NYC GUIDE: Tsuru Ton Tan
Address | 21E 16th, New York, NY, 10003 or 64W 48th, New York, NY, 10036
Coming from a Japanese American family, one of my favorite comfort foods is udon. Tsuro Ton Tan—with a location in Union Square and Midtown—is a favorite low key spot in NYC to enjoy a steaming hot bowl of udon with other Japanese cuisine favorites. Tsuro Ton Tan is a good spot to meet up for happy hour, or to enjoy a casual meal. The menu has an expansive array of udon options but limited vegetarian choices. Since I try to avoid red meat, my go to order is the shrimp tempura udon and it’s satisfying every time. To give you an idea of some of the other menu items, I’ll go through some of the dishes that I enjoyed on a recent visit to the Union Square location.
Seared Salmon: There are a lot of sushi/sashimi options on the menu and recently I went with the seared salmon as a starter. The soy citrus sauce and ikura combined nicely with the salmon.
Lychee Martini: Right now things are a little bizarre in NYC, the supply chain is bottled up and there are worker shortages everywhere. All this to say, not every cocktail on the menu was actually available to order. Of necessity, we ordered the signature lychee cocktails. Simple and tasty.
Soy Garlic Fried Chicken: This was ordered for my 12 year old who wants fried chicken for breakfast lunch and dinner. Overall the fried chicken was good and a large portion size, great for sharing. It was a little over salted so stay hydrated!
Fried Oysters: This was my favorite starter. The oysters tasted fresh, the batter was nice with an outer crunch. I wasn’t a fan of the egg salad that it is served with but I would definitely recommend trying the fried oysters.
Wagyu Deluxe Sukiyaki: You’ll find a few wagyu options on the menu. My son ordered the wagyu deluxe sukiyaki. He was a little surprised by the sweetness but sukiyaki tends to be on the sweet side so I found the seasoning and taste to be spot on.
Shrimp Tempura Udon + Vegetable Tempura Udon: These are the go to orders for my wife and myself. As you can see, the udon is served in a large dish making it easy to enjoy without spilling. The tempura is served on the side so you can dip as you eat and have the right texture throughout your meal.
