Dinner (Not Drinking, for me at least) at Kasadela

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Last Friday, I went to Kasadela with Giulia, Beth, and Helen for a light dinner before we went to Pegu Club for drinks. Since Giulia and I had a craving for Japanese food on the moderately cheap side this was pretty much it and since this is an izakaya, anyone could start drinking prior to Pegu. On a side note, I would like to thank my reader, dbtron for e-mailing me this dinner tip.

It ain’t water…

As we’re deciding on the food, everyone else but me wanted to have sake with their dinner. Giulia had Kasadela’s popular sake, the wakatake (seen on the top left), smooth and clean but I didn’t taste much of the alcohol (which is a good thing in my perspective). Beth had the Kaori (seen on the top right) which was citrus-y, smooth and light. Helen wanted her sake gilded with gold leaf. I don’t remember which one she ordered but it was mildly sweet.

Clear rice noods

After taking minute sips of everyone’s sake, just for the hell of curiosity and chatted for a bit, the harusame salad arrived. This dish was glorious in terms of being so light and refreshing for this hot, humid weather. The soft cellophane noodles was the backdrop of the lightness of the dish, contrasting with the crunchy, lightly pickled cucumbers and carrots, and the nutty sesame seeds. The sesame dressing that’s pooled at the bottom of this dish was light as well but it tasted more pickled rather than nutty sesame flavor. Anyway, this was the best dish of the evening.

Rock Shrimp Donburi

The rock shrimp donburi was quite good and the portion was on the larger side. The big bowl of rice that’s topped with a thick layer of eggs, shrimp and sweet onions, topped off with nori and a sprinkling of scallions. It just needs a dash or two of the shichimi togarashi provided to give this dish a bit more life.

Then we have two orders of chicken wings to share since it’s really Giulia’s main source of protein of the night since she’s doesn’t like shrimp and eel is tolerable food item, which I’ll be talking about soon. The chicken wings was tasty in terms of having a good amount of spice from the cracked black pepper and sweetness from the sauce that coated the wings but the thing is, it’s a bit dry and overcooked (as you’ll see here).

I love eel hence the reason why I ordered the eel donburi. Eel is awesome because of its fatty texture and that sweet-savory sauce that coats it. But man, as I’m trying to dig in eating this my stomach felt like it’ll explode since I’m eating so much rice.

So, if you want to drop in to Kasadela just go for their harusame salad and their sake. Other dishes depends on what you’re craving for. Their food is a notch better than average, if you have to ask me.

Next post will be brief since it’s about cocktails at Pegu.

Address:
Kasadela
647 East 11th Street
New York, NY 10009