Highly recommend the una tama don if you are looking for a bowl of soul warming food! It's sweet, savory, warm, tender and just melts in your mouth! The egg, unagi, and shiitake mushroom are in perfect harmony. The curry katsu don is great if you are looking for a richer in your face flavor. Seared tuna tataki was perfection. Loved the Cajun spice seasonings on the sides - wished there was more cause we finished this so fast!! read more

Benemon - Una Tama Don - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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Had high hopes for Benemon but ultimately it was a bit of a letdown. Walked in around 6:20 on a weeknight and got a table for two immediately. The una-tama don was fantastic, but the karaage was kind of soggy - super unappealing, maybe it was laying out for a bit. Pork Katsu curry was decent, though again, the katsu itself could have been crispier. 3.5 stars. read more

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great food, highly recommend, good service, the only negative tight space and elbow to elbow seating other than that worth the price of admission. read more

On a Saturday afternoon, we visited Benemon for the first time after the pandemic. We visited at 5pm to avoid waiting a long line. There were some people but not a lot. Toward the end of our meal, at around 6pm, it was kind of busy. We didn't have a reservation, but we were lucky to get a table. They ask for vaccination card to be seated inside. We had pictures of our vaccination card, so we were able to sit inside. I felt comfortable that everyone who was dining in is vaccinated. We were asked to wear our masks all the time except when we eat We ordered tofu salad, soft shell crab, nanban don and una tama don. It was so great! Tofu salad had unique dressing which I believe it is miso based. It wasn't too sweet. It went well with tofu. I would definitely recommend to try. Soft shell crab was warm, crispy outside and soft inside. The ponzu sauce was perfect for the crab. Nanban don was a little thick(?) Sauce was thick. I didn't like it much but my wife liked it a lot. The veggie on nanban don actually helps with the thickness of the sauce. I ordered una tama don which was really good. Eel was well cooked. The egg went really well with the eel. Shiitake mushroom in una tama don really enriched the taste of the dish. You should give them a try! But do make a reservation if you aren't planning to go right when they open. 4.5/5 read more

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Benemon in the east village serves tapas, donburi, and Japanese curry dishes. They do not take reservations on the weekend and we saw the reason why; by the peak dining hour customers were lining up for a seat! We started with small plates of tuna tataki; seared tuna with Cajun spice, sweet miso-nuta sauce, and smoked pork belly with shishito peppers served with spicy black kaimi sauce. Both dishes are delicious yet we commented that the sauce for the tataki has overpowered the main star which is the tuna. For our main entree, we shared Nanban Don; crispy chicken tempura glazed with Nanban sauce served over rice, and the tender stewed beef with savory curry served with rice. We found both dishes delicious and filling. This place serves solid Japanese comfort food. The outdoor dining added quaintness to the ambiance. With awesome customer service and price points, we will be back here! read more

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This was my second time at Benemon, and it lived up to its expectation. The food came out quickly and was so filling. The pricing is fair, and everything tasted fresh. We started off with the Gobo Sticks. Its not a common flavor, so it might not be a favorite for everyone, but I loved it. We then got the soft shell crab and spicy octopus. The crab tasted fresh and tasted great. The spicy octopus was just okay. It was spicy, but I felt like it was missing something, that OOMPH, you know? We ended with the Una Tama Don, and this also exceeded our expectations. It came out piping how and it was so flavorful. Yum!! Can't wait to come back here! read more

Benemon - Soft Shell Crab - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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East Village has a lot of good Japanese restaurants, and this place is one of them! I love the vibe as soon as I walked in. The indoor area is a small, but it creates an intimate setting; there is also outdoor seating! The beef tataki is one of the popular dishes here, and I definitely did not regret ordering it! It had really good texture and flavor (has much more flavor than it looks). The shrimp tempura was also so crispy and warm, but it was a bit bland. They do give you a side of salt (?) to dip it, and that was interesting because I was used to eating tempuras with soy sauce. The Una Tama Don was pretty hefty, and very flavorful. The flavor can get overbearing after couple bites, so I suggest having a drink or some side while eating it. But I was excited to eat the huge unagi pieces! Service was decent, our waiter did not really know the ingredients of the drinks and wasn't too helpful with the menu, but the rest of the waiters were very attentive and nice. Overall, decent food and ambiance! read more

