Motto: “MEGU continuously strives to leave a memorable impression by welcoming, serving and thanking each guest with the utmost genuine and personalized hospitality.”
Philosophy: Meaning “blessing” in Japanese, MEGU presents modern Japanese cuisine, sushi, and sumibi aburiyaki—a grilling technique using bincho-tan, a special charcoal found only near Kyoto and prized for its superior purifying properties. MEGU is a brand and an image of high quality environment that delivers the quality of exceptional things: outstanding food, brilliant design and first class service. MEGU is a harmony of all the finest and rarest ingredients found from around the world. Both MEGU’s menu and design concept are a blend of traditional and modern Japanese times. Authentic and avant-garde ingredients are combined to suit every palate. The overall décor is filled with customary Japanese interior accents, complimented with a contemporary ambiance.
MEGU’s concept is well-defined as sophisticated organic dining—in which the producer and customer are brought together in celebration—with the best in service and cutting-edge yet serene aesthetics. The MEGU team has carefully selected the best American Kobe Beef available in the U.S. Other Japanese condiments such as salt, soy sauce and 6 varieties of miso are also carefully selected, special for MEGU cuisine.
MEGU has a team of selected chefs and does not employ the idea of a star chef. Instead, it has a collection of chefs who work as a team—the ingredients are the stars.
Some of MEGU’s signature dishes include: MEGU Original Crispy Asparagus, MEGU Oriental Salad, Crispy “Kanzuri” Shrimp, Salmon Tartare, Kobe Beef Carpaccio with Basil, Foie Gras in Crispy Kobe Beef Croquettes, MEGU Kobe Beef Slices “Ishiyaki” and Kobe Beef Skewers.
MEGU offers an extensive wine list with over 600 offerings of wine that perfectly compliment the cuisine – a rare and unique offering for a Japanese restaurant. MEGU New York has won the Wine Spectator award two years in a row in 2006 and 2007, and MEGU Midtown recently won the same award in 2007. Megu also offers 60 varieties of sake from Japan, each available by either glass or bottle.
Yasumichi Morita from Japan’s Glamorous Co. has designed a unique and amazing interior for all New York locations – MEGU New York and MEGU Midtown. In his first United States project, Morita was commissioned to design the two-tiered, 13,000 square-foot MEGU New York space. Blending ultra-modern design with ancient Japanese details, the end result is truly astonishing: white porcelain columns—made of over 5000 interlocking rice bowls and sake vases—greet guests upon entry and line the upper walls overlooking the main dining room. In the upstairs Kimono lounge, stacked bolts of over 450 rolls of antique kimono fabric cover the walls, while white leather banquets with soaring eleven-foot backs provide an intimate setting for pre-dinner cocktails. The Kimono lounge also features floor to ceiling glass walls overlooking the dining room. Below, a giant temple bell, or bonsho, weighing over 800 lbs. is suspended from the ceiling and provides the centerpiece in the soaring main dining area. The centerpiece also features a signature ice Buddha sculpture, elevated over a pool of water that is rebuild every night to ensure the customers of a spiritual and purifying experience.
The rich fabrics, the highest grade wood materials, and the artistic integrity were upheld in the construction of MEGU Midtown. It is pure luxury to match the standard of Trump World Tower. Unlike MEGU New York, MEGU Midtown is more intimate and to express the rich design of Megu, they made the design rise vertically. Almost everything about the design in the main dining room points from the ceiling to the floor. The lamp pillars, the family crests that cascade from top to bottom, and the 27 foot long hand drawn mural of tigers. When the guests arrive they walk up the stairs to the mezzanine and then descend to the main dining room when their reservation is ready. In the waiting bar there is illuminated photographic art conveying the “heart of Japan,” on 7 foot Kimono fabric pedestals. The visual delights at MEGU Midtown in terms of design are, the lamp pillars, the family crest emblems, the open sushi and Teppan-yaki kitchens, and the 500 pound Crystal Chandelier. Using the high ceilings and the wall-to-wall windows they have created another distinct and wonderful space.