Miso Izakaya

I'm no expert on Izakayas. I don't spend a lot of time searching out great sushi, ramen, or shochu, for that matter. I like the stuff, but I'm far from any authority on the subject. However, it seems Miso Izakaya in the Old Fourth Ward has been buzzing a bit lately as the restaurant has seemed to hit its stride with Guy Wong and crew cranking out some seriously tasty food.

I'm not going to rave on about the menu as everything we had, including the duck confit buns, house salad, and sushi special, were really tasty. But the damn soy-marinated, soft-boiled egg on crispy rice cake (pictured above) is what will bring me back to Miso very soon.. My wife and I ordered three of the buggers over the course of our dinner. Salty, gooey soft-boiled egg on a slightly burnt and crispy rice cake...just a decadent mix of textures and flavors. Perhaps I'm too excited about this rather simple dish, but I want another. Soon.

Miso Izakaya is also the spot to hit if you want to get a taste of Shochu. What is Shochu? I asked the same question when I got there as I am apparently late to the Shochu party. Shochu is a Japanese distilled liquor, not unlike vodka or whiskey, just with about half the alcohol content. Miso has numerous fun infused-shochu drinks like the cucumber-lemongrass pictured here. We also tried the grapefruit and ginger, as well as the basil lemonade, which was right tasty.