Happy Birthday to me!

So I hit a little bit of a milestone yesterday, I turned 25! Well not really, but you are only as old as you feel right...

Michael surprised me with a dinner date out! He wouldn't tell me where we were going or what we were eating, just some of the most random clues.

1. It may be a little warm inside
2. We would be eating 8-10 courses

Warning right now, this post is a bit picture heavy. But if there is nothing I love more than eating, it's looking at pictures of food. Enjoy!

Being the sneak that I am (Hi my name is Lacey and I am a snooper) I tried my best to try and figure out where we were going...but I was pleasantly surprised when we arrived at this doorway.

You can't see it, but the gold plaque on the door talks about the EXTREMELY strict dress code. I love it!

After carefully navigating the stairs down we were in a small entryway, where you had to switch your shoes for these snazzy numbers.

Unfortunately I was stuck in Das Boot for the evening, so no slippers for me.

Now this restaurant is TINY, like seriously only seats 20 people a night. Your seats are wooden blocks that lift up to store your jacket, purse, cell phone, etc. Another little detail I just loved was how you were under no circumstances allowed to use your cell phone (even to check a text). A businessman seated next to us took his out to check an email, and the geisha like waitress hurried over and explained he would have to leave the restaurant or put his phone away. Apparently the chef will not serve you if a phone is present. Strict, but I like it. It made the experience feel special and it added to the atmosphere to not have to hear someone on their phone.

The menu is separated into two sections: English and Japanese. Michael had already planned on us doing the multi-course dinner known as kaiseki ryoori. It would consist of 8-10 courses at the chef's discretion. We did get to select one of the courses and we upgraded our sashimi selection to an assorted mix and some toro (fatty tuna).

Because I was still awestruck I didn't take a picture of the first course, but it was one of our favorites. We started with mussels in a richly flavored rice wine broth enhanced with pieces of ginger and garlic. Great, but it did take a little bit of a learning curve to navigate the mussels with chopsticks.

Second Course

Starting from the top left: fresh shrimp with avocado in a soy bean sauce, salmon, asparagus with an egg and lemon sauce (kind of like hollandaise), and a crab, jellyfish, seaweed mixture. AMAZING. We also went with kind of an adventurous drink. We figured when in Rome...eat something highly toxic and poisonous. Thus, we ordered their Blowfish-infused hot sake. The sake literally had the fin of the infamous poison fish floating in the pot. It was interesting...kind of like fishy sake (but better tasting than it sounds). Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture. I was still kind of in awe of the place.

Third Course

Michael and I were then served our sashimi. Three words...To Die For! We've eaten sushi everywhere and this was by far the best quality and unique selection (Spanish Mackerel, Salmon, Giant Sea Clam, Scallop, Snapper, Boston Mackerel, Stripe Jack) we have ever had. I am now a huge fan of the Boston Mackerel and Snapper. And the Toro didn't disappoint. Melting in your mouth. That weird green banana thing in the middle was pretty cool. It was the fresh wasabi. You could grate a little more off if you choose to.

Fourth Course

Next, we had a fresh prawn wrapped in seaweed before it was quickly fried. The condiments on the side were green tea sea salt and another pepper of some kind (I don't remember). It was fried perfectly...crisp on the outside and still juicy inside. The presentation looked much better when they first presented it to us. Michael and I were so into the food that we both started eating before I could take a picture.

Fifth Course

This was a selection of fresh veggies with a light vinaigrette and a scallop. It was a nice time to have something a little lighter.

Sixth Course

This was really cool because one of the geisha like ladies cooked it right at the table. It consisted of shrimp, scallop, mushrooms, and beef served with ponzu and different types of grated radish to flavor the ponzu.

Seventh Course

More sashimi! This time around we had yellowtail, tuna, and more stripe jack. At this point Michael was also having fun with the geisha. They were so exact in everything. Constantly topping off your glass and keeping everything orderly. For example, he moved the direction of the glass kettle for my wine and turned the black marble placement askew. At the conclusion of the course they immediately corrected it. It was kind of funny how OCD they were about the order.

Eighth Course

Chilean Sea Bass for me, Orange Roughy for Michael. Mine was perfect, but Michael thought his was just okay. Neither of us had ever had orange roughy, so we don't know if it was the preparation or if it's just not a fish for us.

Ninth Course

This was the soba noodle course. I selected seaweed with mine and Michael picked fresh mushroom. We both really enjoyed it. Down to me drinking my broth after the waitress stated it was perfectly acceptable.

Tenth and Final Course

Amazing! I am sooo going to try and replicate this at home. It was a fresh grape granita with a Grand Marnier drizzle. Be prepared if visiting the L & M home to have some sort of attempt at this in the near future.

It was by far one of the best dining experiences we have ever had! Michael and I have eaten at some of the top restaurants in the country, but the experience at Makoto is unparalleled. I highly recommend it and couldn't give it enough praises.

Thank You! Thank You! Thank You Michael! It was one of the best birthdays ever! AND highly different from prior birthdays (I didn't wake up with sore feet and a cloudy head the next morning). I guess we are all grown up!

And thank you too, to all of my family and friends. Your gifts and well wishes was amazing!