Andy and I have been dying to try Kuma Inn for ages. After having to cancel a couple of reservations, we finally made it to Kuma Inn with Donna and Charles in from Atlanta and with our friend Gassan. In harsh economic times, BYOBs are a great choice for those of us who normally have a heftier wine bill than food bill when we go out to eat. We heard great things about Kuma Inn and we were not disappointed.

Kuma Inn is located at 113 Ludlow between Delancey and Rivington on the Lower East Side. The first time we attempted to give it a try we could not even find it, because it is hidden up a narrow staircase on the second floor of the building. This time there was a blackboard on the sidewalk with an arrow, so we could not miss it. After having a couple of strong ales at Spitzer’s (only 1/2 a block away), one of our favorite beer bars, we were hungry for dinner. We headed up the stairs and were immediately faced with the small open kitchen and the cooler (keeping various bottles of sake, wine, and ingredients cold) in the tiny waiting area. We were seated right away and were ready to start our own tasting of Kuma Inn small plates. More on our Kuma Inn BYO extravaganza after the jump…

Kuma Inn descibes its food as “Southeast Asian-style tapas.” The chef, King Phojanakong, a “Thai-Filipino New Yorker” has cooked for Bouley and Boulud, but there is definitely no foie gras or truffles on this menu! The flavors of the small plates are certainly Asian but are vibrant and inventive. We brought four bottles of wine with us and went through them all (Note- $5 corkage fee per bottle) as we embarked on our tasting adventure ordering at least 3 separate rounds of dishes. We tried so much it is hard to describe each dish, but I’ve listed our favorites and the ones we wished we skipped below. We truly feasted at Kuma Inn and it was hard not to continue the ordering frenzy after tasting such wonderful dishes, but beware that Kuma Inn is cash only so you may want to stop by an ATM before devouring the scrumptious small plates like this is your last supper- they do add up in the end!

Our Favorites: (photos that follow were taken by a much more highly skilled food photog than us, Tina Wong, aka The Wandering Eater)

* Deep fried pork belly lechon kawali with atchara (pork belly + fried = mmmmm….)

* Yellowfin tuna tartare with a rice noodle crisp (Fresh yellowfin with nice citrus balance- another please)

* Sautéed chinese sausage with thai chili-lime sauce (Something a bit different for an Asian plate and the sauce was incredible)

* Shrimp Shumai (A special for the day- not like any other shrimp shumai I’ve ever tasted!)

* Pork Buns (Another special for the day- savory pulled pork and plump round buns)

* Asian Paella (You MUST try this)

* Steamed edamame with thai basil-lime oil (A staple snack with a different twist- loved the oil)

Ones we would Skip:

* Grilled baby octopus with pickled bamboo shoots (Needed some sauce for the grilled octopus)

* Grilled salmon, shitake mushrooms & baby bok choy (Good classic dish, but too much else to try!)

* Sautéed tofu, thai basil and wood ears in spicy soy mirin (Also tasty, but other veggie options were more spicy and flavorful)

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