First they brought out some delicious foccacia bread and sweet potato spread to eat as we perused the menu. My two friends ordered some hot tea, which when presented seemed like extremely nice loose leaf tea. And I, of course, ordered their mango martini (delicious!). It's all about the mango puree.
We shared a bunch of plates between the three of us. The Thai Chili Shrimp were on what appeared to be rice crackers with some kind of sauce beneath the marinated shirmp. They were very good, but not as spicy as I would have liked. The grilled ginger squid was probably my favorite, tasting lightly of ginger, tossed with mango and red pepper, and both cooked and spiced perfectly. The Josie's roll (king crab, avocado, cucumber, masago) was forgettable, and definitely needed more king crab. Their wasabi was also under-flavored and a disturbing shade of leprechaun green. And their "un-fried rice" (which we got with tofu instead of shrimp) was quite delicious but also extremely filling.
With three of us walking in ravenous, and sharing only 3 appetizers and an entree I was surprised at how much was left on our plates when we finished. They don't cheat you on the portions. However, we also asked for "light oil" on all of our dishes, as one of my friends has a sensitive stomach. Yet to me, it seemed that request may have gone ignored (I can only imagine that "un-fried" rice would have been dripping had it been left as is!). Still, I found the food to be overall quite good, innovative, and fresh. And I will be back without a doubt.
Here's a picture of the squid I swiped from their website:
www.josiesnyc.com
