{"id":294,"date":"2011-03-13T01:51:27","date_gmt":"2011-03-13T05:51:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.eatcooklive.com\/?p=294"},"modified":"2011-03-13T16:00:54","modified_gmt":"2011-03-13T20:00:54","slug":"sake-bar-hagi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.eatcooklive.com\/?p=294","title":{"rendered":"Sake Bar Hagi"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Melodramatic Prologue <\/em><\/h3>\n

It was December 2010.\u00c2\u00a0 In the biting chill of winter.\u00c2\u00a0 The piercing wind whipped through the man-made canyons that are the streets of Manhattan. Two adventures set out on a culinary quest.\u00c2\u00a0 Months before Meg had eaten at a Japanese bar that she thought I would love.\u00c2\u00a0 It reminded her of Village Yokocho<\/a>.\u00c2\u00a0 She wasn’t exactly sure where it was.\u00c2\u00a0 Between 6 and 7 Ave.\u00c2\u00a0 On 51st Street.\u00c2\u00a0 Maybe 50th.\u00c2\u00a0 Definitely in the 50s.\u00c2\u00a0 What was it called though…?\u00c2\u00a0 She wasn’t sure, but there was a boring bar a couple doors down and there were stairs in the restaurant\u00c2\u00a0 that bring you down to the seating area.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Against my better judgment, I became the second adventurer on this foolhardy adventure.<\/p>\n

We started on our way, walked the five avenues over and four blocks down, the winter air challenging us to turn back at every step.\u00c2\u00a0 Once we got to 50th street, we walked its length west from 6th Ave to 7th Ave.\u00c2\u00a0 The mysterious restaurant did not reveal herself.\u00c2\u00a0 Meg assured me that it must be on the next block.\u00c2\u00a0 So we walked 51st going West from 7th Ave to 6th Ave .\u00c2\u00a0 The mysterious restaurant still did not reveal herself.\u00c2\u00a0 “I’m sure it’s right near here, it must just be the next block up.”\u00c2\u00a0 52nd Street from 6th Ave back to 7th Ave.\u00c2\u00a0 “OK, really, it’s right near here, I’ll know it when I see it.”\u00c2\u00a0 53rd Street from 7th Ave to…..\u00c2\u00a0 We made, snaking between 6th and 7th Avenues, it all the way up to 59th Street, where, frozen and defeated, we gave in and turned back to eat at Joe’s Shanghai<\/a> midtown location on 56th.<\/p>\n

But like all good tales, this one comes with a happy ending.\u00c2\u00a0 A few weeks ago, Meg tracked down the location of this mystery restaurant.\u00c2\u00a0 It’s on 49th, just on block South from where we started our Northward hunt!\u00c2\u00a0 But the meal we finally enjoyed this weekend made the earlier chilly trek worth the pain.<\/p>\n

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The Place<\/em><\/em><\/h3>\n

Finding ourselves in Times Square, we stopped by the mystery restaurant, which we learned is actually an izakaya, or Japanese pub, called Sake Bar Hagi.\u00c2\u00a0 We had to pass an hour waiting for a table, so we passed the time at the bar of Pasta Lovers, a few doors down. It was early evening, around 6:30, which made us a little surprised to find a huge crowd at Saki Bar Hagi.\u00c2\u00a0 But, given the Midtown location, Hagi seems to draw a large after-work crowd.\u00c2\u00a0 (As an aside, please ignore all of the great things I say about this place, avoid it like the plague, so that next time I go there it won’t be so crowded!)<\/p>\n

The sign above the outside door simply reads: Sake Bar.\u00c2\u00a0 Once past the first door, there’s a narrow staircase leading down to\u00c2\u00a0 another door to the bar and seating area.\u00c2\u00a0 I felt like I’d stepped out of New York and into an Osakan sports bar.\u00c2\u00a0 The actual bar is medium-sized, with most of the warmly lit room dedicated to long wooden tables, with smaller tables on the outskirts.\u00c2\u00a0 From pretty much wherever you sit you have a view of a one of the many flatscreen TVs on the wall and get a view of one of the many signs with the daily specials.<\/p>\n

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The Eats
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