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I really love the unagi over rice bowl here. I think there are two, so if you're not sure which one to ask, just ask for the one with the bigger piece of unagi! I think the other dishes were all good, according to spec. Lots of fried karaage type dishes. The sake tasting is interesting, but I didn't really pick out any great sakes that I liked from the flight. read more

Very few restaurant in this city can totally blow you away with their excellent customer service. We had one of the best experience here last night. It was a cold winter night and we did a walk in. The place is small and super cute. We were warmly greeted and immediately accommodated. They have a great selection of sakes, small plates and mains. We started with some Nigori and got Edamames and delicious hot squids with red sauce. Must say the sake pour was super generous. I had to go for a repeat. Our server was exceptional throughout, taking care of order and comfort. Infact he also replaced our order when we realized that the Veggie Donburi brought to us had all deep fried vegetables. No questions asked, he offered on his own. We finally landed up Japanese curry with veggies. Warm, delicious and adequately flavorful. We were disappointed that they did not carry any desserts though, would have loved a matcha or red bean cake to end the night perfectly. This place reminded me of the kind of warm and thoughtful customer service I was used to living in Asia. I highly recommend this place. read more

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I'd go so far as to say that you could close your eyes, randomly point to any entree on Benemon's menu, and be more than satisfied with your choice (with the caveat being that you're an omnivore who likes flavorful food a.k.a most New York gourmands). Whether it's one of their carefully smoked, seared, or broiled meat dishes, a rich gravy covered bowl of curry, or a hearty donburi, their menu of Japanese comfort food contains the sort of dishes I'd never get tired of. I'm pretty sure the menu hasn't changed since they opened, but I was just as excited to eat there last week as I was to eat there when they were the talk of the town years ago. They have a few tables set up under heat lamps for outdoor dining, which are spaced out well and in a well ventilated area. With my coat kept on and many thermal layers of clothes on me, I was able to sit pretty comfortably in 30 degree weather, though I'll admit I couldn't feel my toes by the end of the meal. A small price to pay and nothing a few shots of sake couldn't fix. Speaking of sake, their long menu of craft sake introduced me to so many regional versions of the drink I had never had the pleasure of experiencing before my most recent meal here. For a newbie like me, choosing any one of their sake flights will lead your taste buds on a journey through different flavor profiles of sake. I thoroughly enjoyed their tuna tataki, expertly seared, really fresh, and served as a generous portion. Even my seafood averse dining companion thought it was phenomenal, which is a nod to their chef--and maybe my companion's evolving taste buds. I guess this is growing up! We each ordered a different donburi, and couldn't sing the praises of our respective bowls enough. I highly recommend the unagi don if you like eel. Our food came out quickly and we never felt rushed through our meal. Choose Benemon for a solid night out and leave with a belly full of rice and sake, all the better to brace you for the mean streets of wintry New York. read more

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Great place with very good food and impressive service. We ordered: Tuna Tataki Beef Tataki Hot Squid Oyako Don Una-Tama Don. Everything was amazing. Highly recommend! read more

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Absolutely enjoyed Benemon! It is a small Japanese restaurant that we found last minute when I was craving Japanese curry. This restaurant was very cute. We tried their sake flight, beef tataki, chicken katsu curry and yakiniku Don. Everything was delicious. We both enjoyed the beef tataki, it had so much flavor and it was quite tender. The curry was so good just wish it had spice levels, none the less it was delicious! The yakiniku Don was a little sweet for my liking but still good. I would definitely keep this in mind next time I'm in New York! read more

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Wow ,what a cute little place ! Came here on a Spring Day with a friend. The exterior and interior of the restaurant are very charming looking like you are in Japan. They call this Japanese comfort food and I guess it's true. Get the Anchovy Fried Potatoes appetizer. Tasty and unexpected with Parmesan cheese . The Gobo sticks are earthy but I like trying something different and we enjoyed them . Tempura is crispy and good. The main star of the menu are rice bowls .My friend got the Oyako Don dark meat chicken and really enjoyed it. I got the eel and egg Una Tama Don and it was so delicious and satisfying. There's no dessert unfortunately but service is really fantastic. Chill soundtrack too. Also got a glass of the Yume No Kaori sake for $14 , it was bright and fresh just like the menu says. Perfect for the meal. Also don't be afraid to order the sake , it's not too strong and tastes great . My friend also had a draft Sapporo beer . Such a relaxing meal. Definitely recommended. read more

