Review: Dragon King's Daughter

Italian Picnic and Junmai Ume Sake from Dragon King's Daughter. (Credit: Michael Clevenger)

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I speculate that if Toki Masabuchi had started a “frequently asked questions” file five years ago — when Maido Essential Cuisine opened on Frankfort Avenue — the most frequently asked question would have been, “When are you opening a spot in the Highlands?”

After all, with its Bohemian atmosphere and its playful, rigorous cuisine that’s equally satisfying to the eye, mind and tongue, Maido is the sort of place that once upon a time would have seemed fated for Bardstown Road. But that was before Frankfort Avenue’s splendid restaurant row grew to full maturity.

Nowadays, the two strips are pretty equally matched — more than ever, since last month, when Masabuchi opened a second restaurant, Dragon King’s Daughter, just a block from the corner of Bardstown Road and Grinstead Drive.

The new restaurant (in a space formerly occupied by the Karma Café) is informal but orderly, with a rock-tinged soundtrack; a bright, judiciously decorated interior; and wide, bright windows that offer a fine vantage on the passing scene.

Service, in these first few weeks, has been enthusiastic and expeditious, but front-of-the-house protocols don’t yet have the sort of polish and consistency one would expect: You might have to ask for a pair of chopsticks, for soy sauce, or for hot sauce; when it comes time to refill your iced tea, a server may ask you whether you wish to keep your straw).

The cuisine, however, is as vivid, imaginative and well executed as you’d expect. The Dragon King’s Daughter menu recapitulates some of the ideas Masabuchi has explored over the years at Maido. A few items are exact replicas: the hand-rolled Citrus Heat sushi roll, constructed of red tuna, jalapenos, roasted red pepper and shaved limes ($11) or There Went Drew, made with grilled salmon, cream cheese and avocado (a mere $3 during happy hour, 3-5 p.m.).

But in general, Dragon King’s Daughter explores new territory, in presentation, if not in flavors and textures. In addition to appetizers and sushi rolls, a couple of menu pages are given over to flatbread pizzas and tacos that fuse Asian and Western ideas in delightful ways.

Sashimi pizza ($12) is built by covering an oblong slab of crunchy, grilled flatbread with a beautiful garden of spring mix, luscious avocados, red onions and tamari-sesame sauce, then crowning the entire structure with delicate slices of perfectly carved, beautifully grained red and white tuna and salmon.

Fans of fish tacos will find that Masabuchi has raised the bar to nearly insurmountable heights with her colorful tuna tataki tacos (three to an order, $8) — soft tortillas drizzled with a brilliant avocado-wasabi sauce, diced seared ahi tuna and crunchy, fragrant chips of fried garlic so addictive they deserve to have their own 12-step program.

Other triumphs include: wasabi salsa ($6), a mélange of tomatoes, avocado, mango, jalapenos, cilantro and a bunch of other good stuff served with fried wonton chips; daikon salad ($3), a sort of daikon radish slaw (toasted pine nuts and sesame seeds make a valuable contribution); and sashimi salad — salmon, ahi and white tuna draped atop spring mix and avocado slices, garnished with those garlic chips ($8 for a “half” order, which would be sufficient for two diners; $16 for a “full” order big enough to wow and satisfy four or more).

Some dishes that read wonderfully well on the menu seem over-thought and unsatisfying on the plate: the Italian Picnic makizushi roll ($10), tempura-fried asparagus surrounded by prosciutto, garnished with pine nuts and fresh basil, is overwhelmed by the prosciutto, for an effect more tedious than satisfying; Asian barbecue beef tacos ($7) are cloyingly sweet, despite a dressing of wasabi mayonnaise; a salad of cold buckwheat noodles and cold vegetables possesses an austere, Zen-like purity that seems almost punitive in its simplicity (but, may appeal to diners more philosophical than I).

On the other hand, there is much here to love and explore — chicken tacos ($7) oozing fragrant ginger sauce; avocado tempura ($6); crisp vegetable potstickers plated on a pine green pool of spinach vinaigrette ($4); and a fine, affordable selection of beers, sakes and wine. Heck, Dragon King’s Daughter might even tempt some denizens of the Frankfort Avenue corridor to find their way to the Highlands.

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