Haru is a modern Japanese restaurant group with 7 locations in New York, and one in Boston. We’ve dined at the Gramercy location, and stopped by the newly opened Times Square location on a Saturday evening during the pre-broadway show dinner rush. The menu features sushi, sashimi and creative salads to signature dishes like carpaccios, ceviches, tartares, and specialty rolls.
Lobster Gyoza
For starters we tried the Lobster Mango Ceviche and Shrimp Tempura and two items off their special appetizers menu: Lobster Gyoza and Jumbo Asian Shrimp. The ceviche was light, and a bit bland. The lobster gyoza made up for it – 5 dumplings full of delicious lobster meat. The Jumbo Asian Shrimp was great too, though messing with my taste buds with the Thai flair. The Shrimp Tempura, which reminded us of Nobu (can’t beat their rock shrimp tempura) was good, though heavy on the batter.
Shrimp Tempura
Jumbo Asian Shrimp sautéed with massaman curry
My favorite part of dinner was trying Haru’s signature sushi rolls. The four we tried were great:
- Gramercy Park – Crunchy albacore tuna and jalapeños wrapped with tuna, yellowtail and salmon and topped with lemon, cilantro, tobiko and yuzu miso sauce (our favorite)
- Spider – Crispy soft shell crab with cucumber, lettuce and tobiko
- Shogatsu – Tuna, salmon and albacore tuna-wrapped spicy snow crab and asparagus roll, topped with cilantro, mango, strawberry, tobiko, and wasabi tobiko sauce
- Perfect Fantasy Roll – Avocado-wrapped shrimp tempura and asparagus with spicy mayo
Spider Roll, Gramercy Park Roll, Perfect Fantasy Roll, and Shogatsu Roll
Already full, it was hard to eat our entrées – Chicken Teriyaki, Chilean Sea Bass with ume plum sauce and mei fun noodles, and Crispy Duck. Of the three we tried Crispy Duck was the best, but would have been better if it came with some bao buns.
Chicken Teriyaki with steamed vegetables
Chilean Sea Bass
Portions are generous, so parties of 2 should order 1 appetizer, a couple specialty rolls, and an entrée for dinner. Signature cocktails start at $13, while they are delicious, we highly recommend trying a sake flight – priced at either $13 or $19, depending on the quality.
Haru Sake Flights
Tasting of 4 Sakes (pictured, rear) Reiko, Nigori, Karaba, Suishin
Tasting − Top Flight (pictured, front)
Kaori, Kira, Wakatake, Kubota
Haru is a good choice for a pre-broadway show dinner. Even on a busy night, service is good. Also good for kids.
Open daily for lunch and dinner. They also have daily lunch specials (11.30am to 3pm) priced from $9.75 to $18.50.
Haru Times Square
229 West 43rd Street, Unit 221
New York, NY
Tel: (212) 398-9810
http://www.harusushi.com/location/newyork_timessquare
Disclosure: Dinner was free of charge. The opinions expressed are my own and I received no further compensation from Haru or their representatives.
