly disappointed when we were served noodles that looked and tasted like pho. However, I like pho and I liked the "chef's special" dipping soup that came with the dish so it ended up being alright. The sushi was quite normal, but the fish was very fresh, so no complaints there either. I wish they had used smaller pieces of fish and smaller lumps of rice so that I could have fit the whole piece into my mouth - I don't like taking multiple bites because the fish inevitably peels off the rice and I'm left eating the parts separately.
We split a special dessert made up of green tea, red bean, and vanilla ice cream with some jelly substance and sweet azuki beans on top. I thought it was alright, but was tired of sweets after eating Serendipity earlier that day.
Service was quick, polite, and unintrusive. Overall, I had a good experience here and would come again.
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The food they serve is exquisite. It is a rare existence in Manhattan, where dumbed-down and/or Chinese/Korean versions of Japanese food dominates.
However, the decor, the service, the ambience, etc. are all mediocre, compared to most of their counterparts. In addition, the pricing is somewhat questionable--it's not that this restaurant is super expensive; rather, many items that should be fairly cheap are ridiculously expensive while others seem priced reasonably... Also, their tonkatsu tends to be soggy and their buta no kakuni tends to be ultra salty, so watch out.
Although this place is not known for its sushi, their sushi is quite good. Their soba and udon are excellent.
All in all, I won't go to Seo if I am paying. There are simply too many better Japanese restaurants in the City--for a lot cheaper.
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Unassuming, traditional Japanese restaurant that caters to the evidently lucrative Japanese businessmen audience in the Midtown East area.
Gave the place a try since it was in the City Shuffle deck (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). I liked it a lot. Good miso soup. Fantastic steamed crab dumplings appetizer.
The sushi/sashimi and roll selections are more limited/conservative than most NY places. A la carte sushi/sashimi is a $1 more than average ($4) for two halved pieces. Tried the tuna, yellowtail, eel, and salmon - thought all were very good and fresh. The spicy tuna roll was just ok - not as spicy as I like it.
Decor is traditional. Cute little zen garden in the back. Service is good.
For those that care, this place has a Michelin star.
Recommended for Midtown East business lunches and neighborhood Japanese dining.
When we walked up to the door it looked like a really small piece thought they only had a bar and about 5 to 10 tables. In addition there were 5 people waiting ahead of us. So I said we could go some where else because sometimes I am not so patient. I an unbelievably glad she convinced me to wait. It turns out that there is plenty more tables in the back and we did not wait long. We were seated in the back next too the small outside rock garden which added nice to the Asian atmosphere. I wish I could remember what we had ordered but it has been an about 10 months since I was there but I will say this I do remember that it was wonderful. We like so much we have plans to go back multiple times.
I love Seo! This place really rocked my pallet. I ordered a couple of rolls and sashimi, everything was fresh and their special sauce is also yummy. Minimalist Japanese decor that is actually charming, great power lunch spot.
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Am I eating in Japan? Casue it feels like it here. While the menu is smallish you will not be disapponited by how it tastes. Had the Spicy Tuna roll, Fatty Tuna and Regular Tuna.
Tasty!
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A HAVEN FOR TRADITIONALISTS
This small gem of a restaurant offers some of the freshest fish in the city at reasonable prices considering the quality. My dinner with a friend included appetizers, two bottles of sake, and a nice spread of nigiri and rolls for $110. Not bad at all for what you get. Everything here is executed perfectly from the buttery toro to the succulent hamachi to the savory unagi. I also spied a neighbor's misoyaki butterfish which I'm definitely going to try next time. Don't expect a wide selection of wacky rolls (try Ginger for that). This place is for traditionalists.
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Seo is one of the better Japanese restaurants I've eaten at in quite awhile. It's fairly small and intimate, and the service is attentive. Although they don't have a huge roll menu, every dish we had was exceptional. From the hijiki salad to the soba noodle soup with tempura to the rolls and sashimi. Supposedly the chicken is great also. Next time I'm in NY, I'll surely be back to revisit this great little spot. FYI, great quiet date spot!
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Probably my favorite Japanese restaurant in the city. Pretty affordable (for a good Japanese restaurant) and great food all around. It's really a place for true Japanese food lovers, as you won't find too many Americanized Japanese food. I hear sushi is good too, but that's not the reason to come here. Try their numerous appetizers and finish your meal off with noodles.
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I agree with the previous poster who wrote: "alas, this is not the place for sushi. dont get me wrong, it was not bad sushi. but what it was, was mere ordinary." The express sushi place up the street serves fresher fare. My $30s worth of assorted was flimsy and old and tasteless. Never again.
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there's no way i can give you 5 stars.
there's no way i can even rate you 4 stars.
the best i can do for now, until such a time you prove otherwise, is 3 stars.
let me go on to justify my verdict.
it did not help that i was actually enroute to restaurant ichimura for sushi.
i actually walked passed seo and commented to myself that it looked good from the outside.
seo became my alternate dining venue when i couldnt get into ichimura at 9.50pm!
so maybe my disappointment left me in a nasty critical mood.
anyway, seo came to mind as soon as i was turned away from ichimura.
when i got to seo, the first thing the waitress told me was, it will be last order very soon.
i guess she was trying to be helpful and prepare me for their closing.
as such, i quickly browse the menu and decided on my orders.
since my heart was set on sushi, i had to order their assorted sushi.
the other thing that caught my eye was their inaniwa udon.
it looks like their specialty and so i ordered that too.
to be exact i ordered their inaniwa tenzaru udon.
i felt strange when the waitress asked me in which order i wanted to eat my dinner.
i was not sure and thus ask for her opinion.
she told me i should have the udon first and i agreed with her suggestion.
nevertheless, the sushi came before the udon!!!???
so much for her kind suggestion huh?
alas, this is not the place for sushi.
dont get me wrong, it was not bad sushi.
but what it was, was mere ordinary.
at $30, i guess you cannot really complain as there was value in that.
the fish was fresh but the plate of assorted sushi was just not a work of art.
i did not fall in love when the plate of sushi arrived.
i did not even take a photograph of it!
i must however give credit for the fresh wasabi and nice pickled ginger.
then came my udon.
it was cold udon served with a bowl of plum flavoured steamed rice and tempura.
At $18.50, it was good value given it's portion.
i didnt care much for the rice.
the tempura was a disappointment.
the batter was thick and heavy!
the inaniwa udon however was very good!
silky smooth with just the right texture.
you will not go wrong if you order their udon.
after all the food i ordered, i was not even offered a complimentary slice of fruit to finish my meal? sigh.
all you get is another cup of tea, not the same green tea but the black tea.
another no no for me was for staff to leave the restaurant before the patrons. the sushi chef was guilty as charged.
ambience was nice and you would probably enjoy a meal here if your expectations were not as high as mine was.
maybe it was my fault for coming in just before closing time?
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