Man, that's it, I'm hitting up some Restaraunt Japan tonight. And don't mention Morimoto's. ;)

Looks much tastier than the $10 sandwhich (plus tasty cookie) that I had to buy on a recent United Airlines flight. United is beat.

Speaking of Morimoto, it finally has a Zagat score and review:

Scores are out of 30, however the highest Zagat has given for any category is a 29.

Food: 27
Decor: 27
Service: 25

"Nobu no more: this storefront near Washington Square from ‘Iron Chef Japanese’ Masaharu Morimoto and Stephen Starr is a “transporting visual and culinary experience” not unlike a tongue-“titillating” “Star Trek episode”; “sensual” “techno-funk” interiors attract “Philly’s who’s who” for “ambrosial” omakase (“omigodzi!”); service, while “skilled”, seems to some “too rehearsed” and the meal will “cost you $2 per bite”, but after tasting and judgment almost all agree the Food Network star “reigns supreme.”

$2 a bite is *so* worth it.

Heh what is it with them and their quotes. What Philly restaraunts rate higher?

Hmm the food at Restaraunt Japan is rated at a 25. Compared to Morimoto's, I don't see it (Morimoto's was *way* better).

Of course, maybe if Restaraunt Japan offered an omakase... who knows, maybe they do.

Well, there is a very big difference between a 25 and a 27. When you start getting to the top of the Zagat scale, each point gets more significant. For instance, the highest rated restaurants in both New York and Philadelphia get a 28. The very best restaurants in the country get a 29 (and there are very very few that get that mark.. like under 10)

The two highest rated restaurants in Philly are #1 The Fountain and #2 Le Bec-Fin, both French cuisine. Le Bec-Fin is a bit more famous and a lot bit more expensive. There are a handful of other restaurants more highly rated than Morimoto as well. We have a lot of 28s here.

Okay, that makes me feel better. The food I just had was great at Restaraunt Japan was great, it's just that Morimoto's is in an entirely different league.

I think Restaurant Japan is great. I am always telling people, "yes, we actually do have very good sushi in Columbus."

Next time I am in Boston there is a sushi place I want to go to called Oishii. It is one of those few restaurants in the country that score a 29 for food. Meanwhile, it is a BYOB and about 1/2 the price of Morimoto.

Even “sushi snobs” agree that the “heaven on rice” at this “tiny” twosome in Chestnut Hill and Sudbury is the “best” in the state - in fact, with the “freshest fish in town”, it was voted No. 1 for Food in the Boston area; the “creative maki and hand rolls are exceptional”, “taking a favorite item to a whole new level”, while the omakase extravaganza elicits a chorus of “oh my Gods”; the “seating is sardine-like” to the extreme, but it’s “worth the wait to watch the chef create works of art” that rival even “Nobu’s.”