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I came here on a Tuesday evening with a party of 4 and there was no wait. We ordered 4 appetizers to share, which were all delicious, but small portions. For my entree, I got the the pork curry katsu - it was lovely! Definitely on the mild side. Gobo sticks - 7/10. Good flavor, spicy! Wasn't expecting them to be spicy, but I liked it. Tuna tataki - 9/10 Garlic beef steak - 8/10 Kara age fried chicken - 6.5/10 Pork curry katsu - 8/10. Of note, the katsu was shaped like mozzarella sticks which was interesting. Good portion. Service was attentive, and we were provided with a water pitcher for refills. When you get your bill you are given a card with the option to "buy a round" for the staff. This was kind of confusing, unclear whether or not this adds to the tip or if the round is actually used because we didn't see anything. Not my first choice to return for the small appetizer portions and the price range, but the food was tasty! read more

Benemon - Kara Age Fried Chicken - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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Cute spot in east village! Cute interior ambience and the wait staff are all very friendly. There's a good amount of variety on the menu without it being overwhelming. I definitely recommend the nanban don and the garlic beef steak personally. The drinks taste and look great too but i believe they're all sake-based so be mindful of that. read more

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Good Japanese street food. Great choice of sakes. Quick an kind service staff. Reasonably priced. read more

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My new favorite Japanese place in NY. Delicious comfort food (love the curry) and tasty drinks. The waitstaff was prompt and friendly. Great location, the tall floor windows slide open so every seat feels like outside dining. Intimate for two friends catching up, and can host a table of 10 celebrating a milestone. read more

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Cute little place with some great tapas! We ordered to share among 4 people: Small plates - Gobo sticks - Kara-age chicken - Soft shell crab - Hot squid (one of my favorites) - Tuna tataki - Salty pork belly (another favorite) Entrees - Una-tama don - Tskukimi tori don Everything was absolutely delicious!!! I was VERY tempted to order more of the small plates and skip the entrees, but I'm glad we didn't. Service was great too, but a little on the pricier side. I'm glad they're open with outdoor dining though because I can't wait to go back again. read more

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Great food, ambiance, and service! We ordered the fried chicken (nice and moist), unagi don, and pork katsu curry (our favorite!) We also had 2 of the sake flights, which were all nice and smooth served in a cute set. Highly recommend! read more

Benemon - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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It's fine for what it is. Small, cozy restaurant with small-portioned, Japanese-home styled cooking. Servers were nice, but because of how small the restaurant is, I could hear their conversations about a friend of theirs etc. It's a fine restaurant, nothing wrong with it---just nothing special. read more

Current favorite restaurant in the city (2024). I've made reservations but can walk in too. Great ambiance. Have to get the anchovy fried potatoes. The Yakiniku Don and the Una-Tama Don are awesome. Overall a great date spot. read more

Took my partner here for his birthday on a Tuesday and the vibe was great! Didn't have to wait for a table, and the ambience is very intimate and cozy with close-together tables, hanging lightbulbs with warm yellow light, and a brick wall. We ordered the spicy squid to start, which was tangy and spicy and fresh (5/5) and I got the una tama don (3/5) and he got the oyako don (4/5). The eel was too chewy and not soft like in sushi restaurants. The rice was a little too mushy and the overall dish too sweet. The food came out quite fast. Overall would recommend this place as a date spot, but have had better Japanese comfort food. read more

Benemon - Bar and dining area - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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Food and drinks were alright, not the best, but what turned me off the most was that they asked for kitchen tip on top of regular tip. Seriously? What more tips do customers have to pay next? If I have to pay all the workers, I definitely shouldn't pay for my whole meal! The owner should be solely responsible for paying up for his workers fairly instead of loading everything on the customers. This tip culture has gone too far and only this country has this! I won't come back to this place again and no one should support this bs! read more

Cute and delicious Japanese restaurant. The Unagi Don was really delicious and it was a big eel. The garlic steak was tasty, very tender, and it had black pepper in it so making it a bit spicy. The soft shell crab was extremely good and very juicy. The restaurant was a bit crowded and loud, and sometimes it was impossible to hear my friends speaking. read more

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Great cozy atmosphere. Friendly staff. They have a great selection of sake. The food was delicious and reasonable as well. I got the oyakodon and beef tataki. The beef tataki was soft and tasted great. The place is small so I wish they took reservations. read more

