Donguri

I still feel the loss of both Toraya, the Japanese tea and sweets room, and Ito-En's flagship store on Madison Avenue that included the kaiseki-focused Kai. Fortunately, New Yorkers still have Ito-En's Donguri, a cozy little slip of a place on an out-of-the-way Upper East Side block. I was craving some miso soup and hot sake last night, so I met a couple friends over there.

As the night went on, the ambience went from reverent to lively; at the end of the meal we almost had to shout. (This could have been due to the consumption of sake.) However, we were able to focus on the food, and some of it was truly memorable.

Our onslaught of appetizers included zaru soba, spicy octopus, corn tempura, miso soup, and sesame tofu (they were out of soy tofu, and later, grilled mackerel). The perfectly al dente soba was of the Inaniwa variety and was served with the typical toasted seaweed squares, scallions, wasabi and soy dipping sauce. The scallion-heavy miso soup was fine, but I'd been craving Tokyo-style red miso soup instead of soup made with white miso. The standout for me was the sweet corn tempura appetizer... sweet-salty disks of lightly battered crunchy corn were as addictive as popcorn.

For mains, two of us went with the chef's special sashimi, a well-balanced plate of thick chunks of tuna, a marbled rectangle of rich tuna belly, thinly-sliced snapper and fluke, salmon, orange clam, and yellowtail. I was glad I hadn't ordered the grilled Scottish salmon with salmon roe, as I wouldn't have had room. My other friend ordered the squid-ink risotto, also topped with salmon roe; I felt that this was rather one-note, not something I could eat an entire meal of.

For dessert, there was hojicha and then green tea pudding with vanilla bean ice cream. I wish we could have stayed longer (I drained three cups of sake, which is more alcohol than I've consumed since delivering my son), but the next party was itching to sit down. I don't blame them, as I am already planning my next visit.

Donguri: 309 East 83rd St., (212) 737-5656.