Its name sounds like an obscure curse word, but Fugakyu actually means “house of elegance” in Japanese. Entering the Coolidge Corner restaurant, diners may feel as though they are trespassing in someone’s ornate garden.
The floor mimics a garden path and leads to the various dining rooms, complete with tatami sections. There are two fountains, and gorgeous koi fish in one of them. Various Japanese cultural movies play on projection screens, a stark contrast from the countless bamboo poles that adorn the interior.
A moat, complete with wooden boats carrying displays of beautiful sushi, surrounds the delicate-looking sushi bar at Fugakyu. Behind the bar, sushi chefs work with diligent intensity, and all the employees, from suit-clad hosts to busboys, have an earpiece so they can contact each other at a moment’s notice. (It’s as if any minute, an urgent sushi emergency might break out: “Code red! Wasabi at table 17!”)
Despite this ostensible attention to detail, the hosts were unwelcoming, and the waitress was so soft-spoken that most of what she said wasn’t understandable.
That aside, the food was excellent. The options were endless, ranging from Ikura-Oroshi (salmon roe in grated daikon radish) to katsu white fish and udon noodle soup,
The spicy udon noodle soup with grilled beef came in huge portions. The soup was spicy enough to impart both flavor and heat without ever becoming overbearing.
The katsu chicken entrée was deep fried: crunchy outside and tender inside, and it came with miso soup and sticky rice. The chicken was even better when dipped in the sweet-and-sour fruit sauce.
For dessert, the odd sounding, yet fairly traditional fried ice cream involved a scoop of ice cream deep-fried for a few seconds, then covered with loads of whipped cream. However, the green tea ice cream was bland and melted all over the plate.
Although the food is delicious, Fugakyu is definitely not a place for the average student. After 3 p.m., the minimum charge per person is $15. The noodle soup alone was $13, and the katsu chicken entrée cost $16. The very small ice cream was $5.50, sushi ranges from $5 to $10 and entrees can go from $13 to $45.
Near campus, it is a good place to go for special occasions, and taking a date there might be fun because its atmosphere is classy without being uncomfortably intimate.
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