Village Yokocho
New York, NY 10003
Phone: (212) 598-3041
- Price:
- $$
- Cross Street:
- Third Avenue
- Directions:
- 6 at Astor Pl
- Hours:
- Daily 5pm-3am
Editorial Review for Village Yokocho – by Janet Tzou
The Scene
The consistent lines at this bustling Japanese "tapas" hot spot don't lie: Yokocho's fresh, reasonably priced comfort food and social atmosphere draw a youthful clientele of cultural natives and gaijin alike. A 20-foot grill, simple wood-furnished decor and hip Asian-American servers transport you to a lively Tokyo food joint.
The Food
The extensive menu ranges from top-notch Korean-derived barbecue (the succulent prime rib with bone sizzles in savory pepper-and-apple sauce) to udon noodles to Japanese stews. But the best offerings are the a la carte grilled items, such as the chicken with scallion skewers and asparagus with bacon rolls. Other small dishes, such as the fragrant sesame oil-scented raw spicy tuna, are excellent with a beer-sized mug of cold oolong tea. Also excellent is the okonomiyaki, a tangy cabbage, pork and shrimp frittata topped with bonito flakes and a dollop of mayonnaise.
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User Reviews for Village Yokocho
06/25/2008 Posted by datingfiend134
It pains me to write this review because I've been eating at Yoko Cho for about 8 years now. I've turned a blind eye to the fact that it is a dirty establishment (have you seen the bathrooms???), because I like the food so much. Tonight I went with my friends and I found a hair BAKED IN my seafood pancake. And then I look up and behind my friend is a CREEPY INSECT crawling on the wall. (I had to type "creepy insect" because they censored me on the real word for it -- cockr*ach). It then crawled onto our TABLE and my friend smashed it. Needless to say our appetites were ruined, but we tried to be sensitive and discreetly told our waiter about both... and although he was apologetic, he brought the bill with a FULL CHARGE. We're not trying to scam a free (hairy) meal in the least but to have such extreme unsantitary conditions so obvious -- well, they are really lucky we didn't cause a scene. It was gross. After 8 loyal years, I won't go back and I urge you to pay close attention to cleanliness if you do.
Cons: Hair in food, creepy crawlers in plain sight
03/13/2008 Posted by joebartender
Yokocho is definitely not what i remembered. Ive been going there for the past 7 years and it always felt like a hidden little gem. The food used to be great and service was always friendly and personal. Its also pretty cool that theres a bar located on the same floor called angels share. I actually got to know one of the waiters, this cool japanese dude named Toshi, who left for hawaii i believe a couple yrs ago.... but I recently went out with a couple of friends and suggested Yokocho.....and boy has this place changed. I didnt recognize any of the new waiters except for mabye one or two of the females...the new waiters seemed like they didnt know what they were doing and one of them was plain out rude...we ended up waiting 45 minutes to be sat next to the kitchen in the back which wasnt all that terrible except for the fact that they left the door to the balcony open and we had freezing gusts of wind blowing in our face the whole meal. In the oden (hotpot) i ordered the daikon radish was actually cold....This used to be a place with close friends and a good time....
Pros: Bar next door, Cheap Sake
Cons: Terrible wait staff
