Tax Day dinged me pretty well, so I thought the conditions were perfect for me to finally talk about my trip to Urasawa. I went last month and to be honest, I've been spending the past few weeks in sort of a post-kaiseki haze. Unlike Uncle Sam (and Aunt California) taking out their share, I am perfectly happy giving Hiro-san a large chunk of change.

I won't belabor the details, as many have already provided detailed accounts in both word and picture form. I think the most noteworthy point I can make, though, was that I came in with fairly lofty expectations and were still blown away. Hiro-san's skills as a chef extend beyond just his knife skills (or his chisel skills, as evidenced by the block of ice on which the sashimi were served).

He makes sure you get your money's worth by then coaxing magnificent flavor out of only the finest ingredients. (As it was told to me, because he can pay any price for fish, fishmongers save the very best for Hiro-san. Period.) People sit at his sandlewood bar, polished daily, with eager anticipation. Everything from the uni custard to the foie gras shabu shabu was an exhibition of finesse and skill.

However, the finest way that Hiro-san showcases his skill is how he incorporates the more humble ingredients what he arranges together throughout the twenty-nine course dinner. Sure, you know that Kobe beef and foie gras are luxurious ingredients, let's have a scallop on there, too. The inclusion of a sliced bell pepper is both playful and deadly serious, as if to suggest that the high fashion of molecular cuisine will never match the beauty of a nude vegetable.

And in that vein, Hiro-san closed out the evening with a serving of tamago (egg), that all important bellwether of any sushi chef. After all the toro, the kobe, the dizzying array of fish and flora, a big budget evening is ended with the simplest of all. All these weeks later, while I gleefully tell friends about the shabu shabu and the heated stone on rock salt, it's truthfully the other ingredients that make me think of what a great bargain Urasawa is.