Benemon - Gyu Beef Tataki - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

Nanban Don - 7/10 I LOVE CHICKEN NANBAN!! It's fried chicken with freaking tartar sauce, what is not to love?! However I didn't like how the sauce completely covered the chicken and therefore the coating was no longer crispy. I love crunchy texture so that was a minus. Garlic Beef Steak - 6/10 I ordered this thinking it was going to be a meal but it was actually an appetizer, oops. The flavor was alright, not rare enough for me. The rice cracker chip thing was interesting, but I did like the sauce it came in. read more

Benemon - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

Randomly walked by this cute Japanese spot in the East Village and decided to check out their lunch set don buri. You won't miss the place, there's several barrels of sake outside. I ordered the tsukimi tori don and my girlfriend got the una tama don. They both come with either miso soup or a salad. The tsukimi tori is basically fried pieces of popcorn chicken with a poached eggs with noodles and mushrooms. The una tama is grilled eel with a soft scrambled egg topping. Both were quite delicious and filling. The service is very friendly and the bathroom is super clean. This place gets an all around A. And a perfect spot for a quick hearty bite. read more

Benemon - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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Japanese tapas - say less!!! My friend and I dined in on a weeknight and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Together we shared a karaage fried chicken ($9), tuna tataki ($13), and una-tama don ($19), which all swept me off my feet. Each dish was just perfectly prepared and then beautifully executed. Normally I'd say more, but instead this time just check out my pictures because they speak for themselves. read more

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The classy ambiance here is 10/10. Drinks and food 10/10. Service was so friendly as well! We ordered a couple cocktails, as well as a sake flight, the server was extremely helpful and walked us through the different flavor profiles of sake and we loved how the sake flight came with a little informative brochure on what we were drinking. The hot squid had a nice modern twist, it was flavorful and very reasonable serving size. The assorted tempura was perfectly fried and delicious as well. Would love to come back and try the rest of the menu! read more

Benemon - sake flight and matcha cocktail - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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Came here on a whim on a rainy evening since it's super close by. There was no wait and we quickly got seated and served. We mostly wanted to try some sake, and the waitress was very knowledgeable about recommendations and the full size bottles aren't too expensive! This place is definitely a great option for a casual evening drink and catch up with friends. I got the nanban don, which is a sweet glazed chicken tempura with their homemade tartar sauce (very heavy on the mayo and eggs?) on top. The chicken does get soggy if you don't eat it fast enough because there's a lot of glaze and sauce, but the flavor is really good!! Also the portion is pretty big, as was the unagi don my friend got! They definitely don't skimp here. We never felt rushed to get out and our waitress was very quick and attentive! Would definitely come back here to try other things!! read more

Benemon - Nanban Don - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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I was pretty excited to try Benemon due to the high volume of positive reviews. However I was sorely disappointed that the first thing I noticed when I walked into the restaurant was the distractingly horrible odor surrounding the whole establishment . The space itself was very small so the overwhelming smell of old oil and body odor really filled the space. I'm not sure if that is how it smells in there all the time but I truly hope not (this review is also from January so I'm not sure if they cleaned up since then). It was also weird how walking into the bathroom had a better smell to it than the actual restaurant (thanks to a small air freshener in the corner ). As stated above the space itself is pretty small and so they can't seat a lot of people and it does get crowded fairly easily and they don't take reservations so if you want to guarantee yourself seating make sure to enter early. My friend and I entered on a Sunday night at 7 PM and thankfully were able to be seated right away. We decided to order a couple dishes to share: -TUNA TATAKI: Great flavor and a great appetizer -Salty Pork Belly: a bit on the oily side but flavor wise was great and a nice amount of fat. A bit too heavy for my taste. -Una Tama Don: Great quality of eel - a slightly steeper price but not too bad. All in all, though the food itself was great I don't think I will be finding myself back just due to the air quality and upkeep of the restaurant which was very disappointing. read more

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I get it, inflation is causing price increase, but this is ridiculous. I came here to order a 6 piece karage ($12) and three orders of curry chicken rice ($19 each). Half of the plate was sauce. The food was okay, they service was okay, but it was over priced. I cannot believe we are paying $20 for a plate of rice and fried chicken. That's literally what it was. I'd rather go to abiko curry. Food was okay but not worth what you are paying for. I spend almost $100 this nonsense. read more

Benemon - Chicken Katsu Curry for $19 - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

