Fish tales

CHENG LIN, Shota Omakase

WORK • Tuesday Routine

CHENG LIN • chef & owner • Shota Omakase
Neighborhood you work in: Williamsburg

It’s Tuesday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace? 
Tuesday is always an exciting day for us since we are closed on Mondays. Our fish arrives from Japan, and our chefs are always curious to see what we’ll get. Since we are getting fish from our buyers in Japan instead of a wholesale company, sometimes we might not get the fish that we ordered (because our fishermen didn’t catch them), so they’ll send different fish they caught instead. Seasonal fish is always better!

What’s on the agenda for today? 
I usually get to the restaurant at 11a, do confirmations with all our guests for the night, check on any dining restrictions that we need to be aware of. I'll then check all of the fish we have, and make our daily menu. My chefs and I then prep and taste all of the fish and other ingredients before service, making sure we are ready to go for the night. Pre-shift begins at 515p, before we open our doors for our first seating at 545p. Our second seating begins at 815p, and we finish service around 11p. Once we clean and close up, we leave around midnight.

Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend? 
We are closed on Mondays, so it’s finally my day off. I'll go to my favorite spot to have sushi, which is Icca in TriBeCa, or Torien in Noho, my favorite yakitori spot. When my kid and I go to dinner on my day off, we love Xiang Hotpot in Brooklyn or Pacific Palace in Brooklyn Chinatown for dim sum. 

How about a little leisure or culture this week? 
I usually take my kid to the park — Sunset Park, Domino Park, or Prospect Park. Such a luxury for me.