Minado

In the spring of 2004, a few of the guys and I celebrated the close of the school year by having a final, end-of-the-semester dinner at Minado. At the end of each semester since then, we’ve done the same. A couple of weeks ago, Eric, Sarah, Meat, Nami, and Assad joined me for dinner at Minado, continuing what I guess you could say has become a tradition.

Minado is a small restaurant chain in the Northeast with locations in Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The one we visited is located in Natick, a suburb about a half hour’s drive from Boston.

Minado is a Japanese seafood buffet that offers both a cold and hot menu. The cold menu contains all kinds of salads, raw seafood and appetizers. The sushi, however, is the main feature. With over 30 different varieties, Minado offers quite a wide selection. Along with the nigiri, maki, and sashimi on the buffet tables, the sushi chefs also will make custom hand rolls upon request.

The hot menu comprises cooked foods like tempura, crab cakes, lobster, teriyaki, noodles, soups, and gyoza. A teppan-yaki grill station is also available where meat and vegetables are cooked to order.

To finish your meal, there is also sizeable dessert section featuring made-to-order crepes, Japanese teacakes, fruit, and green tea ice-cream.

We went to Minado on a Saturday night, and when we arrived at around 7 o’clock, the restaurant was absolutely packed. Minado’s dining room is large to begin with, but even so, we had to wait for a table.

I tried to take pictures of the buffet tables, but only managed to get one. The general manager saw me with my camera and came over to stop me. Apparently, Minado has some policy that prohibits picture taking of their food. Here are a few photos I did manage to take…

Every time I have gone to Minado, the food has been great. Like always, good food starts with good ingredients, and overall, the raw fish and seafood Minado uses are very fresh. I have never had premium grade sushi at a place like Oshii or Uni, but of the sushi I have eaten, Minado ranks among the best.