My boyfriend and I came for dinner and we loved it!!! I got the unagi don (eel rice bowl, the one without onions) and the scallop appetizer and both were great. The unagi don was so tasty, tender, and flavorful and such a good value. A similar sized and similar quality one in Tokyo would be easily over $40 and it's under $30 here. My boyfriend got the karaage (fried chicken) and a curry rice bowl and enjoyed both of them a lot as well, although I tried the chicken and thought it could have been more crispy. While waiting for our table we sat at the bar and the bartender was very nice and helpful with recommend sakes, and my boyfriend had trouble picking one because all the ones he tasted were so good! I had a yuzu hojicha iced tea which was also great. read more

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I really enjoyed this place! Food: The food was so good! My favorite was the fried tofu. The tofu was so silky soft and it was perfectly crispy on the outside. It was, however, a little hard to pick up, even with the provided spoon. The arugula salad with the sesame dressing was also light and delicious! The rice bowls are quite large so it was nice to share one with a friend while we got other appetizers. Finally, the drinks were AMAZING. They were the best part. Our table got the matcha drink and the plum cocktail and both tasted so yummy. Service: Service was quick and great. No complaints here. Ambiance: I really enjoyed the outdoor seating for this place! The streets aren't too crowded and it's quite spacious. Overall, I would come to this establishment again. read more

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Great Japanese spot! Came here with a friend for dinner on a weekday around 7pm and got seated right away. We split a bunch of things. To start we got the Kara'age Fried Chicken and Tuna Tataki. My favorite was the chicken, the spicy mayo was perfect with the juicy chicken. The tuna was also pretty good. Afterwards we got the Yakiniku Don (beef) and Unagi Don (eel). I liked the unagi more, but I'm also biased towards eel. The portion of eel was also huge! The yakiniku was pretty good. It kinda reminded me of Korean bulgogi. Overall, great dining experience. Glad I got to try this place! read more

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This place is the definition of Japanese comfort food! Their interior is pretty small so we opted to sit outside. The service was a bit slow because we were outside, but understandable. We decided to get drinks but were slightly disappointed by them. Aesthetically their drinks look amazing, but they were pretty weak and didn't leave an impression on me. We also got their karaage and anchovy potato appetizer. The karaage was good, but the weren't as crispy as we hoped. The real star of the show was their house-made spicy mayo that comes with it though! The anchovy potatoes were really small, came with brussel sprouts, and didn't really taste how we expected. Their donburi is really what we came here for though! I got the Katsu-don which really hit the spot. The katsu was good and the sauce and eggs were cooked perfectly as well. The last time I came here I got the shrimp tempura don, and I preferred the katsu-don since it mixed better with the rice. Overall: a solid reasonably-priced place for Japanese food with good atmosphere! I would come here again but probably skip the drinks and appetizers! read more

Benemon - Katsu Don - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

My boyfriend and I came here for lunch, which is when they serve their donburis with an extra salad, pickles and sweet beans (in comparison to alone at dinner) and I thought the food overall was pretty good. I had the Unagi and Egg Don and it was delicious. Great tasting eel, delicious egg, with a nice dashi touch to all of it. The pickles and other side dishes were decent as well. I had some of my boyfriends Oyako Don and it was delicious as well. read more

Benemon - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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This place was ok, we started out with delicious food. But the later we stayed at the restaurant, the worse it had gotten, first of all, the tables were all mismatched and inadequately sized. Buts that's not all, in the restaurant, there was no temp control and I was left freezing in my seat. After our first dish, the service began to slow down, this meant that we could only get one plate of food every 6 minutes, we were starving the whole meal which made even worse. But the worst part by far was when our mains had finally arrived, they were lacking of inauthenticity and volume of food. The pork curry we had ordered had came in small finger like rods, we didn't think it would be to bad, but after biting in, we realized that the batter and the frying was totally off. In conclusion, I would not recommend this restaurant if you want to be left full, warm, and satisfied. read more

We came for lunch on a Saturday and were seated with no wait. The restaurant has open windows that lets in fresh air, perfect for enjoying the summer weather. The chicken karaage was pretty good. Comes piping hot. The Una-tama don came with a side of miso soup or salad of your choice. Four sizeable pieces of unagi. Unagi was soft, didn't have a single piece of bone, and a pleasure to eat. The runny egg on top added a nice texture to the entire don. Overall, I absolutely loved the una-tama don and would come back to try their other dons as well. read more

Benemon - Kara-Age Fried Chicken - Japanese Near Me - New York, New York

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Chicken Karaage was juicy and tasty Service was also on top The sake selection was good too (Writing to fulfill the 85 words requirement) read more