Lunch @ Buddakan, Philadelphia

 
I had the day before Thanksgiving off and had decided to check out Buddakan again. It has been 10 years since my last visit. Buddakan is memorable to me because this was where I had the best kobe beef ever – thinly sliced served over hot stones – buttery melt in your mouth quality. Nothing I had at Megu in New York or La Tour d’Argent in Tokyo compares.
 

Buddakan doesn’t serve the kobe beef slices anymore so I opted to check out the bento box lunches. It’s a quick way to get reacquainted with their menu. And, I think it’s the best deal ever, $15 for 3 choices.
 

Verdict: The best small plates were the edamame ravioli, grilled lamb chops and the kobe beef slider. I’d go back for more of these. The Egg and Noodle Soup was the least successful because the broth was too salty. I was already warned by my server but she gave the udon noodles a good recommendation so I tried it. Nevertheless, it was still too salty. It’s a warning to those who have high blood pressure since salt can trigger an episode. Regarding the last two small plates, the mushroom fried rice and wasabi tuna taretare. They’re ok but I won’t order them again. I prefer the mushroom fried rice to have had a stronger mushroom flavor like from a shitake while the wasabi tuna taretare was fresh but lacked cohesion as a composed dish. Maybe if the server had told me that the taretare was not served the traditional way and had asked me to toss the tuna in with the bed of noodles I might have enjoyed it.