Ootoya Times Square
“Here, a grilled fish set will cost you slightly over $20, and you get to enjoy a piece of traditional Japanese grilling art.”
“Kaisen Don – I wouldn't normally get sashimi at Ootoya since, in my opinion, they specialize in comfort food, so why get anything else?”
“Their Katsu Toji is my favorite – breaded fried pork loin is served in a light sauce with onions and fluffy perfectly cooked eggs.”
Ootoya Times Square
Takes Reservations: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
PokéStop Nearby: Yes
Price range.
$$$ Price range $31-60
8 reviews
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Does the food taste good? Sure.
Is it anything special? No.
Is it overpriced? Yes.
Can you find everything they offer for cheaper elsewhere? It's called St. Marks.
Highlights: tofu that comes as a side dish with most of the sets, yuzu poochi poochi drink, and the cute spoons
My breaded pork don with egg over rice was averagely good, but I've had better for more than half the price. Same with the yakitori skewers.
Personally, I doubt I'll be back, but I can't really say anything bad except the price value. Then again, it's midtown / almost Times Square area, so prices are jacked up a bit. Izakaya shouldn't be priced like that unless it's special. My pork don is like Japanese street food in a nice set presentation.
Just decided to have lunch near work and to my surprise, this location is pretty spacious, my wait was under 10 minutes, I was on my own so I sat at the bar in front of their semi-open kitchen. Nice customer service, just like every other lunch set/don oriented Japanese restaurant.
I ordered the Housemade Tofu for appetitzer (because I'm a big fan of housemade tofu), it's too mushy and it wasn't easy to pick up by spoon, the sauce was nice and light, but slightly too salty together with the bonito flakes. One other place I've had very good housemade tofu was Cocoron and Zenkichi, I have to say that Ootoya's tofu is a piece of creamy soy goodness. I loved the flavor but not too much the texture.
For entree I got the miso tonkatsu, it's served in a hotpot, as soon as it came in the pork katsu was still sizzling, smelled very good, but it's a shame that this miso was way too sweet. I preferred all the cabbage in the meal, it soaked up all the miso sauce, it's perfect to eat with rice. The pork katsu was not crispy anymore, no complaints because it's sitting in a sauce/soup, but it's not as tender as I would have liked, but I could tell it's a great piece of pork. So? The sauce was just too overwhelming, the batter unwrapped itself as I was picking up my katsu because it was too wet. But overall the set was not bad, the miso soup was very good, not too salty not too light.
The chawamushi though, was the most smooth and most slippery thing I've ever had, how did they make it?? It just slides through my tongue, it seemed like they put oil in the egg but hey, it's a pretty amazing experience.
I will want to try another set next time and dessert.
Slightly pricey with a long wait, but the food is amazing and worth it! Went with a friend and ordered two of their set menus. Tried a variety of yakitori and their tofu salad which was really good. My friend ordered the kimchi hotpot and I had the gyu shio koji which is a platter of beef cooked to perfection paired with rice and steamed egg.
A gem amidst the Times Square chaos. Incredibly fresh fish and great set menu options. The sparkling sake was very refreshing too.
The wait doesn't seem to be as long as they tell you (they have quite a large space and quick service), and it's worth it for high quality Japanese dining in that area.
Typical New York prices for what you get BUT NO TIP (already built into price), so actually perhaps a bit cheaper when all is said and done!
As Asian restaurants take over Manhattan.
Ootoya Times square is one of leaders of the pack
for authentic contemporary Japanese food. Its not quite an Isakaya and not quite a sushi bar and it does have the feeling of being straight out of Tokyo. Overall we loved it and I could easily become a regular here.
We started out with some very well done Yakitori from
Organic chicken parts. The chicken livers were the standout. From here it was onto an extravaganza of grilled norwegian salmon and Ikura chirashi style and
Pressed salmon nigiri in deliciously amped up variations
of grilled, spicy mayonaised', and raw pieces.
These plates were accompanied by some nice miso soup and velvety egg custard.
We washed it down with some very nice sake from an extensive and well defined sake carte.
The menu here goes deep with ramens, sobas, lots of grilled items and very solid sushi type items as well.
The waitstaff are exceptionally nice, perhaps because they my be getting some good wages due to the no tipping policy. While not anything like the many high priced ala mode sushi bars all over Manhattan, Ootoya gives you a really nice experience for a fair price.
With three locations they have got the formula down as evidenced by a packed house of mostly young well
Heeled diners who are obviously in the know.
Amazing comfort food with so many different elements to sample in the set. The homemade tofu appetizer wasn't my favorite – I didn't love the texture as much as other places I've had. I ordered Hokke Yuan because sweet grilled things are the best, and the husband had Hanabi Don. Both were beautifully presented and comforting. Simple perfection.
Food is very good. The kaisen don comes with a good amount of fish, all of which is very fresh. The set comes with chiwanmushi and miso soup, which makes for a decent deal. The chicken dishes are also very flavorful. The cocktails are refreshing. The interior is lovely and not crowded, despite the Times Square location. For the quality of food, the prices are reasonable. Only thing stopping me from giving all out 5 stars is that service can be slow.
Ohhh Ootoya how I love you. This is one of those spots where you can ALWAYS expect quality food no matter what location you visit… Yes even in Times Square.
We went on a Friday night around 6pm and we waited about 30-40 minutes. Considering this is Times Square for Friday dinner, I didn't think it was bad at all. Make sure to put your name down ASAP – the earlier you get there the better.
My go-to is the Kaisen Don set… It IS pretty steep (about $40pp) but so worth it. You get EVERYTHING and the egg side dish that comes with the set is pretty phenomenal. I've also had the grilled fish and that was pretty good too. Depending on what you're in the mood for, I would recommend either one.
I tried the tofu salad for the first time and LOVED it. This is such a unique dish and I loved the combination of the flakes with the tofu.
If you're stuck in the area and are wondering if there are ANY good places to eat in Times Square, here you go. I would also try their other locations (Greenwich and Chelsea) if you can manage to avoid Times Square. 4.5 stars – highly recommended!