An Exquisite Evening: Dinner at Sushi Yasuda, Dessert at ChikaLicious Dessert Bar

I wish every night could be as wonderful as this one. Tonight, my companion and I feasted on innumerable varieties of fish at Sushi Yasuda, then continued the feast with a three-course dessert at ChikaLicious Dessert Bar.

Sushi Yasuda, named for its chef, is a shrine to the art of sushi. The sushi menu is categorized by the type of fish. There are five kinds of eel and seven cuts of tuna alone! Every night, Chef Yasuda circles his personal recommendations on the a la carte menu.

We began with a couple of intriguing seafood appetizers that we hadn't seen elsewhere: chunks of fried tuna in a light starchy batter, and flash-fried eel backbones. The latter were vaguely reminiscent of cracklings and had that same addictive property. We then tried some of the special fish of the evening: charred, sweet barbecued white eel, medium-fatty tuna that almost fell apart with tenderness, and wild salmon roe that were deliciously salty and fresh. Some other establishments serve pre-packaged eel and sugary roe; it is difficult not to be spoiled by the high quality at Sushi Yasuda.

Although some diners opt for the omakase (chef's choice), Sushi Yasuda also lets the diner choose the fish for his sushi or sashimi dinner. I like rich, oily fish, so I ordered mackerel, salmon, Spanish mackerel, kampachi (a type of yellowtail) and butterfish. Five piles of heaven!

After a mug of brown tea, it was time to cab it over to the East Village for dessert at ChikaLicious Dessert Bar, which opened just two weeks ago.

ChikaLicious is like your best friend's kitchen, if your best friend just happens to be a gourmet chef. As you sit expectantly at the marble countertop, you can watch Chef Chika zest a lemon over a bowl of slivered almonds in preparation for her delicious almond florentines. I was so fascinated by her activity that it took me a second to focus on the amuse bouche: a spoonful of brown sugar panna cotta marked with a roasted pistachio. A second treat soon appeared: a glass of yogurt sorbet with kiwi slices soaked in a sweet lavender syrup. The sugar focused my concentration, and I realized that I needed to try the chocolate baba au rhum with whipped cream and strawberry salad. It was impossible to resist the sight of all those small chocolate puffed cakes! The warm chocolate tart called to my companion. Everything was so delicious that it took us about two minutes to devour it all. But dessert was not yet over! A plate of beautiful petits fours soon arrived: homemade coconut marshmallows, chocolate basil truffles, and the afore-mentioned almond florentines. I think I'll go back tomorrow.

Sushi Yasuda: 204 E. 43rd St., (212) 972-1001 . Chikalicious Dessert Bar: 203 E. 10th St., (212) 995-9511.